Publishers Weekly
03/14/2016
Teenage best friends grapple with sudden loss in Wittlinger’s (Love & Lies) uneven coming-of-age tale. Jackie, Finn, Lucas, and Lorna have been close since fourth grade, when Lorna and her mother moved to Provincetown, Mass. On a stormy night in May of their junior year, Lorna, the group’s wild leader, is swept out to sea while they are walking on the breakwater. Narrator Jackie mourns but also spends an inexplicable amount of time trying to persuade others that her grief is as genuine as theirs. Lucas abruptly departs for camp in New Hampshire, leaving Jackie and Finn to mope around town, take long walks on the beach, and spar over who misses Lorna more (and whether to talk about her in the past or present tense). Jackie is drawn to Finn’s painter mother, Elsie, who encourages her dreams of attending art school, a plan Jackie’s parents don’t understand. Despite moments of true compassion and lovely descriptions of the Cape, Wittlinger doesn’t fully delve into the complexities of teenage friendship, pushing the story forward through predictable plot devices. Ages 14–up. Agent: Ginger Knowlton, Curtis Brown. (June)
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"The story is compelling and the characters nicely drawn. Wittlinger's many fans won't want to miss her latest." —Booklist
"Teenage best friends grapple with sudden loss in Wittlinger's...coming-of-age tale, [with] moments of true compassion, and lovely descriptions of the Cape." —Publishers Weekly
"Elements of tragedy, mystery, romance, and self-discovery are woven together effectively and fleshed out with memorable imagery. All of the primary characters are complex and well-developed.... An enjoyable and thought-provoking read that is sure to appeal to many teens." —School Library Journal
"The perfect...summer time beach read...a page turner. This is a great book for those looking for a light mystery for the summer. Wittlinger's fans will not be disappointed." —YA Books Central
"Author Ellen Wittlinger proves once again why she's a master of realistic fiction, creating believable dialogue, events and emotions, especially as Jackie must decide if she's still one of Lorna's pawns in the end." —Bookpage
"Local Girl Swept Away features a group of friends who are shaken when one of their members is swept out to sea. As in Broadchurch, a sense of possible hope on the horizon shines through." —Barnes & Noble Teen Blog
"Will leave readers with searching questions about what is right when dealing with a situation where there has been so much wrong. Fans of melodrama will get swept up in this." —The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
School Library Journal
06/01/2016
Gr 9 Up—When Lorna Trovato falls off a breakwater during a storm and is swept out to sea, her three best friends feel that the worst has happened and their lives will never be the same. Yet Jackie Silva's summer looks promising. She has two jobs she loves, she's regaining a childhood friendship, and she's making plans to apply to art school. Her friend Finn's mother is an arts administrator who has taken Jackie under her wing. What's more, whenever Jackie crosses paths with Cooper Thorne, the attractive assistant director of the art gallery, sparks fly and an underlying attraction begins to bubble to the surface. But a series of surprises regarding Lorna and Cooper tear Jackie's life apart again. Elements of tragedy, mystery, romance, and self-discovery are woven together effectively and fleshed out with memorable imagery, including the descriptions of Cape Cod and the image of Lorna's white jacket. Although readers are unlikely to be surprised by the revelations about which of Jackie's friends are dishonest, the plot does contain a number of unexpected twists and turns. All of the primary characters are complex and well-developed, from Lorna, who isn't nearly as strong as she seems, to Jackie's mother, who tries to be supportive but doesn't understand Jackie's college aspirations and artistic endeavors. The first couple of chapters feel choppy, but the pace evens out quickly. VERDICT An enjoyable and thought-provoking read that is sure to appeal to many teens.—Magdalena Teske, Naperville Public Library, IL
School Library Journal - Audio
09/01/2016
Gr 9 Up—Four best friends are on the Cape Cod coast when a storm blows in, and suddenly one of them, Lorna, is gone. Lorna was Jackie's best friend, Finn's girlfriend, and Lucas's dream girl. Her body is never found, but a memorial is organized, and life somehow goes on without her. Jackie, a talented artist, finds herself attracted to an older man. She reconnects with an old friend, gets busy with two jobs, and dreams of college far away from her fishing family roots. Finn shuts down when Jackie reaches out. Lucas disappears, only to return with a shocking confession about a final conversation with Lorna. Still reeling from allegations no one wants to accept, Jackie is about to make the most shocking discovery of all. This quickly moving mystery explores generation gaps, socioeconomic expectations and assumptions, coming-of-age revelations, and the consequences of all-consuming relationships. Elizabeth Cottle effortlessly narrates a wide range of emotions, from excitement to resolve, desperation to acceptance, and realization to understanding. VERDICT Entertaining with resonating depth, this title promises wide audience appeal. ["An enjoyable and thought-provoking read that is sure to appeal to many teens": SLJ 6/16 review of the Media Merit book.]—Terry Hong, Smithsonian BookDragon,Washington, DC
Kirkus Reviews
2016-03-16
Lorna led her friendship quartet, so her death leaves her friends both grief-stricken and lacking independent identities. Lorna's bossy personality united mousy Jackie, rich-boy Finn, and utterly forgettable Lucas in elementary school. Adolescent sexual tension changed the group dynamics as Lorna and Finn fell in love, and predictably Jackie yearned for Finn while Lucas was besotted with Lorna. These existing fault lines grow after typically sure-footed Lorna tumbles into rough seas and presumably drowns. Then Lucas mysteriously leaves town, and Jackie and Finn find themselves growing closer—though he rejects her awkward romantic advances. Embarrassed, Jackie finds solace in the inappropriate attentions of a 30-year-old visiting artist, Cooper, whom readers will instantly identify as a sexual predator. Meanwhile, Jackie makes a disturbing discovery, and Lucas returns to share a dark secret, helping readers realize much more quickly than the dense trio that all may not be as it seems. What should be an unexpected twist is neither stunning nor believable, though the depth of the emotional manipulation behind it is surprising. Adding to the novel's overall unpleasantness is the sexual-predator storyline, which resolves with a whimper rather than the bang it deserves. Little enjoyment stems from witnessing the manipulation and bad decisions of these wishy-washy characters. (Fiction. 14-18)
