Published by Disney-Hyperion 

Summary: Jory is tired. Tired of keeping secrets, like the secret that he has a 9-year-old sister whom his family found in their pumpkin patch three years ago. And tired from digging in the canyon behind his house for five hours a night. His stepfather Caleb says the whole family has to dig. He doesn’t say why exactly, but it has to do with the signs Caleb says are all around them. Signs that danger is coming soon. It’s scary, but for the first time in his life, Jory begins to see that there are other people in the world who are different from him and his family. He’s beginning to make friends at school and to learn more about the world around him. So when Caleb tells him the biggest secret of all, Jory wonders if he has the courage to question the life he’s always known.  Grades 4-7.

Pros: 262 pages, 24 hours. I couldn’t put it down. Caleb is a real creep, but the author makes him human, too, with some understandable reasons for his actions. Jory is such a likeable character, you will be rooting for him right up to the last page.

Cons: Not all of the questions raised are answered by the end of the story.