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Overview
Will Lansa spent the summer with his father on the Hopi reservation in Arizona, and now that he's back in Aspen, Colorado, Will feels like an outsider. He breaks up with his girlfriend, Myra, and then becomes the last person who saw her alive. When a knife is discovered with blood on its blade and traces of a drug on its handle, Will is suspected of committing the murder. His only allies are a computer hacker and a Hopi spirit who visits Will in his dreams. Haunted by visions of Myra's death, Will won't rest until he proves his innocence and finds Myra's murderer.Will faces a mystery involving drugs at his high school, while being framed for the disappearance and possible murder of his girlfriend.
Synopsis
Will Lansa spent the summer with his father on the Hopi reservation in Arizona, and now that he's back in Aspen, Colorado, Will feels like an outsider. He breaks up with his girlfriend, Myra, and then becomes the last person who saw her alive. When a knife is discovered with blood on its blade and traces of a drug on its handle, Will is suspected of committing the murder. His only allies are a computer hacker and a Hopi spirit who visits Will in his dreams. Haunted by visions of Myra's death, Will won't rest until he proves his innocence and finds Myra's murderer.
VOYA
In this sequel to Prophecy Rock (Simon & Schuster, 1995/VOYA, December 1995), high school star running back Will Lansa is back home in Aspen, Colorado, after having spent the summer on the Hopi reservation in Arizona with his father, a tribal policeman. Shortly after his return, Will's girlfriend Myra disappears and is presumed dead. When Will's knife turns up with Myra's blood on the blade and traces of a designer drug on the hilt, Will becomes a murder suspect. As he attempts to discover the real killer, Will is guided by his visions of a Hopi spirit named Masau, and thus Will's actions become a sort of Hopi initiation rite. A female computer expert also comes to Will's aid, as does his policeman father. The novel moves quickly, with complications and suspects galore-as befits a mystery. The inclusion of football game scenes, information about Hopi culture, computer hacking, and the operation of a designer drug ring in toney Aspen, should all pique reader interest. At the climax the action is fast and furious-too fast and furious actually, with confessions blurted on every line and plot twists in every paragraph. When Myra's murderer is killed by a stray bullet, it's a bit too deus ex machina for me. Almost every character, including Will's football coach, winds up at a remote silver mine which has been transformed into a drug factory by Will's mother's boyfriend, waiting for a bomb to detonate and kill the good guys. For the most part though, the novel is well-paced and contains steadily building suspense and intriguing plot lines. Teens will empathize with Will and the computer-hacking Corey, and will enjoy it when they overcome the obstacles thrown at them. If MacGregor's next mystery has more fully developed characters and a more plausible climax, then the comparisons with Tony Hillerman can begin. Cover art is an enticing illustration of a full moon shining on snow-covered mountains, a player standing on a football field, and a kachina (presumably Masau) in the foreground. Although the book is a sequel, it stands alone. VOYA Codes: 3Q 4P J S (Readable without serious defects, Broad general YA appeal, Junior High-defined as grades 7 to 9 and Senior High-defined as grades 10 to 12).