Free Fall

by Ariela Anhalt

Luke's life isn't easy. When he was 14, his father killed himself and his mother wasn't together enough to tell her son or to be of any help to him. The headmaster at his boarding school is the one who had to inform him of the death.

Now Luke is a senior who still hasn't dealt with his grief and anger. He hates his mom and has no relationship with her. Plus he's pretty shy, so the only relationship he has is with his best friend Hayden & Hayden's friends. Hayden oozes power and charm and pretty much runs everything at the school. Then a new boy, Russell, comes and challenges this. He even steals Hayden's girlfriend.

When Hayden, Russell, and Luke go to the cliffs for Russell's jump (a school tradition), Russell dies hitting the rocks instead of landing in the water. Now everyone wants to know what really happened up there. Was it an accident or a murder?

Quote I liked:

"Luke couldn't change his past, but he could change his future. He could take control of his life. He could do the right thing in this moment. It was time that someone stepped up."