Fix Me

In this uninspired mystery from Cronkhite (Disconnected), Penelope Wryter’s life has been taken over by her addiction to the drug Fix in the year since her older sister’s suicide. Fix causes intense hallucinations, and for Penelope, one of those hallucinations appears as a teenage boy named Nate. Penelope spends much of her time getting high in order to figure out what Nate is suddenly trying to tell her or dealing with the consequences of the terrible decisions she makes while on the drug. When another teenage girl goes missing, Penelope briefly investigates what happens to her, but she quickly gets caught back up in her obsession with Nate, to the exclusion of a real relationship with her ex-boyfriend, Walker, who still cares for her. There are two mysteries at play, but neither is clear or well developed. Penelope’s obsession with Nate and the drug leave little room for character development, and the stiff dialogue and first-person narration (“I tell her that sounds like a good idea and that maybe I’ll bring it up to Rose and my other friends”) don’t do much to sustain interest. Ages 12–up. (Nov.)