Kerosene [Paperback]

Set in London, Cal is a lonely teenager who feels as though he has hit rock-botton. He is the mistake which his parents will not let deter them from their careers; his shyness makes him invisible to his classmates (on good days); and he knows it is only a matter of time before his only friend, Joel, leaves him to hang around with his cool, clubbing buddies. All he has, or thinks he has, is the beauty--the beauty which comes from setting fires and watching the bright blaze emitted from the flames.

Bend Deerborn is an investigator of arson, who is called to the scenes of two fires, which have been suspiciously set in deserted areas. However, he finds himself conflicted between the need to perform his job and the identification he finds in this troubled youth, with his own son, Carl, who died along with Ben's wife in an accident when Ben was behind the wheel.

What sends Cal over-the-edge is a prank started by two popular girls, seeking revenge for minor, unintended upsets, using the guise of true love for someone who cannot help but believe it is real. Cal is also spooked when Joel tells him he has been dealing marijuana and has come into debt with some shady characters. He needs to get them their money or risk dire consequences. Under these circumstances, Cal plots, aware of his life going up in flames around him; he will beat everyone to the chase. Cal knows something is wrong with him, that he is a teen in trouble, yet how can he tear himself away from the confounding yet beautiful peace he finds in the flames?

With titles like "trigger", "fuel", and "conflagration" in order, author Wooding knows how to build suspense. He is a master of description, particularly in the scenes about fire. The novel is well-plotted in that veiled hints are given about what Cal is going to do before he actually does it. All of the characters are well-developed and easy to sympathize with., and various viewpoints of the story in third-person narrative give a complementary dimension to the story. Although I found the end to be unrealistic, and did not understand how Joel was aware of his friend's obsession with fire, I still found this a suspenseful, fast-paced read, elucidating the dangers of ignoring a teenager's cry for help. I look forward to more of Chris Wooding's work.

A new girl, Abby Cohen, is beaten by him in an art contest so now she has a grudge against him too. Emma devises a plan that they will pretend to fancy him and just as he starts to believe them they will embarrasse him in front of everyone. At first Abby likes the plan but then she thinks she's a real cow for doing this to Cal, things take a turn of events. It's a great book but the ending seems like there is a sequal I don't think there is but I wish there was. (hint, hint if by some freak chance Chris Wooding is reading this)