SOLVED. YA Horror (I think), read in mid-90s -- boy asks girl to go swimming at abandoned house, there's no water in the pool, she dives in without knowing that, he stays with her until she dies then goes to get help. [s]

[Sarah]

I read this book in the mid-90s, I'm guessing it's from the 80s or 90s. Most of what I remember about it is what's in the title. I think the guy pretends to be a good person, and the other characters don't know that he watched the girl die before going to get help. I'm pretty sure he's a teen and the girl who died in the pool is a teen. There may be another girl character who tries to figure out who killed the pool girl. It may have been published by Scholastic (I lived for when the Scholastic Book Fair came to my school), but I also read a ton of books from the library so it could've been any publisher.

From what I remember, I would guess this is a YA Horror book. I don't remember what the cover looked like or the author's gender. It was published in English and I'm guessing it took place in the US.

[Rainbowheart]

The Pool?

Pool Party?

The Dark and Deadly Pool?

[Sarah]

I read summaries of those, and they don't seem to fit. But thank you! The author of the last one, Joan Lowery Nixon, sounds really familiar so I'm going to look at some of her other books.

[Tab]

When does the reader find out that the boy was there when the girl died?
Does the story follow the finding out how the girl died or the events leading up to her death?

[Sarah]

The way I remember it is that the story opens with the part where she died. And then the reader knows the boy is evil but none of the characters know. I think the rest of the story is another girl investigating maybe? And she might be in danger too? But all I can clearly remember is the pool scene.

[Courtney]

The Boy Next Door

[Sarah]

Ahh yes, that's what it is! Thank you!! :) I've been wondering for YEARS.