Accomplice by Eireann Corrigan

Accomplice by Eireann Corrigan

Scholastic, 2010

Summary from Goodreads:

They've gotten good grades - but that's not good enough. They've spent hours on community service - but that's not good enough. Finn and Chloe's advisor says that colleges have enough kids with good grades and perfect attendance, so Chloe decides they'll have to attract attention another way. She and Finn will stage Chloe's disappearance, and then, when CNN is on their doorstep and the nation is riveted, Finn will find and save her. It seems like the perfect plan - until things start to go wrong. Very wrong.

WOW. I've been working on a NJ-teens booklist for work, and I was almost done with the list when I decided to check our catalog one more time. I'm glad I did, because this book was phenomenal! It's very rare for me to feel so uncomfortable while reading a book. It was so hard to read this book! Yes, Finn and Chloe decided to do this awful, terrible thing, but they're not awful, terrible kids--I think that's why I was so uncomfortable. They just came up with this idea, and it was a really, really stupid idea. Kids do that sometimes, right?

The other reason I was so uneasy while reading this book is because I couldn't see how the story could end well. I mean, if everything ended "happily ever after," it would be an easy out for the author. However, I really grew to like Finn and didn't want the story to end badly for her, either. Obviously, since Finn was the one left behind while Chloe was missing, she was the one to see how the girls' actions affected their family, friends, and the whole town. It was so tough! I think Corrigan handled the story very well...I don't want to spoil the ending, but I think it was believable.

I really enjoyed this book--it was a surprising find for me, and an enjoyable one at that! Oh, and what makes this an authentic NJ-teens book? Disco fries. Awesome.

Enjoy your reading!
Christi