My Life Next Door

Starred review from April 23, 2012
Although they’ve been neighbors for 10 years, Samantha Reed and Jase Garrett are worlds apart. Rich, beautiful Samantha has led a privileged life, strictly dictated by her state senator mother. Jase, part of a large, boisterous family that’s despised by Samantha’s mother, has to work hard for what he gets. As fate would have it, the two teens fall in love despite—or perhaps because of—their different backgrounds. But the summer romance turns into a nightmarish moral dilemma as Samantha becomes aware of a secret, hidden by her mother’s unscrupulous campaign aide, which could destroy Jase’s family or ruin her mother’s political career. As Samantha wrestles with what to do, she risks losing her comfortable lifestyle, her mother’s trust, and the boy she most admires. Fitzpatrick’s excellent first novel movingly captures the intensity of first love, the corrupting forces of power, and the losses suffered by innocent victims caught in a web of political deceit. As the lines between villains and heroes shift, readers will be reminded how “right” and “wrong” choices are rarely crystal clear. Ages 12–up. Agent: Christina Hogrebe, Jane Rotrosen Agency.