Tragedy Girl

Gr 8 Up—After the death of her parents in a car accident, Anne Welch decides that moving to her Aunt Meg and Uncle Mark's home near the beach in South Carolina for her senior year of high school will help her move on. Tired of the pitying looks and sympathetic questions, she gets off to a good start at Hollis Island High by making new friends and catching the eye of the school's cutest senior. She soon discovers that Blake has weathered his share of tragedy—his girlfriend drowned in the ocean a few months earlier. Blake seems perfect, but there are a few red flags that Anne cannot make herself ignore. When Anne's new friend starts dating Blake's best friend and anonymous notes in Anne's locker warn her to steer clear of him and Blake, she knows she needs to figure out what really happened to his old girlfriend. While fast moving and gripping, this title does not cover new ground and relies on plot machinations that most young adult readers have previously encountered. Anne and Blake are well-drawn characters but could've have been more developed. Story elements, such as Anne's relationship with her friends and the antagonist Natalie, suffered because of the novel's abbreviated length. Recommend to readers looking for a quick mystery to pass the time.