cover image The Innocents

The Innocents

Lili Peloquin. Razorbill, $17.99 (368p) ISBN 978-1-59514-582-6

After Alice and Charlie Flaherty’s mother, Maggie, marries the wealthy Richard Flood following a rushed romance, the teenage sisters are whisked to exclusive Serenity Point, “the toniest town in Connecticut,” for the summer, before being sent to an elite Vermont boarding school. But there are many mysteries behind the gated walls of their new mansion and country club, including what made their stepfather’s outwardly perfect daughter kill herself and when Maggie actually met Richard. As Alice starts investigating, she realizes that all the secrets “made the wildest and most far-fetched scenarios seem not just possible but likely.” First-time author Peloquin’s characters are largely stereotypical, from shy Alice and wild Charlie to controlling Richard and the shallow party boy Charlie falls for, who is hiding deep pain—and secrets, of course. Even so, the quick pacing will keep readers engrossed in this series kickoff as Alice and Charlie try to sort through the soap opera that is their new lives and figure out who they can trust. It’s Gossip Girl for Connecticut’s Gold Coast. Ages 12–up. (Oct.)