What's the Name of That Book??? discussion
This topic is about
To Die for
SOLVED: Children's/YA
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SOLVED: YA novel; message board format; searching for old sci-fi teen TV star from 60/70/80s; possibly Michael or Henry?; USA; 1990/2000s [s]
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Actually, now that I've had a browse through Amazon, I have a feeling the TV star's name began with an H. Maybe Henry?
SOLVED!My mum printed off this description and gave it to her friend - the one who bought it in a set from the bookclub. She said that she gave away all but one of the books, and went to find that one - and it was this book! I finished reading it this morning, and it's just as good as I remember it being. I remembered some bits wrongly (it wasn't a pace maker, but explaining would give the story away).
Anyway, it's called "To Die For" and is by Catherine Jinks. It was also published two years earlier under the title "What's Hector McKerrow Doing These Days?"
It's a teenage book, not quite sure how old. I must have been eleven when I read it, which would make it 2002 or 2003. However, my local library still stocked Babysitters Club and Sweet Valley books then, so it could be from long before then.
Set in the USA. Whole book in message board format.
It was about a teenage girl - around thirteen, maybe? - who was searching for a TV star from a sci-fi television series. I keep thinking that the show was from the 1980s, but I have a feeling it may have been before that, possibly black and white, so maybe nearer to 1960s or 1970s.
It had been shown recently on late night TV, and she became obsessed with the actor who played son from the show. He wore a leather jacket, and was probably meant to be in his late teens. One member of the family was a robot. I *think* his name may have been Michael, but not completely sure.
She starts a message board to start a discussion about trying to track him down, because the actor disappeared after this show. The first person to chat with her is an older teen from another state, who is sarcastic about the search. I think they were female, and they used a wheelchair. She was doing a school project on the show, hence how she found the message board. Another person who chats to them is a man in his 30s or 40s who warns them about the danger of making this massive search for him, maybe he doesn't want to be found.
Later, loads of people join in the search, and they eventually track him down. The tracking down is ridiculous, and involves searching through bins, and listening outside phone boxes. When they find the TV star, they discover that he wears something around his neck which looks like a plug – my mum just identified it as a pace-maker, an external one, which is apparently very old.
However, the guy doesn't want to be tracked down, and instead finds the girl who was looking for him and traps her and her mother in the basement of their house and ties them to a pole and puts cloths over their mouths to put them to sleep, etc. Steals the computer and runs off. Police catch him and it is seen on CCTV cameras that he shoots himself in front of the police.
Some time around this point the other girl (one in wheelchair) leaves her parents to go and visit the older man from the message board (scientist?) because of family problems? This memory is a little sketchy.
At the end, the main character shuts down the message board and decides that it was bad to try and find the TV star.
I remember this book SO well, but wish I could remember the title so I could find it again!
If it helps anyone, my mum's friend bought it from a book-club magazine in a set with three other books, including “The Watch House” by Robert Westall (2002 printing) I remember the book having a red cover, which always reminds me of “And What About Anna?” by Jan Simeon, which I read at the same time (2001).