The Mediator: Shadowland by Meg Cabot

[Rhianna]

Shadowland is the first of the Mediator series. It is a "paranormal romance" book about a 16-year-old girl named Susanna "Suse" Simon who moves from New York to Carmel-By-The-Sea, California after her mother remarries a carpenter named Andy. Along with a new step-father she has also inherited three teenage step-brothers, Doc, Sleepy, and Dopey (her nicknames). One thing that makes Suse different from all the kids in her school, besides her very direct New York manners, is the fact that she speaks "mediates" with ghosts. Not only does she have a handsome male roommate ghost who teases and tries to protect her, but she runs into some serious trouble when she starts school at a Private Mission Catholic School, only to discover that she has taken the place of Heather, a girl who committed suicide because her boyfriend, Bryce, broke up with her. Suse must try to find a way to fight the ghost who is seeking revenge for the life she cut too short. In Susannah's conquest for justice, she makes several friends and for the first time in her life becomes the most popular girl at school, not to mention she probably becomes the first girl to ever start "crushing" on a cute boy ghost. This book is very enjoyable and an easy read. It's definitely a book that would attract female readers because of it's strong female voice. It also has the ability of capturing reluctant readers. While it is not directly didactic, it does give a subtle message on the importance of relying on others rather than relying on one's own strength.