December 14, 2009
Jarzab’s strong debut tracks teenage Neily and Audrey’s investigation of the murder of 16-year-old Carly—Audrey’s cousin and Neily’s ex—in an affluent San Francisco suburb one year after Audrey’s father is convicted of the crime. Neily is a bright, cynical senior at Brighton Day School; bitter after being dumped by Carly, he didn’t return her calls on the night of her death and still blames himself. Audrey, who has returned to Brighton after “a self-imposed exile,” badgers Neily into helping clear her father’s name (“I can tell that behind that weak Holden Caulfield affectation is a spongy, leaking heart desperate for some sort of closure”). The story shifts between Neily and Audrey’s points of view, but only a few times, letting readers sink into each character’s mindset—painful, unhealed wounds are evident underneath both Neily’s clinical, sarcastic exterior and Audrey’s more open, confident manner. It’s a slow-building, slow-burning mystery—Jarzab is as interested in probing Neily and Audrey’s emotional states and the ramifications of Carly’s murder as she is in solving it—but the author’s confident, literary prose makes for a tense and immersive thriller. Ages 14–up.
March 1, 2010
Gr 9 Up-This rich, psychological mystery opens with 17-year-old Neily Monroe standing on the bridge where, a year earlier, he found Carly Ribelli's body. Having gone from being her best friend to her boyfriend to a piece of detritus she left in her wake, it's no surprise that he is having trouble "getting over" Carly's murder. Nonetheless, he is determined to somehow make it through high school and move on. Then the school year starts and Neily is approached by Carly's cousin, Audrey. Since her father was convicted of the murder, Neily is surprised that she would come back to school. As it turns out, she is there to find out who "really" murdered Carly, and she is determined to have his help. The narrative alternates between the teens' perspectives, though Neily's voicesarcastic and insightfulis the stronger of the two. The portrayal of the cliquey private high school is familiar but not clichéd. A satisfying story from a promising new author."Eliza Langhans, Hatfield Public Library, MA"
Copyright 2010 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
October 15, 2009
Grades 9-12 With smooth assurance, Jarzab transforms what could have been a formulaic story of boarding-school students behaving badly into a fresh, compelling tale. Part mystery, part character study, the story hooks readers immediately, propelling them through a serpentine path of secrets and lies. Seventeen-year-old Neily found the body of his ex-girlfriend, Carly, on the Empire Creek bridge. A year later, Carlys uncle is imprisoned for the crime, but neither Neily nor the victims cousin, Audrey, is convinced that he is the murderer. Forming an often-acrimonious partnership, the two teens narrate the chapters in alternating voices as they follow the clues to a nail-biting conclusion and discover the truth not only about the murder but also about themselves. The characters are distinct and memorable, but it is Neily who stands out with a pitch-perfect, sarcastic voice and a personality that surges from the pages of this promising debut.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2009, American Library Association.)
July 1, 2010
A year after Carly's murder, friends Neily and Audrey team up to find her killer. Their investigation exposes unsettling secrets about her final months. Jarzab's deft construction of alternating narratives by Neily and Audrey reveals not only Carly's mysterious last days but also the girls' relationship with one another. The murder mystery, while suspenseful, is not as well developed as the fully realized characters.
(Copyright 2010 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)