For Mike

Sykes's taut first-person narrative is riveting from the first page and never lets up. Named a Delacorte Press Prize honor book for a first young adult novel, its strength lies in exceptionally well fleshed-out characters and deceptively simple writing. When his best friend Mike disappears, high school senior Jeff's life tilts sideways. He starts dreaming that he sees Mike's hair matted with leaves and getting ""messages"" from the dreams, but can't seem to talk to his dad, a state police officer, about his suspicions and fears. Nowhere seems safe--except his childhood friend Berry's house and Mike's church. Although the premise seems to have more in common with teen slasher films than fine literature, the author buttresses the plot with classic questions about life and death, faith and grief. And unlike the existentially barren family situations found in many young adult novels, Jeff's and Mike's families and friends are good people hit by a very bad situation. Only by discovering what happened to Mike can Jeff, Berry and Mike's family move on with life, even if the truth means uncovering murder. Readers can only hope this is the first of many novels from Sykes. Ages 12-up. (Apr.)