DeFelice, Cynthia. Death at Devil's Bridge.

HarperTrophy. 182p. c2000. 0-06-441037-4. $5.95. J

To quote KLIATT's July 2000 review of the hardcover edition:

Thirteen-year-old Ben, a year-round resident of Martha's Vineyard, has just landed his first job, as first mate on a charter boat that tares tourists out fishing. On his first day at work, however, Ben sees something in the water off the dock that doesn't belong--a red Porsche. He learns that his idol, cool 16-year-old Donny, resentful of the rich tourists, is responsible for the car going into the water, and that Denny even steals from the tourists. But under pressure from Donny and Ben's best friend, Jeff, and eager to hang out with Donny, Ben doesn't tell what he knows about his activities. Then he finds the teenaged driver of the Porsche washed up dead on the beach, and learns that the packages that he and Jeff have been delivering all over the island for Donny contain marijuana. Soon Ben is over his head in trouble, and his own life is in danger.

This is an engrossing, old-fashioned adventure/morality tale with modern trappings. Ben must wrestle with his conscience about whether or not to turn in a friend, and luckily understanding adults surround him. His unwitting and quickly growing involvement in illicit activities is all too believable. DeFelice, the author of Nowhere to Call Home and other novels for young people, makes Ben's plight plausible and exciting. This is a sequel to Devil's Bridge, another story about Ben, but it also stands on its own. Paula Rohrlick, KLIATT