Caught in the Act [Hardcover]

Peter Moore (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 7, 2005

Meet Ethan Lederer. He's got a great girlfriend, and he's in all honor classes. Life is almost normal until Lydia Krane shows up in chemistry class. She's not really Ethan's type-she's some variety of goth with peculiar markings up and down her arms. But he feels an attraction to her he can't explain. As they get to know each other, Ethan finds himself opening up in ways he never could with his girlfriend or his family. Lydia is so different. She loves theater just like Ethan. They're even going to star together in the school play, a Hollywood version of Macbeth.
But suddenly Lydia changes. Why does she seem so attached and desperate? It doesn't take long for Ethan to realize that Lydia will do anything to keep him, the boy of her dreams.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 9 Up–Honor student Ethan Lederer has a wonderful girlfriend and a supportive family. During his sophomore year, he has a hard time keeping up with his overachieving parents' expectations, but can't bear the idea of disappointing them. One day, a new and mysterious student arrives at school, and he is immediately attracted to her. Both Ethan and Lydia audition for the student play, a modern version of Macbeth, and spend a lot of time together. Ethan gets caught cheating on his chemistry test, and when Lydia blackmails the teacher, he goes along. Soon afterward, he breaks up with his girlfriend, as he is literally caught in the act of lying about hanging out with Lydia. After visiting her home, however, he senses that she is more manipulative and dangerous than he first realized. She begins to pressure him to say he'll "stay forever" and to tell her that he loves her. He does, even as he becomes more disenchanted with the games she plays. When he tries to break it off with her, she claims that Ethan has been stalking her. There is a dramatic, violent climax involving the final production of the play that Moore ties together in a believable package. The smart, straightforward writing with its fast-paced action and realistic dialogue makes this novel a page-turner. It's a little predictable, especially regarding Ethan's pattern of lying to his parents, yet exciting enough to sustain interest. Fans of Gail Giles, Adele Griffin, and Nancy Werlin will especially appreciate this weirdo-thriller.–Karen Hoth, Marathon Middle/High School, FL
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Gr. 8-11. Ethan knows he is acting 24/7. He's a big fraud, pretending to his brilliant, successful parents that he's a good student and a good son. He's unable to confess that he cannot keep up in his sophomore science honors classes. After getting a crush on fierce, exotic Lydia, he finds himself telling her his secrets, and somehow she "persuades" the science teacher to give him an A and the drama coach to choose him as the lead. Then Lydia turns on Ethan, manipulating him to get what she wants, and she's vicious and violent when he won't obey. She tells him he is finding his true self--but who is that? The acting metaphors are overdone and overexplained, and Lydia is portrayed as a psychopath. But the scenes at home and school are right on, and Ethan's first-person narrative is a gripping drama about pretense and failure, seduction and self-betrayal. Hazel Rochman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Viking Juvenile (April 7, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0670059900
• ISBN-13: 978-0670059904
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,050,548 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Peter Moore has been writing fiction since he was eleven years old. He has been studying werewolves as an amateur lycanthropologist since he was even younger. Because he studied hard in high school and ate all his vegetables, he was able to attend Vassar College and Columbia University. Though he briefly considered a career in the FBI, America can rest easy: it didn't work out. Instead, he has worked as a screenwriter, college professor, English teacher, and guidance counselor. He lives with his wife and two kids in Westchester, New York. This is his third book for young adults. He strongly denies all rumors that he is himself a werewolf. Still, he can't explain where he goes every full moon.

His first two novels, BLIND SIGHTED and CAUGHT IN THE ACT were published by Viking.

RED MOON RISING is coming soon from Hyperion.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An engaging novel with a twisting storyline, June 8, 2005

By 

Teenreads.com (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Caught in the Act (Hardcover)

High school sophomore Ethan Lederer is an honor student and all-around great guy. He has lots of friends and a girlfriend who all adore him. His parents think highly of him and hope that he will follow in their Ivy League and medical school footsteps.

Ethan, however, is not as interested in science and math as his parents think. In fact, his near-perfect grades are threatened by his performance in chemistry class. Wanting to please his family, and the role they hope he will play, Ethan remains silent and lets them believe he is on track to medical school. The one thing that is truly important to Ethan, however, is neither science nor math, but the theatre.

And then, Lydia Krane shows up one day in Ethan's chemistry class. There's something compelling about the new girl, with her changing accents and babydoll t-shirts. Plus, Lydia is different from Ethan's family and friends. She doesn't expect him to be something he's not, and they have something in common --- the love of the stage. Both Ethan and Lydia try out for the spring play, a modern-day reinterpretation of the Shakespearean classic, Macbeth. They get parts, and become closer friends.

Ethan confides in Lydia what he can't confide in anyone else: "No matter how hard I try, I just won't ever be as smart as them, as good as them...I'm just really good at faking it...I'm doing it all the time, twenty-four/seven. Acting like I'm a good student, good son, good everything. Acting like it comes easy to me. But it's a real struggle. I feel like a total fraud half the time."

As Ethan continues the facade of good student, he does the unthinkable. He cheats on a chemistry exam rather than risk getting a bad grade. His plan backfires when he gets caught, but then Lydia Krane intervenes, which in the end makes Ethan's situation worse.

As Ethan lets Lydia into his life more and more, he notices that Lydia is changing and becoming more clingy and more obsessed with him. Ethan finds out more is at risk than his perfect image, and Lydia is not who he thought she was at all.

CAUGHT IN THE ACT is an engaging novel with a twisting storyline. Author Peter Moore does a good job of letting us into Ethan's life and exploring, along with Ethan, who he really is. The character of Lydia Krane is both creepy and mesmerizing. We only hope for the best for good boy Ethan, to get himself out of the bad situations in which he gets captured.
[...]

5.0 out of 5 stars Scary and well written, January 2, 2006

By 

Diana Dillon "ubervixen" (Charlottesville, VA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Caught in the Act (Hardcover)

I've rented this book from the library. What a fantastic read. I actually put it down several times near the end because it was a little scary in a real sort of way. I thought I knew how the story was going to end but I was surprised by it; totally not what I thought would happen.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Person to Remember, April 24, 2006

By 

Vtown Tigers "Vtown Tigers" (Versailles, Ohio) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Caught in the Act (Hardcover)

This book is full of activity and backstabbing. "Caught in the Act" is about a girl who is gothic, and moves to a new school. Her face is covered by her hair and she seems to always be writing in her green diary. Life is changed dramatically for the main character, Ethan. Ethan lies to his parents about his grades because they want him to be extremely smart, which he isn't. There are other things that he wants to do but feels pressured by his parents or that they would be disappointed of what he wants to do. The new girl, Lydia, seems to understand him and he feels he can tell her anything. She gets him to do things that he never thought of doing. He soon starts to realize that he is way over his head and trapped in the middle of past consciences and a girl who is out of control.
This book is a very enjoyable book. It can be read in just three days without realizing it. I was so disappointed when I got to the end. I wasn't disappointed about what happened but that I was almost finished. I really enjoyed that the book kept moving and had hardly any standstills. "Caught in the Act" made me think about things in a different way and I know will make others look at life in a different way.
"Caught in the Act" is a great book for seventh grade and above. I recommend this book to any one who likes constant moving and unexpected twists. If you want to read something different, this is the book for you. I enjoyed it and I know many more will.