Hit and Run

January 20, 2014
Launching the Mike & Riel crime fiction series, written at a fourth-grade reading level, McClintock introduces an unlikely investigative duo of a teenage boy and an ex-cop. Fifteen-year-old Mike has had a tough time since his mother was killed in a hit-and-run accident. His difficulties—and poor academic standing—don’t go unnoticed by his history teacher (and former police officer), Mr. Riel. After butting heads, the two join forces to revisit what really happened to Mike’s mother, with chilling results. The action is somewhat slow and the central mystery convoluted, but the final pages suggest a budding relationship that could make Mike and Riel an enjoyable team to follow in future cases. Simultaneously available: Truth and Lies and Dead and Gone. Ages 11–up.

February 1, 2014
Bad seed wars with good in an orphaned teenager who finds out that his mother's death wasn't an accident. Originally published a decade ago in Canada, this series opener set in Toronto hooks Michael--a troubled teen surrounded by poor companions and role models-- up with his history teacher, quiet ex-cop John Riel. Four years after the loss of his loving, hardworking mother, Mike's life seems to be going down the tubes thanks to failing grades, a breakup with his girlfriend and sudden unemployment following an arrest for a minor theft. The electrifying discovery that his new teacher had been in charge of his mom's never-solved case, though, leads to new questions and clues that implicate both the uncle who is his sole remaining family member and a pair of shady associates. It also leads to an initially hostile but growing mutual attachment that culminates, following a second sudden death and nearly a third, in Mike gaining a steady new foster father. Look for more role modeling and crime solving in two sequels that publish simultaneously: Truth and Lies and Dead and Gone. The rescue of an at-risk adolescent with light and dark sides takes center stage, but the unfolding mystery adds a dramatic subplot. (Mystery. 12-14)

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March 15, 2014
Grades 7-10 Mike was 11 when his mother was killed in a hit-and-run. Now 15, he lives with his uncle Billy, a hard-partying mechanic who is more older brother than guardian. Upon discovering that his new history teacher, Mr. Riel, is not only a retired cop but also one of the investigators who worked on his mom's case, Mike badgers Riel into reopening the case, a decision with far-reaching consequences. This first entry in the Mike & Riel Mysteries series, originally published in Canada a decade ago, includes some dead technology references (VHS tapes, portable phones) that may distract contemporary readers. That aside, this well-crafted mystery is a real page-turner with plenty of twists and a hero kids can get behind. Mike's unacknowledged despair and his determination to uncover the truth make him a very appealing hero. This is marketed for reluctant readers, but mystery fans of all sorts will be glad to find out there are four more titles to come.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)

July 1, 2014
Orphaned by his mother's and uncle's murders, Mike McGill ends up in the care of ex-cop-turned-history-teacher Mr. Riel. Each book in the series focuses on the pair solving a violent crime that usually involves Mike indirectly. The formulaic stories are slow at times, but there's enough suspense to satisfy crime-fiction fans.

(Copyright 2014 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)