Paolo Bacigalupi (Shipbreaker) crafts a ripped-from-the-headlines thriller that highlights the power that spin doctors at top-notch public relations firms can wield over the lives of unsuspecting citizens. Bacigalupi introduces an engaging cast of characters and a nonstop plot that always stays one step ahead of readers.
Alix Banks lives a privileged life. She attends prestigious Seitz Academy and is "Ivy-bound, and headed for money and power." Her father runs a highly successful PR firm for top (and top secret) clients. But Alix's world begins to crumble when she tries to find out why a vandal ("a good-looking black guy in a trench coat" who seems "weirdly recognizable to her"), known as 2.0, has been targeting Seitz. "Ask your father," the vandal says. "He's the one who knows all the secrets." As the stakes rise, private security forces arrive to keep Alix and her brother safe. Alix retreats into deep denial, even when she is kidnapped and shown evidence of how drug companies manipulate science to keep their products on the market. Her teenage captors insist that Alix's father and his PR firm are engineering the obfuscation. It's not until Alix begins to dig for her own answers that she finds herself wondering if 2.0 may actually be right.
Through this group of teen radicals and their cause, Bacigalupi explores class and racial tensions. Their techno-savvy plans make for an exhilarating read, as does the very strong attraction between Alix and 2.0. --Lynn Becker, host of Book Talk, the monthly online discussion of children's books for the Society of Children's Book Writers & Illustrators