The Last Witness

Hoping to get closer to her friend and crush Dougie, 16-year-old Heather agrees to a camping trip on the Scottish coast’s remote Black Cairn Point. Heather; her best friend, Emma; Emma’s combative boyfriend, Darren; and their friend Martin entertain themselves with campfire tales of pagan rituals and a boozy game of Truth or Dare. Later, Heather, Dougie, and Martin discover an ancient burial site on a nearby hill, where Dougie unearths a strange brooch. But after a heated confrontation with Darren, Martin stalks off and doesn’t return, setting off a shocking series of events. A year later, Heather and Dougie, who is in a coma, are the only survivors, and Heather’s story has convinced investigators, and her family, that she was responsible for her friends’ disappearances. She must now come to terms with the past, or, if she can’t persuade the authorities of her innocence, forfeit her future. McFall (the Ferryman trilogy) compensates for a predictable setup and stereotypical characters with the foreboding, isolated beach setting, even if a shocking final twist doesn’t feel fully earned. Ages 14–up. Agent: Margot Edwards, Margot Edwards Rights Consultancy. [em](Jan.) [/em]