Lively, first-person narrative brings to life Hershey's (My Big Sister Is So Bossy She Says You Can't Read This Book
) newest protagonist, Alastair Hudson, a one-legged 13-year-old with dashing good looks, a wicked sense of humor and an enormous chip on his shoulder against his recently remarried father. As the story opens, Alastair is reluctantly preparing to go from the home he shares with his mother in Denver, Colo., to California to spend the summer with his father, whom he blames for the accident that left him handicapped ("No matter what anyone said... it was always and would ever be his fault
," Alastair muses). Alastair is determined not to enjoy himself at Lumina Beach but is thrown off guard when he discovers that his father's new wife, Skyla, is not only "loaded" with money but she is also a double amputee. If Alastair's heart is opened a little by Skyla's generous hospitality and enthusiasm for life, it remains closed to his father, whom Alastair quickly surmises is as self-centered and shallow as always. Two subplots, one involving Skyla's celebrity niece and another focusing on a gruff, retired coach, who teaches Alastair how to swim competitively, add extra dimension to this story about family conflicts that can become long-term grudges. Depicting tragic circumstances and comic situations with equal expertise, the author offers a poignant novel populated with complex, memorable characters. Ages 10-up. (Mar.)
