Wish You Were Dead -- Todd Strasser
Str-S-d: "I hate you, Lucy. I really hate you. You are my #1 pick. I wish you were dead."
IaMnEmEsIs: "Perhaps your wish will come true."
The day after Str-S-d and IaMnEmSiS posted that exchange online, Lucy Cunningham, the most popular—though very definitely not the nicest—girl in Soundview, disappears.
And then another popular student disappears.
And another.
Madison Archer, friend to the popular—but nice to the downtrodden masses—has started receiving anonymous notes from someone who claims to know what's going on. Also, for the last year, she's been receiving messages from a cyberstalker, PBleeker, for the past year. And now, she finds herself strangely attracted to trenchcoat-wearing Tyler, the new guy who may very well be mixed up in the whole thing...
Pluses:
- MODERN LOIS DUNCAN. YAAAAAY!!!
- Multiple voices: Blogger Str-S-d, Madison, a bit of third-person, but BEST OF ALL, Killer Cam!
- Some genuinely creepy moments, as well as some decent suspense.
Minuses:
- Has pretty much all of the flaws of a Lois Duncan, including occasionally stilted dialogue, lots of telling rather than showing, cliches ("Lucy cursed herself for being so blind." "It's as if she just vanished into thin air."), and infodumps ("The terrorist angle is especially worrisome because it accomplishes two goals. They can get money for their activities and strike fear into the hearts of people everywhere.").
Recommended to: Fans of thrillers that require no work on the part of the reader.
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Book source: Personal copy.