Rashid is loyal to his Muslim faith, but he sometimes wishes he could fade into the background or at least be seen as a person instead of a potential terrorist.
Z has nowhere left to turn. His mother recently died of cancer, and he is being evicted from their apartment. He's failing all his classes, and no one seems to care.
Tad is tired of pretending. He's already come out to his family, but they aren't very accepting. He thought he'd met someone who would be willing to accept him, but now things are falling apart.
Cas is tired of everything. Her parents thought moving her to a new school would change things, but nothing will help. She's tired of being the constant victim of bullying.
Frankie is the popular guy, captain of the varsity football team, and the one who can do no wrong--even when he tries. Recently, he made a big mistake, and he'll do anything to keep his secret.
Six kids who are at school one day in the last weeks of summer. Each of them has a secret. Each of them is determined to make things change no matter the cost.
When a bomb detonates inside the school that day, these six relative strangers will have to try to survive. But things are even worse, there are more bombs in the building preventing rescue crews from getting to them, and the latest reports reveal one of the six is the bomber.
Joelle Charbonneau's newest book is a thrilling mystery which addresses timely issues, but I did feel a bit let down by the ending. Once the bomber's identity was revealed, I had to go back and reread the paragraph because it just didn't make sense. I think I needed more backstory to understand the person's motivation, and it just never came. Also, with recent school shootings still fresh on my mind, this was a difficult book to read. That said, I think kids will love the mystery and suspense and relate to the characters who feel that no one truly understands them. Grades 7 and up
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