Defriended (Point Horror) - Softcover

Baron, Ruth

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0545423570 ISBN 13: 9780545423571

Publisher: Scholastic Inc., 2013

Synopsis

It's the return of Point Horror for the Internet generation! Don't open the door. Don't answer your phone. And whatever you do, DON'T turn on your computer . . .

Jason has met the perfect girl. Ok, so maybe he hasn't actually MET Lacey yet, but they talk online all the time. Yet despite spending most nights chatting, Lacey refuses to meet up in person. Suspicious, Jason starts googling, and his cyberstalking leads to a shocking discovery: according to multiple newspapers, Lacey died in car crash a year earlier.

Soon, Jason finds himself enmeshed in a disturbing mystery. Has he found a way to iChat with the dead? Or is someone playing a dangerous trick? Either way, Jason has to discover the truth before it's too late. You can't put up away messages from beyond the grave . . .

About this title

About the Author

Ruth Baron is the web editor at O Magazine. She lives in Brooklyn, NY.

Reviews

Gr 9 Up-It has been several months since Jason and Lacey started messaging each other through Facebook, and Jason has never been happier. Finally, he has found a girl who understands him and listens to the same indie bands that he does, not to mention that she also happens to be beautiful. There's only one problem: a Google search for Lacey's name links to her obituary. Stunned by this revelation, Jason is soon enveloped by the mystery surrounding Lacey's death and the dramas of the high school caste system that he has tried so hard to avoid. Defriended is an exciting mystery that will appeal to today's digital natives who have grown up surrounded by status updates, tweets, and mobile devices. Furthermore, this novel is timely due to recent high-profile examples of "catfishing"-where an individual creates a false online identity, often with deceptive or malicious romantic goals. Baron's writing style is full of references to the indie-music scene and maintains an engaging pace throughout. Of note is the regular use of instant and text messages sent between the characters, identifiable through the use of a separate font style that perfectly captures the now-dominant mode of communication among students and their peers. An excellent addition to any YA mystery collection.-Ryan F. Paulsen, New Rochelle High School, NYα(c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

This juicy offering from the newly revived Point Horror imprint hits kids where they live: Facebook. Jason’s mere 248 Facebook friends are indicative of his “utterly pathetic middle- and high-school career,” so it’s no wonder he’s obsessed with Lacey, a pretty 16-year-old he’s never met but who shares his music tastes via Facebook chat. Impatient to meet her in person, Jason searches the web for her name and discovers a small problem: Lacey died several months ago. So is the Lacey he’s chatting with a ghost? An imposter? Or is it possible that Lacey is still alive? Baron taps into very real modern-day concerns about online impersonations to deliver a fast, predictable, but undeniably fun horror thriller that has Jason aligning himself with Lacey’s former best friend, brother, and boyfriend, any one of whom could be the puppet master behind the deadly play. Pair this with another Point Horror title, Anna Davies’ Identity Theft(2013), which also centers around the fiendish fad of Facebook. Grades 8-11. --Daniel Kraus

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

From Defriended:

The headline glared at him from the screen.

Teen Killed; Body Found After Local Party

Jason blinked. On the monitor, Lacey's name blinked back at him. He rubbed his eyes. It was still there. His brain sprinted through the possible explanations: It was another Lacey Gray, it was another town called Brighton; it was all just a terribly unfortunate coincidence. The problem he couldn't get around was the photo. The image he knew better than any shot of himself, better than any photo of anyone. It was Lacey's profile picture. Frozen, midlaugh, the girl of his dreams was right there in front of him. Maybe he was hallucinating. He pinched himself. Hard. It hurt, but none of the text in front of him changed. Jason's inbox pinged. One new e-mail. The sender's name made his stomach twist with a mixture of relief and terror.

Whether she was alive or dead, Lacey Gray was online.

Edition details

• Publisher: Scholastic Inc.
• Publication date: 2013
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0545423570
• ISBN 13: 9780545423571
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 224