Ann screamed “Don’t!” and then she was gone. But it’s what everyone heard that is at the root of the murder charge, since Ann’s body has not been found. Though on trial for a murder she didn’t commit, everyone saw Ann and Sharon go for a walk near the cliffs. The narrative is mesmerizing, floating back and forth between the trial, and Sharon’s memories of everything that led up to the event in question.

When they do stupid things, it’s because that’s how they would really act in a particular situation, and it rings true. When Pike wrote for this particular age group, he always seemed to be writing for the slightly smarter, slightly more “experienced” teenagers, and it gives his characters a bit of bite, and realism. True to life at this age, romances and loyalties are fluid among the friends, and also true to life at their age, they often blame Heaven for woes they’ve brought upon themselves by their own actions. Most attended Wonderwood High together in Utah. The “witnesses” are all friends of the girls in one way or another. If you think you already see where this one is headed, boy are you wrong. Sharon is poor but talented, so talented musically that she has been accepted to Juilliard. Fall into Darkness begins with a bang, with Sharon McKay on trial for the murder of her best friend, Ann Rice. The only difference is that here, the setting is updated, and the characters are younger, just on the cusp of real adulthood - if they survive. In many ways, this plays out like a very old soft noir, black and white drama from the Golden Age of film. Even that seems a slight, because Fall into Darkness is so entertaining, so enthralling, perhaps the term classic shouldn’t be prefaced by the young adult label. Christopher Pike wrote this in 1990 and I have no qualms about calling this a young adult classic. This is so good it’s difficult to know where to begin. Or who loved what.” - Attorney John Richmond to Sharon McKay

Fall Into Darkness by Christopher Pike