Let Me Hear a Rhyme by Tiffany D. Jackson

High School Fiction

VG/M. Jackson, Tiffany. Let me hear a rhyme.  Katherine Tegen Books, 2019. 380p. 978-0-06-284032-5. 17.99.

It’s the summer of ’98, and rather than heading off to Coney Island to enjoy the beach and fireworks like they always do right before the school year starts, Quadir and Jarrell are instead attending their best friend’s funeral.  To others, Steph may have just been another nameless victim of street violence, but to them he was their brother, someone they could always count on to have their back. However, as close as they were, Quadir and Jarrell are still surprised to find the depth of Steph’s musical talent.  When they discover his prerecorded music, they approach Jasmine, Steph’s sister, with an outrageous plan.  The three decide to promote Steph’s music under the alias “The Architect”, pretending Steph is still alive in order to get him signed onto a record label. Jasmine agrees, only if the two help her uncover the truth about her brother’s murder.  The stakes are high for the all three, and the situation ever more dangerous as they move closer to the truth.  Will they be able to help Steph achieve his dreams even after death and find justice for him? For fans of Angie Thomas. Recommended for all YA collections.

Camille Campos, LAPL, Benjamin Franklin Branch Library 

The Fixer

High School Fiction

VG/A Barnes, Jennifer Lynn. The Fixer. Bloomsbury, 2015. 372p. 978-1-61963-594-4. 17.99.

Uprooted from her life in Montana when her grandfather becomes too ill to take care of her, Tess Kendrick is forced to move in with her estranged sister in Washington, D.C. After enrolling in the esteemed Hardwicke School, where the children of the nation’s capital elite attend, Tess learns that her sister, Ivy, is a fixer”, someone who fixes the problems of D.C.’s politicians.  Without meaning to, Tess soon develops a reputation for being her high school’s resident fixer, after helping the vice president’s daughter out of a terrible situation.  Her new friend, Vivvie, comes to her, confessing that she overhead her father’s conversation and suspects him of having done something dreadful, connecting him to a Supreme Court justice’s recent death.  In investigating, Tess finds herself embroiled in the machinations of Washington and surrounded by secrets and lies that soon turn dangerous.  Barnes weaves a clever tale of secrets, cover-ups, conspiracies, and political intrigue.  Camille Keo Campos, LAPL, Angeles Mesa Branch