Sparks

by David Michael Slater

Overview

Felix is an 8-year-old boy with a debilitating condition, stuck from birth in a terrifying group home. He and his fellow "freaks"—wheelchair-bound Mila, dermatologically-challenged Klaus, and lethargic Elsa—suffer at the hands of their able-bodied fellow orphans and the cruel, disciplinarian taskmaster called The Wolf. 10 years later, 18-year-old Felix is on the verge of being discharged into the real world when Annika, the flame-haired, fire-eyed rich girl from the mansion across the way blows into the orphanage, upsetting norms, destroying plans, and exposing the very real danger all the kids are in at the hands of an evil genius and his un-killable right hand, whose sinister plans for the Freaks reach back to history’s most horrific crimes.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781646031733
Publisher:	Regal House Publishing
Publication date:	09/04/2021
Pages:	230
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	12 - 18 Years

About the Author

David Michael Slater is an acclaimed author of nearly thirty works of fiction and non-fiction for children, teens, and adults. David teaches middle school in Reno, Nevada, where he lives with his wife and son. You can learn more about David and his work at www.davidmichaelslater.com.

Editorial Reviews

“Ancient mysticism, Nazi atrocities, and unspeakable evils in our time set the stage for this dark and disturbing tale. Readers will find themselves cheering on a pair of unlikely heroes racing to discover the truth about Wolfgang Law's Great Home for Good Girls and Boys.” —Heidi Marie Ayarbe, award-winning author of Freeze Frame and Compulsion 

 

“Riveting and breakneck, Sparks is an electrifying thriller, mystery, love story, and speculative fiction adventure. Best of all, its diverse characters are vividly evoked in all their wildness, vulnerability, and ferocity of spirit. I was glued to the pages.” —Shirley Reva Vernick, author of national award-winner The Blood Lie.

 

“Sparks is an ingenious blend of adventure, mysticism, and teenage self-discovery. This is a unique orphan’s tale, boasting a vibrant cast of misfits and some truly nasty villains. The story zips along with clever twists, culminating in a dazzling display of sci-fi pyrotechnics. David Michael Slater will enthrall readers with this witty, exuberant tale.” —Natalie Pinter, author of The Fragile Keepers

 

“Wildly imaginative, often poignant, and on occasion, delightfully profane, Sparks is a thrill ride that leaves the reader breathless at the end." —Steven Mayfield, award-winning author of Treasure of the Blue Whale 

 

“I devoured Sparks in one sitting. I simply could not put it down—and you won't be able to either.” —Ian Lewis, author of The Ballad of Billy Bean

 

“Sparks is stunning and visceral, alive with the journey of self-discovery and the emotional imperatives of loss, first love, fear, and friendship. This absolutely unique novel pushes the limits of creative imagination, illuminating what it means to be different in a world consumed with conformity." —Alex Poppe, award-winning author of Girl, World, Moxie, Jinwar and Other Tales from the Levant, and Duende

From the Publisher

2021-08-16
A boy in an abusive orphanage and his “Rags-to-Riches Princess” flee from her controlling father.

Felix, like the rest of the Freaks, doesn’t get Bagged (zipped up in a sack) or Dragged (to the brig) for his regular punishments. He doesn’t get tased with the Wolf’s Hotshot when he breaks a rule. He’s too fragile, with brittle bone disease. But in Wolfgang Law’s Great Home for Good Girls and Boys, the four Freaks—as they refer to the disabled residents—are punished in their own special ways. It’s the only world Felix has ever known, until mere days before his scheduled Discharge on his 18th birthday. That’s when the beautiful Jewish girl from the fairy-tale castle across the street sneaks into the home and demands Felix help her. Annika and Felix are soon off on an exuberantly punctuated, sky-high-body-count journey around Nevada. The family secrets Annika hopes to unearth turn out to be uncomfortably Nazi in nature and more than a tad mad scientist. Meanwhile Felix is learning some unexpected truths about the Freaks’ disabilities, while the villains who hunt them become increasingly more physically grotesque or mentally unbalanced. The primary characters are White.

Exploitative treatment of disability does grave disservice to the compelling, carnival atmosphere of brutality. (Suspense. 15-18)

Kirkus Reviews