Kill The Lax Bro (YA chiller)

"It's the kind of place that always smells the same. No matter how long we're gone, and no matter how hard we've tried to stay away. Daffodils, cheap booze, gasoline. Reasons to live. Reasons to die. Metaphors, and monotony

...It's not much, if it's even anything at all. 

     But hey, as the poets say--It's high school."

     So far most of the dark academia we've been looking at has been set in posh, pricey, exclusive private schools. But in her Kill The Lax Bro Charlotte Lillie Balogh shows us that deadly intrigue and deceit can most definitely also lurk within the more plain, democratic, and underfunded public schools.

     Oh, yeah, we're back in the 90s. And, just in case you didn't know, lax is lacrosse. 

     It's the night before graduation. All Hancock High students, teachers, and some parent chaperones are locked in the school for the night. "It's part dance, part fundraiser, part theater, and every lock-in begins with the drama club staging a car accident involving real cars and fake blood. Just to really send the message home."

     For one graduating senior it's the last event he'll ever attend alive. Lacrosse star Troy Richards is found hanging from a classroom ceiling fan.

     Although quite popular in a school where Lacrosse is the dominant sport, Troy does have his haters. Andrew was his best friend until Troy got him kicked off the team. Troy had shredded Sassi's hope of getting into her dream school, the only college she'd applied to. They only take one Hancock High student a year. He'd been signed early because lacrosse. When Naomi had reported Troy for cheating off her on an exam he got off while she was penalized for supposedly making a false accusation. Tatum and Jennifer have their own reasons. 

     And the academic year leading up to the lock-in they'd been working to bring Troy down.  But would they go as far as murder?

     Here's where you come in. The text segues neatly between before and after chapters clearly depicting the characters and their complex relationships. Motives and opportunities. Was it the group, an individual member, or someone else entirely? Can you figure it out before the epilogue?

On a purrrsonal note, I hope you're having a great Labor Day Weekend. I most certainly am. Saturday Eugene and I went to camp to spend the night 🌙, stopping at yard sales on the way. What was special was that his long time BFF, Richard Brown, and his lovely wife, Karen, were at their camp across the road. We spent most of our time with them. They taught us a new game: UNO Switch. (If you haven't tried it, do!) We decided to come home Sunday because Eugene has a lot to do. As do I. My plan for today involves hanging the laundry outside if the weather cooperates. 

A great big shout out goes out to our long time friends: Richard and Karen Brown and their grown up sons.

Jules Hathaway 

     

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