From the author of the bestselling "The True Meaning of Cleavage" comes a suspenseful tale of teenage angst and terror, as an online fantasy game becomes all-too-real for one of its role players. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.

This ambitious second novel from the author of The True Meaning of Cleavage covers roughly the same terrain alienation among affluent New York City teens with mixed success. The story starts strong, capturing the obsessive pull that an online computer game has on 14-year-old Judith Ellis, who freaks when one of her online opponents attacks the character she's playing. Too coincidentally the "psycho killer" from the game turns out to be her "juvenile delinquent" neighbor, Jonathan. Identities revealed, the two drop the online game to create their own, to the horror of Judith's overprotective, divorced mother. This budding friendship helps to compensate for Judith's isolation at school, where she's been dumped by former best friend, Leia. Judith dreads walking past Leia's apartment, though the author does not reveal until late in the story that the heroine is not running from her ex-friend but rather from the memory of having been attacked in the lobby of Leia's building (an attack she has kept secret from all but Jonathan). In an interesting twist, Jonathan helps Judith confront her fear; the development of their relationship is the novel's greatest strength. However, Judith's possibly confused sexuality is one of several threads left undeveloped, and the subplot in which she tutors a "fat, rich... airhead" has a predictable outcome. Smooth writing and authentic dialogue add an unnaturally quiet tone to a book that brims with conflicts but never quite manages to bring them into sharp relief. Ages 12-up. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

Gr 7 Up The author of The True Meaning of Cleavage (Atheneum, 2003) again perceptively explores the psyche of teenagers. Judith, 15, believes it's safest to "be invisible." The previous year she was attacked as she walked alone at night and still feels powerless to tell anyone about the incident. Her former best friend refuses to acknowledge her existence and her divorced father lives 3000 miles away. The only place where she feels free to be anyone she wants to be is in the online role-playing game she's addicted to, in which her character is always male. After Irgan, her Internet enemy, forfeits the right to kill her off, Judith drops out of the Game and becomes determined to learn his identity. She's surprised and intrigued to discover that he's a teenager with a reputation as a druggie and screw-up who lives in her apartment building. Despite her mother's misgivings, Judith and Jonathan become close as they act out a live role-playing game where there are no rules. Jonathan helps her deal with the attack and shows her that it's OK to be a girl. Judith also finds real friendship with Katie, an insecure girl she tutors in math. This novel realistically portrays young adults trying to find themselves, fit in, and resist the labels put on them. Judith is a strong character who will appeal to readers who like books by Sarah Dessen, Ann Brashares, Megan McCafferty, and Jaclyn Moriarty. Teens will also like the gaming and role-playing aspects. Sharon Rawlins, Piscataway Public Library, NJ Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

Gr. 7-10. Alienated from her best friend, Judith finds her current existence so frustrating and unsatisfactory that she joins an online game, taking on the persona of Gareth, a self-confident teenage boy who can intimidate even the most aggressive characters. Little does she know, one of her opponents is actually her across-the-hall, bad-boy neighbor, Jonathan Heitman. Fredericks, author of The True Meaning of Cleavage (2003), uses the contemporary online gaming environment to reveal age-old truths about friendship, parents, and the struggles of growing up in an unforgiving high-school environment. Judith, Jonathan, and new friend Katie are real teens, each saddled with shallow, unfair reputations: Judith, possibly gay; Jonathan, a troubled druggie; Katie, fat, stupid, and rich. Their attempts at friendship and survival in a hostile high school and, for Jonathan and Katie, in troubled family environments will ring true to all teens who see themselves as outsiders. FrancesBradburn. From: Syndetics Solutions, Inc. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.