Feathered by Laura Kasischke.

Feathered by Laura Kasischke.
HarperTeen, 2008, 261p, $17.89, 978-0060813178.

There is a sense of foreboding from the start. Three senior girls from suburban Glendale, Illinois fly off to Cancun for Spring break. Terri gets into the bacchanal-like teen environment right away at the Hotel del Sol where the three are staying. Anne and Michelle are more cautious, delighting in the gorgeous sunsets and turquoise ocean. When they meet a friendly stranger in the tiki bar of the hotel and accept a ride with him to visit the ancient Mayan ruins, things start to shift. Anne is apprehensive but Michelle feels a connection to Mr. Anders. In alternating chapters, Anne tells the story from her first person perspective and Michelle’s chapters are in the third person. Although the reader knows something awful has already happened since the plot is a flashback, things are not always what they seem. This cautionary tale infuses suburban teen naiveté, Mayan myths, and the harsh realities of modern life. The writing is both lyrical and eerie. It makes the reader want to yell at the book as people sometimes do at movie screens, “DON'T GO THERE!” The book had me on the edge of my seat the whole time I was reading it. This is an excellent selection for high school libraries and recommended for Tristate Books of Note.