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Deidre has a secret: she’s psychic. On her sixteenth birthday, the visions become more powerful and deadly. She’s no longer rescuing newspapers from sprinklers or kittens from trees; she’s saving teachers from choking to death on a hot dog.
Unable to control when the visions strike her, Deidre is afraid that her secret will get out. Then no boy will want to ask her to the Valentine’s dance. But worrying her mom and dad and her brother, Charlie, bothers her most of all. Her parents won’t even allow her to drive because they’re afraid that her visions will cause an accident.
One day, Mark, a new student, shows up at Deidre’s school. He seems to be interested in her, even though her visions are causing her to look like a freak. Once Mark discovers her secret and accepts it, they work together to go after a gang of robbers who are about to hit a bank in town. But Deidre worries that she might just be seeing visions of her own impending death.
Haunted by the feeling that she was unable to save someone in the past, Deidre throws herself into danger’s path in order to save anyone who gets caught in the bank with the robbers, hoping that, this time, everyone will make it out alive.
Deidre’s Secret is an enjoyable young adult read, with enough suspense to keep it thrilling. Ms. Wilde brings out some of the minor insecurities teens face while, at the same time, making her heroine brave and strong when faced with insurmountable obstacles. It took me back to my teenage years and made me feel as if I were truly there again.
Although the story matter is somewhat dark, it also has a light-hearted touch, easing the tension and keeping the tale from becoming too depressing. In fact, it reads more like a modern-day Nancy Drew mystery with a psychic flair. I can see young teen girls getting hooked on Deidre’s Secret and future stories about her. Heck, I believe that I could become hooked, too—and I’m long past my teen years.
Deidre’s Secret isn’t the best young adult novel I’ve read, but I can guarantee that, once the author hits her stride, subsequent books will only get better and better. Terry Lee Wilde is an author worth keeping an eye on.
