Abby quickly feels like she's losing a grip on her once-happy life. The only thing she cares about is talking to Luke, a guy she met online. It feels dangerous yet good to chat with Luke--he is her secret, and she's his. But when Abby goes missing after meeting Luke, everyone is left to put together the pieces. If they don't, they'll never see Abby again.

Reviews

Gr 10 Up-Abby is ambivalent about her first day of high school. She has never been part of the cool crowd like her younger sister, Lily. Her best friend since second grade, Faith, encourages Abby to try new things and make new friends. But discouraged by her lack of popularity, a horrifying attempt to audition for the school play, and her parents' inattentiveness, Abby retreats to her online sanctuary, ChezTeen.com, where she meets Luke Redmond. Unlike her family and increasingly distant best friend, Luke completely understands Abby's concerns about high school and assures her that she is smart, funny, and attractive. Abby becomes enamored of Luke and begins to honor his requests for nude photographs and webcam stripteases. She agrees to meet him, resulting in a kidnapping scare that produces unintended but tragic consequences for all the players involved. The plot moves along at a compulsively readable pace. However, the characters' alternating voices are often impossible to distinguish and the message about Internet safety, while pertinent, is at times too heavy-handed and repetitive. Littman does not skimp on the descriptions of the sexual exploitation, creating a realistic portrayal of the sordid nature of predators. Despite the flaws, this book is a compelling, if not disturbing, read.-Lynn Rashid, Marriotts Ridge High School, Marriottsville, MD (c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.