Locked in Time

Nore Robbins' father is a widower, recently remarried and living on his wife's estate in Louisiana, to which Nore has been invited for an extended visit. Gabe and Josie, Nore's stepbrother and sister, are at first friendly then become progressively hostile - finally attempting to kill her. With the help of a friend, Dave, Nore unravels the family's secret, discovering sinister links with witchcraft and almost losing her life in exposing the truth. Lois Duncan has an unerring instinct for what teenagers enjoy reading and her work exploits this to the full. She is, however, that rare thing - an author popular with teenagers who writes well enough to meet with adult approval. Her evocations of the individualistic scenery of the Southern States and her convincing characters compensate for the somewhat predictable nature of the storyline. Third years upwards will enjoy this - find a place for it in library or bookbox.