In Elusion, authors Claudia Gabel and Cheryl Klam collaborate to create a chilling, strangely plausible dystopian vision.
Living in a noxious futuristic Detroit, Regan is proud of her father for building an elaborate way to escape. Elusion, an alternate reality experience, uses a special visor, wristband and earbuds to generate "a world with plant life and fresh air instead of Florapetro factories, grease clouds, and acid rain." Citizens now dodge the reality of their Standard 7 jobs (7 a.m. to 7 p.m., 7 days a week) in make-believe, digital adventures. When Regan's father is killed in an accident, 17-year-old Patrick, a family friend and protegé, takes over the technical details of the project. It all seems perfectly safe, but just when worldwide distribution rights are granted, accusations begin to fly that Elusion is highly addictive to teenage minds, "more like heroin than a great achievement in science." At first, Regan refuses to believe that her father's creation could pose any danger. But as evidence builds, she begins to question whether teens may be dying from overuse. Helped along by a friend of Patrick, the handsome "man candy" Josh, Regan digs deeply into the mystery surrounding Elusion.
Given society's love affair with handheld devices, readers will not find it too big of a stretch to imagine taking technology to this new, extremely troubling level. This is compelling, accessible science fiction with enough mystery and romance to keep readers hooked and waiting for the sequel. --Lynn Becker, host of Book Talk, the monthly online discussion of children's books for the Society of Children's Book Writers & Illustrators