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Reviewed by:
  • The Leaf Reader by Emily Arsenault
  • Kate Quealy-Gainer
Arsenault, Emily The Leaf Reader. Soho Teen, 2017 [240p]
Trade ed. ISBN 978-1-61695-782-7 $18.99
E-book ed. ISBN 978-1-61695-783-4 $10.99
Reviewed from galleys         R Gr. 7-10

Reading tea leaves is just a hobby for high school junior Marnie, something to pass the time until she's old enough to leave her aging grandmother, her recovering addict brother, and their dilapidated home behind. When golden boy Matt Cotrell seeks out Marnie's help in finding his missing friend Andrea, though, her readings become eerily more accurate, directing Marnie and Matt to a dead body—and pointing blame towards Matt's friends. It soon becomes apparent to Marnie that she's in over her head, but it's not like she can go to the cops with some tea residue as proof of foul play, so she's left to follow the leaves wherever they take her. This is a tightly crafted, suspense-filled thriller, complete with effective red herrings, a slow burn reveal of the truth, and plenty of shifty characters. Marnie makes a fierce protagonist, funny but determined and not about to take anybody's BS, and the pace moves along swiftly as she navigates clues from surprising sources. While the mystery itself is intriguing enough, the murder and its cause bring up serious issue of class, and once readers catch their breath they'll have plenty to ponder about the relationship between privilege and crime and punishment. [End Page 398]

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