First off, I'm a sucker for books set on sailboats, as this one is. Secondly, I like protagonists who are a little awkward, unsure of themselves. Rachel is certainly not finished, but she's heading in the right direction. The broken sister and the troubled parents kind of pile it on, but somehow ...
Someone had left a copy of the Vancouver Sun on the table, and the headlines were all about wars and people being killed in other countries. I folded it over so the twins wouldn’t see the pictures. My brain felt all twitchy, like it was hopping from one worry to another. “...
“I’d better get home,” I say reluctantly. The room is smoky and my eyes are stinging. “My mom gets up at six.” Parker stands up and stretches. “I’ll drive you.” Leo folds up the sign, careful not to smudge the still tacky paint. “How about Dante and I go? We can hang the sign, and then I’ll run h...
She is sitting outside on the steps at 3:30, waiting to talk to me. I want her to ask me how things are going, whether things are okay with my grandmother, but she doesn’t. “My mother is so freaking selfish,” she says. “I hate her.” I sit down on the steps beside her. “What’s going on?” “Michael....
u still there? yup, still here. I rub my hands over my face, relieved and a bit embarrassed. God, I’m glad Ethan has no idea how pathetic I am. Has no idea how crazy in love with him I am. my mom just phoned and guess what? I shake my head. Here I am panicking and he was just talking to his mom. ...
Olivia crouched on Salty Mist’s stern. “Patrick, I’m so sorry,” she whispered. “I’m really, really, really...” “Did you swim over?” I asked, staring at him. “The water must be freezing.” His face was stiff with anger: his mouth a thin line, his eyes cold, his brows low. “Get in the dinghy, Olivia...
By the time we arrived on the outskirts of LA, the sun was coming up. The horizon was streaked with vivid orange, and the darker sky above looked almost purple. I pulled the car over to the side of the road, since I had no idea where in the city Ronnie’s friend lived. “Wake up, Ronnie,” I whisper...
Maybe she’s the real thing. I didn’t believe it, but as long as there was the slightest possibility that Kathy could communicate with my mother—even a speck-sized possibility—it was going to be impossible for me to put the thought out of my head. I got out of bed and rummaged through the laundry ...
Harrison picks us up as usual, and she’s smiling. “Good day?” I guess she doesn’t know. “All right,” I say. Edie shrugs and gets into the passenger seat beside her mother. I hold my breath, waiting, but she doesn’t say anything. Which doesn’t mean she won’t. I can’t relax yet. “I thought we’d get...
On the floor, sitting slumped against the cupboards. His face is pale and beaded with sweat. I drop my bag and run to him. “Dad! What’s wrong? Is it your back?” He shakes his head. “Dunno. Thought so. Different.” His words come out in gasps. I crouch beside him on the floor. “Pain?” “Um. Yeah. My...
She let us into a glossy front hall—all glass-paneled doors and marble floors—and I tried not to stare. I untied my boots, slipped them off and lined them up neatly with the rows of shoes on the mat. “We’re still unpacking,” Victoria said apologetically, gesturing to the empty bookshelf in the hu...
Our gear lies heaped in huge colorful piles beside the road, and my arms and shoulders feel like they’ve been through a shredder. The fuel was brutal to unload. Back in Perth, we filled the steel drums after we loaded them onto the truck, so none of us quite realized how unmanageable they were. T...
Dad orders takeout for dinner, and my parents and I sit around the living room together, eating Thai food and watching Netflix. Everything feels wonderfully normal. Detective Bowerbank calls to confirm that the white powder in the mailbox was not anthrax, and we celebrate by defrosting a chocolat...
I could only look at him for a couple of seconds at a time—he was too beautiful, and it made me feel all flustered and stupid. I had to take in his face in small glimpses, one feature at a time. Brown eyes that slanted downward at the outer corners when he smiled. Thick straight eyebrows. Full li...
Ben asked. His mom was stirring oatmeal on the stove. “I don’t think so.” “Don’t we have some left from Stella’s birthday?” Ben looked at Stella, who was stacking cans of beans into a tower. “Stella, do you have balloons?” “Balloons,” Stella said happily. She knocked over her tower, and the cans ...