Missing, Presumed Dead

March 15, 2019
A lonely teen must use her odd powers to track down a killer.Eighteen-year-old Alexandra "Lexi" Ivanovich can tell how and when someone will die with just a touch and has an affinity with ghosts. If she tries to save someone from their fate, it only delays the inevitable and can have horrible consequences, a lesson she learned the hard way. Lexi keeps people at a distance, including her de facto family members, who all work for a Los Angeles club, Elysium, whose owner, Urie Porchowsky, offers lifetime protection to youngsters with at least "one foot in the unknown." After one of their own goes missing, Lexi witnesses the gruesome murder of a local high school student named Jane, and her ghost is soon asking Lexi for help. The disappearances escalate, and Lexi must find the killer while battling her burgeoning feelings for Jane. Lexi and Jane's tentative (and unusual) relationship is sweet, actually overshadowing the murder mystery, and Berquist (Devils unto Dust, 2018) effectively tackles the destructive nature of grief and loneliness, but the worldbuilding is rather slight. Lexi, Jane, and most of the Elysium crew are presumed white, but some diversity can be found in peripheral characters.Moody paranormal fare that lacks the spark of Berquist's debut; consider this a sophomore slump. (Paranormal thriller. 14-18)

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May 1, 2019

Gr 9 Up-Horror meets mystery in this supernatural whodunit for lovers of murder and suspense. Lexi is cursed with two abilities: she can interact with ghosts and can tell how someone is going to die through physical contact. This unusual combination of skills has led to extreme isolation, with her only contacts being other members of Los Angeles's supernatural underground. By day she frequents mental hospitals and tries to keep her head above water financially. At night, she bartends and runs errands at one of the only paranormal bars in town. The "errands" are mostly putting ghosts to rest, not a bad job for someone who hates being around the living. Her community is shaken when murders start cropping up in their usually protective area and Lexi is unfortunate enough to run into one of the victims the night before she is murdered, drawing Lexi into the puzzle of who is killing and why. The combination of horror and mystery genres opens up the readership for this book, as does the LGBTQ+ character and the appealing sense of isolation that many teens struggle with. There is enough kissing and boy drama for those who prefer romance in their novels, and enough bodies and swearing for the readers who want fear and grittiness. Lexi's kind relationship with her grandfather fleshes her out, taking her from a stock character to someone more three-dimensional. VERDICT A fun, fast-paced read for students looking for a thrill.-Sara Kundrik, Gilbert Paterson Middle School, Alta.

Copyright 2019 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 1, 2019
Grades 9-12 Lexi does what she can to avoid touching people, because when she does, she sees how they'll die. It's an unpleasant ability, especially since she learned a long time ago not to interfere?death can't be cheated. And that's why, when she bumps into a girl outside an L.A. nightclub and sees that her death is violent and soon, she does nothing. But then the girl returns as a ghost who demands Lexi's help in catching her murderer. The problem is that the ghost, Jane, doesn't remember much from the night she died. Lexi, who's connected to a network of L.A.'s psychics and witches, has some help, but Jane isn't the first person to go mysteriously missing, and the city is tense. As their investigation intensifies, Lexi finds herself increasingly drawn to Jane while struggling to hide the fact that she knew about her impending death all along. Gritty and high-concept, this cross-genre murder mystery has plenty of appeal for horror and crime fiction fans, and the beginnings of a star-crossed f/f romance add depth.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)