Flash Burnout » (Unabridged)

L. K. Madigan lives in Portland, Oregon, with her husband, son, two big black dogs, hundreds of books . . . and quite a few items of mermaid memorabilia. This is her second novel for young adults. The first book she ever wrote (in fourth grade) was an eighty-page epic tale about mermaids, so her inner child cannot stop beaming over finally having published a mermaid book.

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Telephoto lens. Zoom. In a shutter release millisecond, Blake’s world turns upside down. The nameless woman with the snake tattoo is not just another assignment. “That’s my mom!” gasps Marissa.

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Saturated self-portrait: Blake, nice guy, class clown, always trying to get a laugh, not sure where to focus.

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Contrast. Shannon, Blake’s GF. Total. Babe. Marissa, just a friend and fellow photographer. Shannon loves him; Marissa needs him. How is he supposed to frame them both in one shot?

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Chiaroscuro. Lightdark. Marissa again, overexposed. Crash and burn.

Talk about negative space.

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Children's Literature

Blake is the class clown who can spin anything his way with a joke. Or at least, he could before he began to navigate the tricky waters of girls and relationships. Now that he is in a relationship with Shannon, he frequently finds himself out of his depth and wondering what he has done to anger her. His relationship with Marissa is simpler. They are friends who take a photography class together; their teacher refers to Marissa and Blake as "Pretty and Gritty" respectively because of the subjects they choose to photograph. While Marissa is focusing on flowers and beauty, Blake is taking pictures of bleak sidewalks and homeless people. When Marissa recognizes one of the homeless people as her mother, her life is thrown into a tailspin as she tries to rehabilitate her mother. Concerned, Blake finds himself lying to Shannon in order to check up on Marissa. Despite having fallen in love with Shannon, he is drawn into Marissa's world more and more as the situation with her mother makes her vulnerable and strengthens their friendship. Reviewer: Jennifer Waldrop