The Long Game by Jennifer Lynn Barnes is a mystery story featuring privileged
high school students – think of it perhaps as an upper class Veronica Mars
meets West Wing. Although this title could technically be read as a
stand-alone, there are enough references to previous events that I would recommend
reading Barnes’ The Fixer first, The Long Game next, and
then keeping a lookout for others in this exciting series. Don’t take just my word for it, though; check
out the positive comments from students on GoodReads
and elsewhere.
In The Long Game, main
character Tess promises to help win a student council election for classmate,
Emilia. Tess and her friends, Asher,
Vivvie and Henry, are forced to deal with compromising pictures, a murder, and
kidnapping by a fanatical group. Meanwhile, adults are coping with an attempted
assassination event and resulting national security concerns. There is plenty of
teenage angst and some gratuitous violence in this fast-paced story for
students who like political intrigue and thrillers.
Barnes is also the author of The
Naturals (start to another series) which was chosen by a student reading
panel as a nominee for this year’s Abraham Lincoln High School Book Award list in Illinois.
