THE LOWDOWN:
Andrew Winston Winters is at war with himself.
He’s part Win, the lonely teenager exiled to a remote Vermont boarding school in the wake of a family tragedy. The guy who shuts all his classmates out, no matter the cost.
He’s part Drew, the angry young boy with violent impulses that control him. The boy who spent a fateful, long-ago summer with his brother and teenage cousins, only to endure a secret so monstrous it led three children to do the unthinkable.
Over the course of one night, while stuck at a party deep in the New England woods, Andrew battles both the pain of his past and the isolation of his present.
Before the sun rises, he’ll either surrender his sanity to the wild darkness inside his mind or make peace with the most elemental of truths—that choosing to live can mean so much more than not dying.
FIRST IMPRESSION:
I don’t feel the presence of God here.
I pace along the far side of the river, my ears filled with the hum of cicadas and the roar of water flowing over the milldam. Vermont is postcard perfect. I could stand on my toes and peer over the current and the cattails and see the whole town spread before me. Green-shuttered houses. The cobblestone square. The church spire. The boarding school.
But I don’t.
I crave the illusion of solitude.
The dark-haired girl, who looks like a boy, watches me from the woods.
—ARC paperback edition
SNAPSHOT:
This emotional rollercoaster of a story is told through Win’s unique and hypnotic voice as he details the past (antimatter) that haunts him and the present (matter) that has him trapped in solitude.
Win is one of the most complex and hurt narrators to come along in a while. His is a life filled with dark twists, family horror, and personal cages. His story—both of them—ramp up at a steady pace, keeping the reader in the grip of his words. In the end, one may be left wondering the exact nature of Win’s history but respectful of his choices.
Win’s friends, Lex and Jordan, become some of the few bright spots in his life while his brother Keith’s shadow looms long and tragic over him.
Appropriate for ages 14+. Very mature YA. Includes strong language, violence, intense situations, sexuality and assault. Deals with death, mental health, family relationships, identity, responsibility, and survivor’s guilt.
GET IT ON YOUR SHELF:
If you…
– Enjoy stories where a character must overcome their demons
– Have ever felt alone and misunderstood
– Are a paranormal fan
– Want edge-of-your-seat mystery and mind-blowing twists
– Love eerie, moody tales of self-exploration
THE ESSENTIALS:
Contemporary YA
Hardcover & Ebook 224 pages
Published June 11th, 2013 by St. Martin’s Griffin (ISBN 1250021944)
(Review copy provided by Eileen Rothschild at St. Martin’s Press Publicity)