Lock and Key

Starred review from February 18, 2008
Dessen (Just Listen
; see Profile) inverts a familiar fairy tale: What if Cinderella got the prince, the castle and all its accoutrements, but wasn't remotely interested? After her mother abandons her, Ruby Cooper is flying below the radar of officialdom and trying to make it to her 18th birthday, when she's busted by the landlord and turned over to social services. Ruby is taken in by her estranged sister, Cora, who left for college a decade earlier and never looked back, and Cora's husband, Jamie, the wealthy founder of a popular social networking site. Resentful, suspicious and vulnerable, Ruby resists mightily, refusing the risky business of depending on anybody but herself, and wearing the key to her old house around her neck. All the Dessen trademarks are here—the swoon-worthy boy next door who is not what he appears to be, and the supporting characters who force Ruby to rethink her cynical worldview, among them the frazzled owner of a jewelry kiosk at the mall. The author again defines characters primarily through dialogue, and although Ruby and her love interest, Nate, sound wiser than their years, they talk the way teens might want to—from the heart. A must for Dessen fans, this will win her new readers, too. Ages 12-up.

May 1, 2008
Gr 7 Up-Ruby, 17, is taken in by her older sister and brother-in-law when her mother abandons her. Ruby and her sister haven't spoken since Cora left for college a decade earlier. She moves from a semi-heated, semi-lighted farmhouse to a McMansion in a gated community. The theme of abandonment permeates the narrative-Ruby's mother's disappearance, Cora's perceived abandonment, and all of the small abandonments around every corner throughout Ruby's life. The plot hinges luxuriously on character arc. Ruby's drama of pathological self-reliance to eventual trust plays out through thoughtful, though occasionally heavy-handed, inner monologue and metaphor. As always, Dessen's characters live and breathe. Ruby's sweet hipster brother-in-law and Nate, the freakishly affable hottie next door, are especially vivid, and Cora's change from bitter control freak to sympathetic co-protagonist is subtle and seamless. Though Ruby and Nate don't have quite the cinematic chemistry of many of Dessen's couples, their cautious friendship into romance seems that much more realistic. The author's feel for setting is as uncanny as ever, and Ruby's descriptions of the homogenous nouveau riche Anytown are sharp, clever, and honest. The dialogue, especially between Ruby and Cora, is crisp, layered, and natural. The slow unfolding adds to an anticipatory mood. What's more, secrets and situations revealed in the second half of the novel are resolved more believably by already deeply developed characters. Recommend this one to patient, sophisticated readers."Johanna Lewis, New York Public Library"

Copyright 2008 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

February 1, 2008
Ruby hasnt had much success with family. Her father left; her protective older sister, Cora, left; and her boozing mother finally leaves, too. Rubyis alone until Cora learns of her situation and swoops in. Suddenly, Ruby finds herself living with Cora and her wealthy brother-in-law, attending private school, and wondering just where she fits in. As in previous books, Dessen takes on a central themehere the meaning of familyand spins manyplots and subplots around it. Most prominent yet least successful is the thread about Coras relationship with boy-next-door Nate, who rescues her when she needs it, but has difficulty accepting Rubys help, tentative at first, when she discovers hes being physically abused. Nate seems too good to be true (as does Coras husband), while his father is a caricature. And one of themost important elements, theissue ofthe girls mother lying to them, gets lost. Despite the uneven narrative, Dessens writing can be beautiful, andher story is involving.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2008, American Library Association.)

March 1, 2008
When social services discovers that her neglectful mother has left altogether, seventeen-year-old Ruby is placed in the care of her married sister Cora, whom she hasn't seen in years. Warily acclimating to a new world of privilege, loner Ruby strikes up a tentative friendship with neighbor Nate, a personable, thoughtful golden boy whose life is not what it appears. When Ruby realizes that Nate's father is abusive, she struggles with how best to help someone who, much like herself, doesn't want to be helped. The intricacy of relationships that is Dessen's signature shines here, not just in the almost-romance with Nate but in the sisters' rebuilt relationship, Ruby's memories of her mother, and even Cora's loving but un-idealized marriage. The narrative's tendency to skate past key events, detailing the buildup and aftermath but skipping the thing itself, may frustrate those who want every juicy detail. Still, the in-depth exploration of issues of family, trust, and responsibility gives readers plenty to chew on, and the complex, deeply sympathetic characters are pure pleasure to spend time with.

(Copyright 2008 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

July 1, 2008
After her mother leaves, seventeen-year-old Ruby is placed in the care of her sister. Ruby strikes up a tentative friendship with Nate, whose father is abusive. The intricacy of relationships shines in this in-depth exploration of family, trust, and responsibility. The complex, deeply sympathetic characters are pure pleasure to spend time with.

(Copyright 2008 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)