The Escape

May 1, 2015
A hiking trip turns into a crime scene, and a small town is thrown into turmoil. When the town jock Adam Marshall and weirdo Fletcher Carroll go on a routine hike, no one worries until three hours go by without any word from either of them. A search party is quickly organized, and the police chief's daughter, Avery, finds Fletcher bloody, bruised, and having no memory of what exactly happened. Adam is found dead shortly afterward, and everyone in town whispers and tries to figure out who killed the teen sports star. Unfortunately, even only partly alert readers will be able to figure out exactly who did it. A mystery this obvious is a dull read, made less enticing by the lifeless characters populating it. Clunky exposition is wrapped in a moody delivery that feels like a Xerox of a Xerox of a Veronica Mars episode. Most insulting is the author's treatment of schizophrenia, a serious disease that is worthy of careful exploration. Here it is reduced to a catchall answer for the killer's motive and weapon. It is especially unfortunate that this occurs on the second-to-last page of the book, instantly reminding many readers of the similar final moments in Psycho. It is not a good idea to point readers' attention to superior entertainment when your middling mystery is wrapping up. Hollow. (Mystery. 12-16)

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May 1, 2015

Gr 8 Up-The day after popular Adam Marshall goes for a hike with loner Fletcher Carroll, the Dan River Falls police department receives a call that the two boys have vanished. Avery Templeton, daughter of the police chief, volunteers to help with a search of the local woods. Although she knows she shouldn't stray from the path, when she does, Avery finds a bruised and bloody Fletcher with no memory of the events of the previous day and no idea where Adam could be. The rumor at Dan River Falls High School is that Fletcher is guilty of murder, but Avery, who is spending more time with him, is determined to prove his innocence. Told from the viewpoints of Fletcher and Avery, this mystery is entertaining but lacks depth. Flashbacks add to the even pacing the work: as Fletcher's memories slowly reveal what happened on the hike, suspense builds, and readers begin to see potentially interesting layers to the boy's personality. But a new side of the teen is never quite revealed, and Avery remains frustratingly static; at times, her knowledge of police lingo and murder investigative procedure is more interesting than her thoughts or her actions. As it is, Avery complements Fletcher, and the dynamic between the two helps to keep readers interested. VERDICT A thriller of average quality, The Escape offers readers a slight twist to an otherwise predictable ending.-Maggie Mason Smith, Clemson University R. M. Cooper Library, South Carolina

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