Second to None

A hilarious conspiracy thriller perfect for fans of Gordon Korman and Stuart Gibbs.

In it to win it.

Every school has their number ones: the class president, the first chair in band, the spelling bee champion. And behind every high rolling high achiever? A kid in second place.

Twelve-year-old DJ has a reputation for being the go-to kid for solving just about any problem. Need help getting an unfair teacher or bully off your back? DJ is your guy. He knows the social order of Ella Fitzgerald Middle School like the back of his hand. So when the usual winners start losing ― all at the same time ― he knows something is wrong. Very wrong.

With the help of his usual crew, Audrey, Monty, and Connor, DJ is determined to get to the bottom of what’s happening. Maybe it’s all in his head. Or maybe there’s a conspiracy at work. DJ and his friends will have to figure it out ― before the school saboteur comes for them.

Destiny Howell was born in Florida and decided to become a lawyer to learn all the rules before she quit to write novels about clever kids who break them. She currently lives in Tampa, Florida where she is pursuing an MFA in creative writing and trying to get together a weekly Dungeons & Dragons group (which is proving much trickier). Visit her at destinyhowell.com.