Borger, a former reporter for the St. Paul Pioneer Press
, successfully taps into a parent's constant concern—how to protect children in an increasingly dangerous world—in her compelling debut, the first in a series to feature Marguerite “Skeeter” Hughes, a Minneapolis Citizen
reporter. While researching a story on a missing 18-year-old girl, Billie Berry, Skeeter soon senses something complex developing, especially after Billie's sleazy ex-boyfriend tells her he's heard Billie might be “turning tricks and doin' meth.” Further research takes Skeeter to the Mall of America, where she spies a handsome middle-aged man buying Abercrombie & Fitch clothes for a cute teen he's just met. Skeeter is horrified after she discovers the wolf is a middle-school principal. More snooping leads to threats to Skeeter's life as well as her marriage to a fellow reporter. Readers will want to hear more of Skeeter's punchy, first-person voice. (Oct.)
