Final Touch

December 1, 2010

Gr 8-10-The series concludes in this novel with the promise of a fairy-tale ending: Shaley's mom, a famous rock star, is preparing to marry her high school sweetheart, Gary Donovan, who is the teen's father. After many years apart, the couple was reunited. The wedding day dawns, and things run smoothly until Shaley is abducted by a stalker recently released from prison. The majority of the novel follows her attempts to escape. The narration switches between Shaley's account of the ordeal and a third-person account of the family's response. This format maintains suspense and creates quick pacing likely to entice reluctant readers. The writing is clunky at times, and the novel's religious themes sometimes feel heavy-handed. Students who appreciate a good thriller will likely forgive these flaws, though, and breeze through this page-turner.-Lindsay Cesari, Baldwinsville School District, NY

Copyright 2010 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 1, 2010
Grades 8-12 A Freudian would have a field day with the basic setup of the latest in the popular Rayne Tour series. On the very day of the sumptuous wedding celebration of Rayne OConnor, rock star and mother of teen Shaley, Shaley steals the show by getting kidnapped by a man determined to make her his bride. Despiteor maybe because ofthis sexual strangeness, this is a riveting read featuring a tense, protracted hostage situation that forces Shaley to outwit her captor. Fans of this book will be drawn back to the first two in the series.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)