Bibliography: McMann, Lisa. (2009). Fade. New York: Simon and Schuster. ISBN: 9781416953586
Plot Summary: Janie and Cabe return after their adventures in Wake. Fresh off their successful cocaine bust, they are not both fully working with the police. Janie hopes to use her dream catching to help the police catch a sexual predator in the high school. Janie and Cabe’s love remains strong, but they are both tested by the demands of this assignment, and the drain dream catching puts on Janie’s health. Miss Stubin reappears to give Janie guidance as well.
Critical Analysis: In Wake, the police work to catch the cocaine dealer/distributor seemed secondary to Janie’s story, her discovery of what her talent really is, her growing relationship with Cabe. Here, there is still a focus on Janie, but McMann ratchets up the tension and suspense by putting Janie right in the middle of a truly scary situation. The tension is compunded by Janie’s dream catching and Cabe’s concern for her well being, and then there is the suspense created by the journal left by MIss Stubin. Does Janie want to know what is in store for her? Darker and edgier and more adult than Wake, Fade will leave teens asking for the next in the triology, and disappointed that a longer series is not planned. Librarians, if you aren’t offering these books to your adult readers of paranormal suspense and romance, they are missing out. And I am hoping that while there is only one more entry featring Janie and Cabe planned, that McMann has other ideas for mystery and suspense titles with teen appeal.
Readalikes: Instead of focusing on the just on the paranormal, the books listed below also have lots of suspense and tension and an air of mystery
Desert Crossing by Elise Broach Luce, Jamie and Kit’s road trip turns bad when they hit something in the middle of the night during a rain storm. Was it just a coyote?
18 Seconds by George Shuman Sherry Moore can see the last 18 seconds of a murder victim’s life by touching their dead body. Sometimes all she sees are memories of happier times, but sometimes, she sees clues to the killer.
