Take Me With You

by Tara Altebrando

Overview

"Repeatedly surprising and genuinely chilling." - E. Lockhart, bestselling author of We Were Liars and Genuine Fraud

From the acclaimed author of The Leaving comes a new psychological thriller that challenges our trust in the electronic devices we keep close.

Eden, Eli, Marwan, and Ilanka barely know each other beyond having a class or two together. But when they are all summoned via messaging app to an empty classroom after school, they find a small cube sitting on a desk. Its sides light up with rules for them:

Do not tell anyone about the device. Never leave the device unattended.
And then, Take me with you . . . or else.

At first they think it's some kind of prank or a social experiment orchestrated by the school administration. Still, they follow its instructions until the newly-formed group starts to splinter. Nobody has time for these games—their lives are complicated enough. But the device seems increasingly invested in the private details of their lives. And disobeying its rules has scary—even life-threatening—consequences . . .

This timely thriller probes our dependence on personal technology and challenges the notion that our devices are keeping us connected. The truth may very well be the opposite.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781681197487
Publisher:	Bloomsbury USA
Publication date:	06/23/2020
Pages:	384
Sales rank:	1,031,283
Product dimensions:	8.30(w) x 5.70(h) x 1.40(d)
Age Range:	13 - 17 Years

About the Author

Tara Altebrando is the author of several middle grade and teen novels, including The Opposite of Here, The Possible, and The Leaving. She lives in New York City with her family.
www.taraaltebrando.com
@TaraAltebrando

Editorial Reviews

05/18/2020

Summoned to an empty classroom after school, four teens with little in common are linked by a bizarre technological mystery: a small black cube, Aizel, that issues enigmatic rules (“DO NOT TELL ANYONE ABOUT THE DEVICE”) enforced by vague threats (“OR ELSE”). If Eden, Eli, Ilanka, and Marwan don’t placate the cube by obeying its increasingly capricious whims—don’t get it wet, pass it from one handler to the next every 14 hours—Aizel punishes them by manipulating and deleting their personal information and restricting phone access. Even as the quartet attempts to discern Aizel’s origins and purpose, they must cope with their own concerns in a time of social media: true crime podcast aficionado Marwan faces Islamophobia, Ilanka seeks belonging through selfies, Eden mourns her deceased father by listening to playlists, and Eli avoids family stress by gaming. In this thriller, Altebrando (The Leaving) explores the impact of technology and the influence of social media on teens. Though the ultimate threat and resolution don’t quite live up to the story’s promise, Altebrando delves into the tensions of digital technology: its dangers, including data privacy, and its comforts. Ages 13–up. Agent: David Dunton, Harvey Klinger Literary. (June)

Publishers Weekly

I raced through this supper-addictive, nuanced, puzzle of a book in a weekend. It's no ordinary thriller: repeatedly surprising and genuinely chilling.” —E. Lockhart, bestselling author of WE WERE LIARS and GENUINE FRAUD

“A blistering, plausible, paranoia-fueled tale about the monsters birthed by our digital footprints.” —New York Times bestselling author Daniel Kraus

“A high-energy story that allows for character growth against a backdrop that looks at digital technology, social media, and the dangers of data mining as well as issues of online privacy and artificial intelligence . . . An engrossing and topical techno-thriller.” —Kirkus Reviews

“Will keep readers guessing until the very end. . . . A fun and unusual mystery that teens will enjoy; give to fans of John Green's Paper Towns and E. Lockhart's We Were Liars.” —SLJ on THE OPPOSITE OF HERE

“Altebrando nails the staccato delivery of popular investigative podcasts like Serial . . . Extremely effective in landing emotional punches . . . Taut and thoroughly gripping.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review, on THE POSSIBLE

“The juicy premise is enough to draw mystery/crime fans, and Altebrando unspools details with a deft hand.” —BCCB on THE POSSIBLE

“This gripping tale, full of unexpected twists and turns, will intrigue readers who enjoy psychological thrillers with a touch of the paranormal.” —SLJ on THE POSSIBLE

“You will not sleep, check your phone or even breathe once you begin reading The Leaving. Altebrando hides a meditation on memory and identity inside a top-speed page-turner. I promise, you will not even look up from the page.” —E. Lockhart, author of WE WERE LIARS on THE LEAVING

“A twisting, harrowing story . . . Engrossing, both as a thriller and a meditation on memory—its limits, its loss, and the ways it deceives and constructs identity.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review, on THE LEAVING

“This is no mere thriller; folded into this compulsively readable work are thought-provoking themes. . . . Teens who enjoy engrossing, contemplative titles such as Adam Silvera's More Happy Than Not will devour this insightful musing on memory and identity.” —SLJ, starred review, on THE LEAVING

“Altebrando provides a timely look at technology and the large role we let it play in our lives. A breezy thriller with some interesting angles about technology at the intersection of good and evil.” —School Library Journal

“Altebrando delves into the tensions of digital technology: its dangers, including data privacy, and its comforts.” —Publishers Weekly

“In Altebrando's timely techno-thriller, the compelling mystery has a satisfying conclusion, but more rewarding is how these disparate teens find authentic, lasting connections with each other.” —Booklist online

From the Publisher

05/01/2020

Gr 7–10—With an effortless writing style and almost leisurely pace, this could be a bridge book for tweens on the path to YA novels. Eli, Eden, Ilanka, and Marwan do not know one other, but they all receive the same message to report to the music room. The room is empty but for a seemingly innocuous device that sits on the teacher's desk. It comes with so many rules and threatens the students if they break the rules or even discuss breaking them. It sets off fire alarms, fries phones, responds to texts for them, and deletes files. Over the course of just a few days, this device ends up controlling their lives. Despite all the rules, the device only has one task: to learn how to fit in. While the group grapples with how to manage all its requests, where it came from, and how to dispose of it, they form connections and find a true sense of belonging. Altebrando provides a timely look at technology and the large role we let it play in our lives. Told from alternating viewpoints of the four main characters, the story gets stalled out at times by stilted interactions. VERDICT Readers don't really get to know characters other than superficially, but this is a breezy thriller with some interesting angles about technology at the intersection of good and evil. For larger collections.—Alicia Kalan, The Northwest School, Seattle

School Library Journal

2020-03-11
Four teenagers find a mysterious device that tells them what to do in this timely science fiction thriller.

When Eden Montgomery, Eli Alvarez, Marwan Gamal, and Ilanka Sokolova are summoned to an empty classroom after school one day and find a shiny black cube waiting for them, they have no idea they are about to embark on a dangerous journey of self-discovery. The cube—named Aizel—gives them a number of rules that must be followed, including: “DO NOT TELL ANYONE ABOUT THE DEVICE. DO NOT LEAVE THE DEVICE UNATTENDED…TAKE ME WITH YOU...OR ELSE.” What does Aizel want? Where did it come from? And why did it choose the four of them in particular? As time passes, Aizel’s orders become increasingly terrifying and invasive, and the group has to decide what to do before it is too late. Chapters alternate among all four characters, and each teenager is well developed and richly portrayed in a high-energy story that allows for character growth against a backdrop that looks at digital technology, social media, and the dangers of data mining as well as issues of online privacy and artificial intelligence. There is also an important and skillfully executed subplot about growing white nationalism and anti-immigration sentiment in the U.S. Eden is coded as white and Eli as Latinx; Ilanka and Marwan (who identifies as culturally Muslim) have immigrant parents from Russia and Egypt, respectively.

An engrossing and topical techno-thriller. (Science fiction. 14-adult)

Kirkus Reviews