Unraveled

by S.X. Bradley

Overview

Sixteen year old math whiz, Autumn, spends her days reading about serial killers and dreaming of becoming an FBI Profiler. She never dreams her first case will be so personal. Her world is shattered when she comes home from school and discovers her murdered sister's body on the living room floor. When the initial evidence points to a burglary gone wrong, Autumn challenges the police's theory because of the personal nature of the crime. Thinking that finding the killer will bring her family back together, she conducts her own investigation using her affinity for math and forensics, but her plan backfires and her obsession with the case further splinters her family.

When her investigation reveals the killer is someone she knows, Autumn offers herself up as bait and sets a dangerous trap to unmask his true nature and to obtain a confession for her sister's murder.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781771302760
Publisher:	Evernight Publishing
Publication date:	02/08/2013
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	278
Product dimensions:	5.25(w) x 8.00(h) x 0.63(d)
Age Range:	14 - 17 Years

About the Author

Susan grew up in South Texas, about ten miles from the U.S.-Mexican border. As a child she spent the summers in Mexico with her grandparents and extended family. During these vacations, she frequently created mysteries for her siblings and cousins to solve. These mysteries were her first stories. Nancy Drew soon became her childhood hero and inspiration to write mysteries for young adults.

Her greatest joy is her 6 ½ (can't forget the ½) daughter who is quite the storyteller and likes to come up with the characters' names for mom's stories.

When she's not writing or studying, you can find her looking after her personal mini-zoo which consists of two fish, one thief of a dog, and one whistling guinea pig.

Susan loves estates sales, traveling, spending time with her family, and discovering new books at the Columbus Metropolitan library.

Susan graduated from the University of Texas, is currently pursuing an MFA from Seton Hill University, and dreams of one day owning a touch screen murder board like the one on her favorite TV show, Castle.

Editorial Reviews

Debut author Bradley's engrossing, emotionally gripping young-adult mystery/suspense novel explores the effect of a murder on a victim's family. High school junior Autumn Covarubbias comes home from school to find her older sister, Celeste, bleeding to death on their living room floor, and she unsuccessfully attempts to revive her. After her sister dies, Autumn finds herself a suspect, as she has a scary-high IQ and a hobby of researching serial killers; she also has dreams of becoming an FBI profiler and no social life. The fact that she and Celeste publicly quarreled on the day of the murder makes police detectives suspicious, and even Autumn's grieving parents seem to doubt her innocence. Fortunately, Autumn knows she can depend on her cousin, Eduardo, and, later, her math squad to support her. Meanwhile, she also develops a romantic relationship with Caedon Keene, a boy at school. As she uncovers secrets about her sister's last days, she realizes that she'll have to make painful choices in order to trap the killer--ones that will hurt people she cares about the most. This novel is set apart from other mysteries by its heart-wrenching focus on how the murder affects the family left behind. Bradley crafts complex, believable characters that readers will care about--particularly the sympathetic Autumn. Through her eyes, the reader experiences the heady emotions of first love, tempered by feelings of guilt. Bradley also writes convincingly about the close Mexican-American Covarubbias family, as when Autumn's Tia Sandra prepares a feast in order to vet Caedon before a first date. Her portrayal of high school life is equally clear and honest, and readers will likely carry Autumn, Caedon and Celeste in their hearts long after the book is finished. A heartbreaking, impeccably plotted mystery.

Kirkus Reviews