ROB&SARA.COM

Fittingly, the coauthors sent each other sequential e-mails, written in the authentic-sounding voices of the two title characters, to create this involving novel. Rob and Sara, whose story unfolds exclusively through their e-mail correspondence, first communicate when Rob comments positively on a poem Sara posts on an Internet poetry bulletin board for teens. They soon become cyberspace soulmates, supporting each other through the events of their drastically different lives. An army brat who has moved frequently, Sara is coping with her best friend's bout with cancer and her fear that her father's impending transfer will necessitate her moving away from Salt Lake City, where she finally feels at home. Rob, whose life has been chaotic (his mother, a recovering alcoholic, was the third of his plastic surgeon father's fourth wives), has been sent to a strict California boarding school that he likens to a "prison farm." As the likable and articulate duo becomes emotionally involved, they fantasize about meeting one another. Just when their communication begins to sound repetitious, the authors interject a cyberspace twist, as Rob's jealous schoolmate tries to sabotage the relationship. The narrative strains credibility somewhat when Rob sneaks out of school to travel to the semi-conscious Sara's hospital bedside after she's injured in a climbing accident. Yet this dose of melodrama won't bother readers who have effortlessly been drawn into these teens' lives and relationship. Ages 12-up. (Oct.)