Rad Reads for Teens

Monday, June 04, 2007

The Seance by Joan Lowery Nixon

Joan Lowery Nixon is a four-time Edgar Award winner for her suspenseful, scary stories. The Seance gets 4 out of 5 stars for suspense and creepy.

Lauren has lived in a small town in Texas with her aunt Melvamay since her mother died when she was four and her father was killed in a truck accident. Also living in the house is Sara Martin, another teen who goes to school with Lauren. Laura and Sara aren't friends. Laura has seen Sara sneaking out of the house at night and watches when strange guys drop her back off late. She envies Sara's popularity and beauty but stays away from her as much as possible. In their school, too, is a girl named Roberta who supposedly can talk to the dead. Some girls in school talk Roberta into holding a seance and both Lauren and Sara are invited.

At the seance, Roberta locks the doors, turns off the lights, lights a candle and begins. Lauren feels immediately uncomfortable, like someone is watching. Sara begins to scream. When the lights come back on fear turns to terror, however; Sara is missing. Two days later they find her body.

The police ask the girls to re-enact the seance but when another girl from the seance turns up missing, and later dead Lauren decides she must find the murderer before she is the next victim

Joan Nixon's writing makes you sit on the edge of your seat at times and provides sighs of relief at other times. Every chapter keeps you asking questions and trying to guess who dun' it. Hint: It's not who you think.