Right of Way

Gr 9 Up—Peyton Miller and her long-distance ex-boyfriend Jace Renault are reunited at a wedding in Florida. The reasons for their breakup are not initially made clear and both are anxious about their meeting. Their chemistry is instantly revived and then extinguished in yet another mysterious falling out. Their backstory is pieced together as they embark on a spontaneous and ill-planned road trip to deliver Peyton to her home in Connecticut. However, Peyton is secretly planning to go off on her own once they reach North Carolina so she can escape the hardships and anxiety surrounding her parents' impending divorce. The mystery of the teens' relationship, brief as it turns out to be, and their unexplained estrangements, fuel the plot. Readers are left wondering why they keep coming back together. Though the two voices are barely distinguishable, the alternating viewpoints infuse events with romantic tension and the drama of the misunderstood intentions. The ending is satisfying but somewhat convenient given Peyton's desire to abandon her mother's habit of relying on men for money and problem solving. Readers willing to forgive these minor flaws will race to the end of this light summer read.—Lynn Rashid, Marriotts Ridge High School, Marriottsville, MD