October 23rd, 2012 from Harcourt Children's Books
Seventeen-year-old Tricia Farni’s body floated to the surface of Alaska’s Birch River six months after the night she disappeared. The night Roz Hart had a fight with her. The night Roz can’t remember. Roz, who struggles with macular degeneration, is used to assembling fragments to make sense of the world around her. But this time it’s her memory that needs piecing together—to clear her name . . . to find a murderer.
I have been in need of a good mystery for a long time! From the beginning I was interested in Roz's story. She has a vision impairment and struggles with some everyday tasks. The girl is smart and she compensates and gets by just fine. I loved her fighting and "I can do it on my own" spirit! You don't feel sorry for her, but you do commend her for sticking it out and making due with her situation. I hope young readers look at Roz and find inspiration in her story.
The mystery behind Tricia's death, a former classmate of Roz', was really interesting and fascinating. There are all sorts of town secrets and skeletons living in people's closets. At any given time I thought the murderer was one of four people. I was looking for the giant in-your-face clue, but Ellen was smart and kept me guessing the whole time. We flash back to the beginning of the school year to the present and try to piece together what happened after this house party. We get to know Tricia, the girl murdered, and she was very difficult to like. Her behavior and antics were sometimes out of left field. I can imagine that she was a fun person to write for. When Roz's lies keep piling up, fingers being to point to her and she has to find out once and for all what happened to Tricia even though several people try to stop her.
A mix bag of characters - some you love, some you can't stand - classic who-done-it, and a really intense ending!
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