Beckoners

The girl was still there, on a swing, pumping hard, so high the chain slackened before letting her down. Then suddenly she stopped, digging her bare feet into the sand. She kicked herself in circles, tightening the chain until it wouldn't turn anymore. Then for a second she stared across the night between them, right at Zoe, until she let go, spinning into a dark fast blur. When her mother suddenly moves them to a new town, Zoe is unhappy about leaving behind what passes for a normal life. And when the first person she meets turns out to be Beck, who rules her new school with a mixture of intimidation and outright violence, she is dismayed. But she has no idea how bad things will get. Unsure of herself and merely trying to fit in, Zoe is initiated, painfully, into the Beckoners, a twisted group of girls whose main purpose is to stay on top by whatever means necessary. Help comes from unlikely quarters as Zoe struggles to tear loose from the Beckoners without becoming a target herself, while also trying to save April-or Dog, as she is called-from further torment. A chilling portrait of bullying and violence that is all too common, The Beckoners illustrates the lure of becoming one of the tormentors rather than the victim, and the terrible price that can be exacted for standing up for what is right. This is Carrie Mac's first teen novel. Charmed, an Orca Soundings novel about teen prostitution, is also available.Mac, Carrie is the author of 'Beckoners', published 2004 under ISBN 9781551433097 and ISBN 1551433095.