Review: Acceleration by Graham McNamee

It’s a hot, hot summer, and in the depths of the Toronto Transit Authority’s Lost and Found, 17-year-old Duncan is cataloging lost things and sifting through accumulated junk. And between Jacob, the cranky old man who runs the place, and the endless dusty boxes overflowing with stuff no one will ever claim, Duncan’s just about had enough. Then he finds a little leather book. It’s a diary filled with the dark and dirty secrets of a twisted mind, a serial killer stalking his prey in the subway. And Duncan can’t make himself stop reading.

What would you do with a book like that? How far would you go to catch a madman?

And what if time was running out. . .

Okay, aside from having some violence against animals (not cool under any literary circumstances, including those about catching a serial killer), I really, really liked Acceleration by Graham McNamee. I will say, the height of the book was a little quick and not as dramatic as it could of been, it was still a great read.

• Originality: 7 - I don't know that I've come across a YAF novel that wanted to delve into the subject matter of catching a serial killer. That being said, it did keep things somewhat lighter than what, say, an adult fiction novel would have, but it was just the right amount of mystery and thrills. Think CSI in a book.
• Absurdity: 8 - The fact that Duncan thought it would be okay to chase a killer to his neighborhood/home turf to try and track him down ... absurd, but not necessarily out of the realm of possibility for a 17-year-old boy. Amiright?
• Level of Paranormal Romance: 1 - there is almost zero romance, aside from a few mentions of an ex-girlfriend who he likes to leave voice messages for (not creepy at all, right?). In the context of this book though, it's okay!
• Level of Harry Potterness: 6 - I thought the writing in this book was very engaging and dryly funny. A great, quick and interesting read!