Ever since her mother died, Siria has felt responsible for keeping her father safe, but that's hard to do when Pop's a firefighter. And now that there's an arsonist on the loose, the fires are becoming more frequent and more dangerous. Siria's too frightened and too impatient to wait for the fire and police departments to find the culprit. No. She'll do it herself, no matter the risk or the number of sleepless nights it involves.
I love mysteries for middle-grade readers but, unfortunately, I could not love this one. Siria's actions were very hazardous, and it was difficult to either condone them or to believe that the adults in her life had no clue that she was risking her life -- or at least a few major limbs -- in so many ways. The story also felt disjointed in many spots, with jarring transitions that made it hard to keep my place in the scene. While some of the frequently-used characters were well-developed, the huge cast led to some confusion and lessened a lot of the emotional impact the ending could have had. Students who are fascinated by firefighting may find this one intriguing, or those who love mysteries and have exhausted all others in the collection. Otherwise, it might be best to save a tight library or classroom budget for other books.
MS -- OPTIONAL. Reviewer: Caryn
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2 comments:
I felt the same way. Even if there are adults who don't pay close attention, it was still disturbing to read about it!
Agreed! The whole book left me kind of unsettled.
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