Clarity (Clare) Fern is considered a freak. Everyone in her small coastal New England town knows that her family "sees things". Clarity is a psychic (she can see things by touching objects), her brother, Perry, is a medium (he can talk to the dead) and her mother is a telepath (she can read people's thoughts). Together they entertain the tourists in their home by giving family "readings". Clarity is looking forward to the day when she leaves for college, so she can start fresh with a clean slate.
She will go far away from her hometown where no one knows about her or her "gift". Until then, she has resigned herself to sit at home, do her readings and wait for high school to end. Clarity's summer is about to be turned on end, though. A teenage girl has been found murdered in a hotel, and the last person to see her was Perry (he's a bit of a man-whore). Soon, her ex-boyfriend (and son of the mayor) asks for her help in solving the case. She joins him, and the son of the new police detective to track down the killer. When more people wind up dead, Clarity has a feeling that she may be next.
I enjoyed the Clarity, and read it quickly. It's an easy read, and Ms. Harrigan follows the typical ‘whodunnit’ path. Something about it didn't totally suck me in, though. As much as I tried, I just couldn't buy in to some of the twists, and the resolve was only ho-hum to me. The characters were fairly well-drawn, though some of the supporting characters seemed erratic in their behavior. The most consistent characters were Clarity and her family.
I would recommend this book if you tend to like your mysteries on the lighter side, and if you don't over-analyze things (like I tend to do). For me, it was just okay.
- This reviewer also blogs at www.booktwirps.com
- Publisher: Scholastic, Inc.
- Date of Publication: March 2011
