Nearly Gone

In an impressive debut, Cosimano delivers a tense thriller that sees a teenage math whiz pitted against a serial killer who’s knocking off her classmates in increasingly fiendish ways. When 16-year-old Nearly “Leigh” Boswell discovers that a killer is leaving her coded messages in the newspaper personals, she becomes the only one capable of solving the murders. But all of the evidence points to her as the chief suspect—someone’s making it extremely personal. With her only ally being the teenage narc (and resident bad boy) assigned to investigate her for the police, Leigh must somehow solve the case before she loses her friends, her freedom, or her life. Cosimano weaves together math riddles, science-based clues, an edgy romance, and psychological terror to create an unpredictable page-turner. Nearly’s psychometric ability to glean emotions through touch is somewhat underexploited, and some of the clues are so blatant it’s a wonder she overlooks them. Nevertheless, this is a good choice for fans of “savant” procedurals and dramas like Bones, Elementary, or Numbers. Ages 14–up. Agent: Sarah Davies, Greenhouse Literary Agency. (Mar.)