Grave Message

by Mary Jennifer Payne

Overview

Key Selling Points

• In this paranormal thriller, a teenager tries to solve the mystery of her friend’s death, with the help of a ghost. 
• The main character is dyslexic but that is incidental to the storyline. 
• The author is a special education teacher who teaches students with dyslexia.
• One of the first titles in the new Orca Anchor line of hi-lo books with reading levels of 1.0 to 2.0.
• Enhanced features (dyslexia-friendly font, cream paper, larger trim size) to increase reading accessibility for dyslexic and other striving readers. 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781459828667
Publisher:	Orca Book Publishers
Publication date:	02/15/2022
Series:	Orca Anchor
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	80
Lexile:	HL590L (what's this?)
File size:	1 MB
Age Range:	12 - 17 Years

About the Author

Mary Jennifer Payne is a graduate of the Humber School of Creative Writing and the author of a number of works for young people, including the Orca Soundings title Enough. She works as a special education teacher and lives in Toronto.

Mary Jennifer Payne is a graduate of the Humber School for Writers' Summer Workshop in Creative Writing and the author of many books for young people including the Daughters of Light series, Enough and Since You've Been Gone which received a Quill&Quire starred review. Her writing has been published in journals, anthologies and magazines in Canada and abroad. She works as a special education teacher and lives in Toronto.

Editorial Reviews

Gives readers an edge-of-the-seat experience…A terrific story, blending the theme of grief and bereavement with the excitement of the supernatural and murder mystery genres. Highly Recommended.

CM: Canadian Review of Materials

2021-11-30
What would you do if you received messages from beyond the grave?

High schooler Jaylin Laws is nervous about an upcoming English test. Diagnosed with dyslexia, she is a bright and accomplished student who has support and accommodations, but Jaylin is still anxious. She’s been spending all her free time studying, which leads to her boyfriend Jamal’s feeling neglected; Jaylin has kept her dyslexia secret from him, and he doesn’t understand why she has to work so hard. After they have a fight at a party, she heads home to read Dracula for her English class, and she receives an Instagram message supposedly from her best friend, Fatima Lopez—but it’s the one-year anniversary of Fatima’s death. Someone must be messing with her, but with each additional message, the sender shares things only Fatima could know. The mysterious messenger sends Jaylin on a mission to uncover the truth behind Fatima’s death. Dredging up difficult memories, questioning those who may know something, and exposing a lie, Jaylin heads down a dangerous path. Payne effectively uses simple vocabulary and short chapters to tell a story that is full of suspense and intrigue and made even more accessible through the book’s physical design. Names signal some diversity in the cast; Jaylin’s mother uses a wheelchair.

An engaging, suspenseful tale for reluctant readers. (Paranormal mystery. 13-18)

Kirkus Reviews