From Publishers Weekly
Responding to the deathbed summons of a nameless stranger, Jonathan, 19, leaves his wealthy grandfather's home and travels to Seattle. Upon his arrival, he discovers that the badly beaten man has died without revealing his identity. Then Jonathan meets Jenny, a beautiful girl who believes that the dead man was a victim of the Skinheads, a violent racist organization. When Jenny and Jonathan attempt to go to the police with this information, Jonathan is kidnapped by the Skinheads, who hold him captive while imparting their twisted ideology. After several chapters of lukewarm suspense, Jonathan escapes and learns the none-too-startling truth about the dead stranger's identity. One-dimensional characters and a predictable storyline lessen the impact of Bennett's timely subject matter. Though there are moments when the writing achieves the terse, spine-tingling tone for which it strives, it is more often choppy and cliche-ridden. Ages 12-up.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From School Library Journal
Grade 7-9-- Called by police to the deathbed of a man he knows nothing about, Jonathan finds himself pulled into a world of violent prejudice and evil. A protected teenager whose parents have left him to be raised by his wealthy, strong-willed grandfather, Jonathan knows little of the underworld of the Skinheads, a neo-Nazi gang that seeks white dominance and racial purity. He does know that his life is somehow linked to the stranger who now lies in the morgue and to a young woman who seeks to find that man's killers. His attempts to make sense of this, and of the Skinheads' interest in him, form the basis of this exciting if not always plausible story. While portions of the plot do not stand up to close scrutiny (why don't the police have a clue as to the dead man's identity? Why is the key policeman's son so conveniently involved with those who have killed the stranger?), the suspense, short sentences, and paragraphs liberally laced with dialogue will carry reluctant readers through. Characters have no real depth; the motivations behind their actions are rarely clear. An atmosphere of doom and gloom pervades the story, abetted by everyone from the fatalistic policeman and the malignant Skinheads to Jonathan's selfish, bigoted grandfather. An adequate choice for those who consider reading a low priority, for it is a print version of the type of story they are likely to watch on television--it has generous doses of adventure mingled with unpredictable violence and a little romance. --Bruce Anne Shook, Mendenhall Middle School, Greensboro, NC
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
