I just finished Ellen Wittlinger's The Long Night of Leo and Bree. It's a quick read, only about 110 pages, but there's a lot packed in there. The basic storyline is that Leo's sister was brutally murdered by a boyfriend 4 years earlier. After her death, his father withdrew and eventually just took off, and his mother basically just lost it. On the anniversary of her death, Leo is laying a heavy guilt trip on himself for not stopping his sister from seeing the guy the night she was murdered. He decides that it shouldn't have been his sister who was killed. It should have been someone "who deserved it" and he is going to find someone like that and kill her in his sister's place. In a classic, "wrong place at the wrong time" scenario, he randomly kidnaps Bree and holds her hostage while he decides what to do. As the night goes on, both Leo and Bree start to see things in both themselves and each other. This would be a good one for an older reluctant reader because it is short, but has plenty of action and suspense, and a more mature subject than most shorter books. The subject matter is handled well, all things considered, getting the point across without being unnecessarily graphic. For the right audience, it's a pretty good read. Enjoy!
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