Grit

Gr 9 Up—Darcy is a raker—she harvests blueberries at the Wardwell Farm alongside migrant farmworkers in Sansoa, ME. It's not true that nothing ever happens in a small town: in this one, "MISSING" posters depicting Darcy's friend Rhiannon hang from every telephone pole on Main Street, and Darcy's cousin Nell thinks she has fallen in love with a teacher, which no one but Darcy knows about. Lacking the means to leave, the teen falls into risky behavior—excessive drinking and hooking up—with the wild Kat; when love interest Jesse pulls her away from that crowd, Darcy doesn't understand why the first thing on his mind is not sex. He's a good guy, and Darcy's mother, Sarah, is also first-rate. She remembers being wild herself and what it cost their family: Darcy's father fell off a high beam to his death before he was 40 because he couldn't resist a dare. Sarah is a good parent and a refreshing change from the stereotypical "bad" mother of a "bad" kid. Rhiannon's disappearance is a mystery: Did she run away a year ago because she, too, wanted to get out of Sansoa, or is she dead? The town thinks the latter, and the protagonist doesn't know for sure, but readers of this excellent teen drama will find out a thing or two before deciding for themselves. This page-turner will hold the interest of mystery fans.