Chain Reaction

Stark images propel this powerful tale about English photojournalist Alexandra Bridgman, on assignment in a remote French village where a recent landslide has claimed 15 lives. She meets Neville Johnson, an English boy living in the town who tried valiantly to save a deformed boy; now confined to a wheelchair, Neville is bound by a guilt that bewilders Alex. She observes a silent man digging each day through the rubble, long after his wife's lifeless body has been pulled from the mud and rocks. Her investigations continually lead to a mysterious fire that occurred before the disaster, in which two others were killed. Jordan ( The Toy Cupboard ), who is really prolific author Alan Scholefield, delivers sharp snapshots of evil, exploring the cruelty of a group of youngsters who are fixated on nationalism and romanticized history. Alex herself is threatened as she investigates deaths caused by acts of nature and those precipitated by human hands; the solution is withheld until the final pages. (Sept.)