Simon Gray is the ideal teenager smart, reliable, hardworking, trustworthy. Or is he? After Simon crashes his car into The Liberty Tree, another portrait starts to emerge. Soon an investigation has begun into computer hacking at Simon s high school, for it seems tests are being printed out before they are given. Could Simon be involved? Simon, meanwhile, is in a coma but is this another appearance that may be deceiving? For inside his own head, Simon can walk around and talk to some people. He even seems to be having a curious conversation with a man who was hung for murder 200 years ago, in the branches of the same tree Simon crashed into. What can a 200-year-old murder have to do with Simon s accident? And how do we know who is really innocent and who is really guilty? Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.

On the night that a horde of peepers disgorge themselves from local streams into the town of Bellehaven, "shrieking like souls of the dead disturbed from their slumber," a teenage computer whiz named Simon crashes his car into a landmark, the Liberty Tree. Crows descend next, to consume the dead frogs, and a number of portentous plagues follow metaphoric indicators that the bucolic community is not what it seems. Simon, who has been hacking into the school's computer system to help a group of popular teenagers cheat on their exams, falls into a coma. His stupor is punctured by a series of dreamlike encounters with the ghost of the legendary murderer who was hanged from the Liberty Tree 100 years ago. Was he really as guilty as everyone thought he was? And will Simon's accident catalyze the popular girl with a guilty conscience into renouncing her ill-won college acceptance? Readers may wonder why the police would get involved with a case of high school cheating, and it's hard to believe that these students could fool their teachers. But Simon though forced to share space with a number of less-appealing protagonists, including a shallow, pot-smoking younger sister and a stupid, ambitious jock is a thoughtful, interesting character. McDonald (Shadow People; Swallowing Stones) paints an eerie, electric atmosphere of menace that lingers past the final page. Ages 12-up. (Oct.) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

Gr 7 Up-Simon slams his car into the Liberty Tree, the oldest tree in the county. While he lies in a coma, there is a lot of speculation about whether it was intentional or an accident, and his friends worry over the secret they share that could get them expelled from school. The nature of the secret and the relationship between Simon and Jessup Wildemere, a drifter hanged from Bellehaven's Liberty Tree over 200 years before, are disparate stories that unravel at the same time. Manipulated by his so-called friends, Simon, a vulnerable computer "geek," aids in a "project" designed to hack into the school's computer system to obtain teachers' tests. Successful for three years, the devious seniors were getting accepted at prestigious colleges and, until the accident, were feeling smug about their deception. Would Simon awaken from his coma and tell? Ominous imagery of thousands of peeper frogs and swooping crows provides the backdrop for the evil doings in Bellehaven. Simon somehow leaves his unconscious body behind and meets the ghost of Jessup Wildemere. The young man tells him about the night of the murder where he was unjustly accused and executed. The truth is what ultimately spurs the teen out of his coma. The computer hackers are never implicated but manage to mend their ways after Simon's accident. The juggling of numerous plot elements is interesting and will appeal to mystery fans, even if the supernatural elements feel imposed and unnecessary.-Vicki Reutter, Cazenovia High School, NY Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

Gr. 6-8. The author of Shadow People (2000) puts a supernatural spin on her latest tale of teenage malfeasance. Simon Gray lies in a coma after smashing his car into the Liberty Tree (also known as the Hanging Tree after a 200-year-old lynching) in the center of his small New Jersey town. Accident--or suicide? While he hovers between life and death, he also finds himself hovering about the tree, along with the ghost of the historical victim. Meanwhile, various people keep vigil by his bedside, and odd things occur--weather extremes plague the town; there's a huge "murder" of crows; nine residents fall victim to West Nile Virus. McDonald packs in so many subplots (Would you believe a computer teacher who helps students access porn sites? New evidence that the hanged man was framed?) that many of the dots remain unconnected. Still, readers fond of atmosphere and suspense will stay the course, discovering that Simon isn't the only character who comes out of the experience a better person. --John Peters From: Syndetics Solutions, Inc. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.