Klickitat

After fifteen-year-old Vivian's older sister Audra leaves home, she sends for Vivian, inviting her to join Audra and her new boyfriend in their "own kind of family." The threesome survives on the edges of Portland, Oregon, until they are prepared to leave for Alaska. Uneasy relationships among the hidden teens create an eerie tension that builds until their adventure comes to a premature--and supernatural--end.

"I was a girl with a snarl inside. A snarl is a knot, a tangle, and it can also be a sound." Fifteen-year-old Vivian is socially isolated and prone to bouts of unexplained panic; her biggest comfort is her older sister, Audra. When Audra whispers their secret word-Klickitat-Vivian calms, remembering that, like the Quimby girls, they will always be sisters. But Audra is pulling away from the family-she sneaks out every night, returning barefoot and surly to rail against her parents' technology-obsessed suburban lifestyle. Her parents assume ordinary teenage rebellion, but observant Vivian correctly suspects a deeper shift. Audra soon disappears altogether, but then sends for Vivian, inviting her to join Audra and her new, enigmatic boyfriend Henry in starting their "own kind of family." The threesome survives on the edges of Portland, Oregon, hiding from recognition until they are prepared to leave for Alaska. Vivian is a naive, apprehensive narrator; she follows, observes, puzzles quietly over Audra and Henry's strange new beliefs and about the weird messages that appear in her notebook. Uneasy, claustrophobic relationships develop among the hidden teens, creating an eerie tension that builds until their adventure comes to a premature-and supernatural-end. Although the story moves rather slowly, this pensive, atmospheric novel rewards its readers with an unsettling yet beguiling exploration of how humans connect with each other, their environment, and what lies beyond. jessica tackett macdonald