You Owe Me a Murder

January 15, 2019
Travel changes people, and one young woman is about to find this out the hard way.Vancouver, British Columbia, teen Kim Maher is embarking on a trip many kids her age only dream of: 16 days in London. However, Kim hasn't even boarded the plane and she's having a rotten time, watching her ex-boyfriend, Connor, getting cozy with his new girlfriend. Then Kim meets fellow passenger Nicki, a daring and worldly Brit. To pass the long flight, Nicki suggests they each make a list of things they hate about the person who makes them most miserable. For Kim, it's Connor; for Nicki, her alcoholic mother. Nicki has a proposal to deal with their respective problems: "I kill your ex. You kill my mum. We both get what we want," she blithely tells an incredulous Kim. A few days later, Connor is dead, having fallen under a London Underground train. Kim's suspicions are confirmed when Nicki shows up wanting her to return the favor. Kim is an unreliable narrator from the get-go, admitting to readers she lies for the sake of self-preservation. Twists and turns and lots of ratcheted-up tension drive the story forward. Nicki's lack of morals is disturbing and diabolical. Two important secondary characters are brown; assume whiteness elsewhere except for the passing mention of a few nonwhite background players.An intriguing thriller. (Mystery. 13-17)

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March 1, 2019

Gr 8 Up-When 17-year-old Kim is forced to go on a school trip to London with her ex-boyfriend Connor and his new girlfriend, she seethes. The idea of having to spend months touring around with them is enough to make her want to kill someone. Of course, she would never actually consider that, despite how callously Connor recently ended things. While waiting at the airport for their delayed flight to board, Kim meets Nicki-British, daring, and sophisticated. On the plane ride, Nicki listens to Kim vent about her ex and shares her own troubles with a controlling, alcoholic mother she wishes would disappear. Nicki even jokes that she could kill Connor, in exchange for Kim killing her mother. But when Connor is killed by a train a few days later, Kim wonders if it was an accident or if Nicki could have been serious. This contemporary thriller will draw young readers in immediately, as they try to figure out what really happened. The pacing keeps the narrative moving along while leaving room for suspense. The ending, while perhaps too tidily wrapped up, is unexpected. VERDICT This solid thriller will appeal to fans of E. Lockhart's books and Karen M. McManus's One of Us Is Lying.-Kimberly Tolson, Millis Public Library, MA

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December 1, 2018
Grades 9-12 The next 16 days of Kim's life are going to be trying as she is stuck in London with her ex-boyfriend Connor and his new girlfriend. Things begin to look up when she meets Nicki, a funny, wild, risk-taker?everything Kim isn't. Soon they're sharing a secret bottle of alcohol and their woes. Kim writes a list of reasons Connor should die, while Nicki wishes the same for her mom, who is controlling and squandering her college savings away. Nicki jokingly suggests "switching" murders, as it'd be the perfect crime. They land in London, and Kim thinks she'll never see Nicki again . . . until Connor ends up dead. Now Kim owes Nicki a murder, or else Nicki will use Kim's list to have her take the fall for Connor's murder. Readers will race along as Kim's days in London countdown. Will she be able to outsmart Nicki or will she have to commit a crime? This modern-day teen twist on the Patricia Highsmith's classic Strangers on a Train is perfect for thriller fans.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)