Freefall by Mindi Scott

Published: October 5, 2010
Publisher: Simon Pulse
 
Summary: How do you come back from the point of no return?
Seth McCoy was the last person to see his best friend, Isaac, alive, and the first to find him dead. It was just another night, just another party, just another time when Isaac drank too much and passed out on the lawn. Only this time, Isaac didn't wake up.
Convinced that his own actions led to his friend's death, Seth is torn between turning his life around . . . or losing himself completely.
Then he meets Rosetta: so beautiful and so different from everything and everyone he's ever known. But Rosetta has secrets of her own, and Seth soon realizes he isn't the only one who needs saving . . .


My Review: I had two reasons for reading this book. #1 I've heard really awesome things about it and #2 It's on the Contemps Challenge book list. At first, I must say that I was a little confused almost, I thought that Freefall was more about Isaac and his life and death. But there wasn't a whole lot of this story happening. So I put preconceived notions about this book out of my head and started again. In so many ways, Freefall reminded me of my favourite book, The Outsiders. Maybe it has something to do with Seth, Daniel, Jared, Mikey and Isaac being brothers and really close friends (Remember Sodapop, Dallas, Ponyboy, Johnny and Darrel?) And the whole seperation of class, such as "trailer trash" and "rich bitches" in Freefall, and the "greasers" and "socs" in The Outsiders. There were definitely similarities between these two books, but yet they were both clearly their own story.
The characters in Freefall are well-developed, and genuine. We got to know about Seth McCoy and who he is. There were times when I felt bad for this kid, who was the last person to see his best friend alive, and the first one to see him dead. I couldn't imagine what that might do to someone. Then we have Kendall who is just this wild and crazy friend who just happens to always be there at the most inopportune moments. And then Rosetta, who just seems like the girl next door.
I really enjoyed reading Freefall! I like how Mindi Scott seems to be able to connect with her young readers. This novel is about dealing with, and overcoming highschool issues -binge drinking, drugs and even small things such as stage fright- and finding someone to help you overcome these. It is clear that Mindi wants to connect and help her readers who are dealing with these issues (or know someone who is), and she does it in a way that is honest, fun and not like she is trying to drill the message into your head.
Overall, Mindi Scott's writing reads as if shes been writing her whole life. It is flawless and I can't wait to read more of her work!