Scar Town by Tristan Bancks

Will, and his friends J (Juno) and Dar, live in the town of Scarborough (Scar Town), whose history includes the inundation of Old Scarborough to create a reservoir. Will also lives with the personal trauma of a missing father, a trauma that happened at about the same time as the old town was flooded. Everything changes when there is a leak in the dam wall and it threatens to collapse, and the old town starts to reappear from the mire. Will and his friends go exploring in an old home that rises from its watery grave and their discovery of cash and bones creates a fissure in the normal life of Will and the remnants of his family. J and Dar too become embroiled in a dangerous mystery as they seek to hide their discoveries from the adults in their life. Trust is under threat, but so is truth.

This is an intensely exciting dramatic tale with the young people (aged 12 and 13) exercising their independence and lack of trust in the adults around them. They put themselves in danger, but they also seek to solve a complex mystery that weaves around the old town that is re-appearing from the watery grave that has hidden it for about seven years. This book will excite readers aged 11-15 as the action and drama begins from the first page. There is a fierce and feisty response of the young protagonists to their discovery of a stash of cash and a skeleton, but also moral dilemmas as they initially keep the discovery secret until their own lives become threatened.  Grief and struggle are also woven into the story, and relationships with parents also need repair. This is a powerful story and one that will grab young readers and they will be the ones who recommend it to their peers. Tristan Bancks certainly knows how to write for early teen readers … but I am not a teen and I loved it!

Themes: Adventure, grief, corruption, mystery, secrets, crime.

Carolyn Hull