My Own Worst Frenemy

In Reid’s (No Place Safe) first book for teens, which launches the Chanti on the Case series, 15-year-old Chanti Evans is forced to switch from a Denver public school to a private one due to her overprotective mother, an undercover vice cop who insists that Chanti is always at the wrong place at the wrong time. At Langdon Prep, Chanti is an outsider for being on scholarship, and Headmistress Smythe and popular girl Lissa seem determined to get rid of her. Fellow scholarship student Bethanie has a mysterious cash flow, a dedication to social climbing, and many secrets, and Chanti’s ex-best friend (a former gang member) and a drug dealer have bones to pick with her as well. When various items are stolen at school, Chanti and her crush, Marco, are prime suspects with little time to solve the case. The story is fast-paced with snappy dialogue and a solid urban setting, although Chanti’s neurotic analysis of facts can become repetitive. Overall, Reid pens an impressive if slightly overwrought combination of teen drama and hard-boiled police procedural. Ages 14–up. (Sept.)