Charlotte Aimes
Libby O'Loghlin
language
(Rowing Girl Productions, Nov. 7, 2013)
Longlisted for the Bath Children's Novel Award 2015.When it comes to reality aversion, Charlotte Aimes is confident she rules unrivalled. Sent to a small, lakeside school in Zürich, Switzerland, after her mother died, Charlotte has become a pro at pretending her father's not a teacher at the school, dissing Aurora Morgenfrüh and her posse of screechy nail-painters, and even outsmarting her childhood friend, Lyla Waterson, who has inexplicably turned her back on her old pal. The high-school popularity game is one Charlotte refuses to play—not even for the irritatingly magnetic René Adler. In Charlotte's book, survival is about trying to keep her big mouth shut.Problem is, her relentlessly logical and single-minded younger brother, Mike, is still asking for help decoding even the most basic social interactions ... at the most inopportune moments. And when the winter freeze sets in and their elderly neighbour Sami goes missing, Mike just won't let it go. So Charlotte starts asking questions: Who's been there in Old Sami's absence? What's with all the jars of powder? And who exactly is the Wannabe Ninja?At first it's just a feeling—that she's being watched. But then, too late, there's a fatal accident. Out of cellphone range, halfway up a mountain, with a killer on her trail and a kidnapped friend on her conscience, Charlotte knows going it alone is a really dumb idea. But who can you turn to when you've burned all your bridges? Like an avalanche, reality comes crashing in, and Charlotte must decide if it's worth the fight.