Roisin thought moving to the United States from her home in Ireland would be a great adventure, but it's turned out to be the opposite. She hasn't made a single friend since arriving in Massachusetts. Even the one potential friend, the daughter of her mom's new boss, seems to be ghosting her. Plus, mean girl Zara seems determined to make Roisin's life miserable.
Her older brother has the bizarre ability to make friends with everyone immediately, her mom is always at work, and her dad is still in Ireland finishing a project before joining the rest of the family. That leaves Roisin alone to deal with all her problems.
Zara is bad enough in person, but her bullying takes on a whole new life online. Roisin has no escape from the cruel memes and hateful comments. Then she connects with Haley online. They have so much in common, and Haley has survived a bully of her own. Soon Roisin is spending all her time chatting with Haley online. They even begin to jokingly talk about how the world would be better without Zara.
When Zara is in a terrible accident, Roisin is worried the police will suspect her because of the chats with Haley. Roisin wants Haley to delete all the chats, but when she tries to meet with her best friend in real life, Haley is nowhere to be found. Has Haley been lying about her true identity? Who is Haley, and what if her comments in the chat were more than just jokes?
This fast-paced story by Sheila Averbuch will appeal to middle grade grade readers. Zara is a truly heinous bully for readers to hate, but they should also be suspicious of Roisin's online friendship with Haley. The tech aspect is an interesting twist even if some readers will see it coming. This book also deals with some of the more realistic perils of online friendship without being preachy. Recommended.
