When Imogene, her mother, and her brother move to Newford, she decides to reinvent herself-this time she won't go looking for trouble. She quickly gets to know two very different people. Maxine is a "good girl," following a strict life plan. Imogene helps Maxine loosen up and break a few rules, and in turn Maxine keeps her on the straight and narrow. Imogene's other new friend is a little more unusual. His name is Adrian. He is a ghost. Adrian was killed when he jumped off the high school roof in 1998, and hasn't left since. He has a huge crush on her--so much so that he wants her to see the fairies that also haunt the school. The fairies invade Imogene's dreams, blurring the line between the unreal and the real. When her imaginary childhood friend Pelly actually manifests, Imogene knows something is terribly wrong. With Maxine, Adrian, and Pelly's help, Imogene challenges the dark forces of Faery. This compelling novel from Charles de Lint, the acknowledged founder of the "urban fantasy" genre, is set in the city of Newford, home to some of his best stories. After reading it, you will want to live in Newford, too. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.

De Lint (Moonheart) tackles magic and the afterlife in a suburban high school setting in this inventive if somewhat convoluted tale. Imogene Yeck is new to Redding High, and with her piercings and goth clothes, she immediately gets branded ("Yuck," a play on her last name). She quickly befriends an outsider of another sort, geeky and thoughtful Maxine. Imogene begins seeing a "pale, nerdy guy-sort of like a tall Harry Potter... but gawkier and with a narrower face," called Ghost, according to the school's legend. Imogene and Maxine learn that this is the ghost of Adrian, a bullied kid who "either jumped or fell off the roof" some years before. Adrian, who admires Imogene (for standing up to the bullying football quarterback), inadvertently attracts the attention of "the darkness," also called "ghost- or soul-eaters." She learns of this in part from her childhood imaginary friend Pelly, now an ominous figure who is appearing in her dreams. Fairies factor into the story, as does a roving angel who tries to convince Adrian to give up his hold on the world and "move on." The book feels a bit strained, packed with one mythology too many. It may also be challenging to some readers at first: the early clever repartEe between Imogene and Maxime gives way to three different first-person narratives (Imogene's, Maxine's and Adrian's), told at two different periods in time ("Then" and "Now"). Fantasy-minded goth kids, though, will likely find it worth the effort. Ages 12-up. (Nov.) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

Gr 9 Up-This lively novel thoughtfully examines friendships that cross magical boundaries and explores how love can strengthen and save us. On her first day of school in a new town, Imogene meets Maxine, an outcast, and is targeted by a group of popular bullies. The two become friends despite their polar personalities; Imogene is bold and brash where Maxine is mousy and quiet. When Imogene notices a pale boy watching her, she asks about him and learns the story of Ghost-actually Adrian-another outcast who was harassed by cliques, died under mysterious circumstances a few years earlier, and now haunts the school. His only companions are a handful of amoral fairies. He convinces them to show themselves to Imogene, but this draws the soul-sucking anamithim to her, endangering her life and the people she loves. Adrian, Imogene, and Maxine alternate as narrators. Tied together as victims of both the magical world and of everyday tyrants, they are sympathetic characters who speak with sharp, snappy dialogue. As in Nina Kiriki Hoffman's A Stir of Bones (Viking, 2003), the otherworldly threat skillfully mirrors and enhances real-world concerns. This complicated story is made more intricate by the now/then time shifts between chapters. The two popular bullies are stereotypically flat, but the remaining characters are well drawn and delightful. Imogene's brutal choices about where to draw the line between self-protection and becoming like her tormentors are clearly depicted.-Sarah Couri, New York Public Library Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

Gr. 8-11. Fifteen-year-old Imogene is new at Redding High School, and she's determined not to repeat the mistakes she made at her old school, especially after she meets Maxine, the good-girl friend she's always wanted--and needed. Then Imogene and Maxine encounter Ghost, the school's resident lost soul, and the girls embark on an adventure that moves back and forth between the dangers of the unforgiving high-school environment and a terrifyingly evil netherworld of fairies, supernatural creatures, and anamithim--soul-eaters who are attracted to Imogene's strong personality and who threaten her safety. De Lint's strong characters and riveting plot lines will work for even the most skeptical reader, and Imogene and Maxine are wonderful examples of strong young women faced with a variety of problems that appear to defy solutions--that is, until the girls realize that the simplest, yet most difficult, answer is within their control: bravery in the face of a friend's danger. --Frances Bradburn Copyright 2004 Booklist From: Syndetics Solutions, Inc. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.