Book Review: Playing with Fire" by Melody Carlson and BOOK GIVEAWAY!

As part of the Melody month blog tour I'm giving away a brand new two book set of today's book and Notes from a Spinning Planet -Mexico! Leave a comment with your email address so I can contact you if you win. I'll pick a name and announce the winner on Thursday, August 30. Good luck!

Where There's Smoke

Samantha McGregor's brother, Zach, has come home after being in drug rehab. She thinks that everything will be alright now and her family can begin to live a normal life again. However she starts to see signs that Zach is backtracking and not following steps to a full recovery. Plus there are rumors of drug uses running rampant in her high school and Ebony, her police contact, wants her help to try to find where the teens are getting their meth supply from. Sam even gets accused by the police of being a drug user. Then she has a vision of a burning cabin and her brother being dead as a consequence of his actions. She doesn't want to involve the police because she's worried they will make Zack really pay for his actions this time.

This book hits closest to home for Samantha because it deals with her brother and his ongoing drug problems. This book will appeal to families that have suffered with a family member in this same situation. This book focuses on the dangers of drug use among teens. There is no preachy "Just Say No" campaign forced on the reader. Carlson seems to understand why teens would possibly be tempted to use weed or meth or other drugs. Of course there a valid reasons why you shouldn't but Samantha, Olivia and other characters don't act like they are better than those who use them. I really liked how the party in the beginning was show with lax parental supervision. It is sad at how many parents turn a blind eye to their underage kids drinking, having sex or smoking because they figure if it's done at home, it won't be a problem. I'm glad that Samantha and Olivia were mature enough to get out of that situation without making a big scene. I really like the two girls, if I were still in high school I'd want to be friends with them. The writing again is top notch, I'm able to see how the characters feel and understand their actions. I'm really looking forward to the next book in the series.

Playing With Fire by Melody Carlson is published by Multnomah (2007)