“You five made an interesting group. I wonder if you knew who loved who. Or who loved what.” — Attorney John Richmond to Sharon McKay


This is so good it’s difficult to know where to begin. Christopher Pike wrote this in 1990 and I have no qualms about calling this a young adult classic. Even that seems a slight, because Fall into Darkness is so entertaining, so enthralling, perhaps the term classic shouldn’t be prefaced by the young adult label. This is really that good, I kid you not.

In many ways, this plays out like a very old soft noir, black and white drama from the Golden Age of film. The only difference is that here, the setting is updated, and the characters are younger, just on the cusp of real adulthood — if they survive. Fall into Darkness begins with a bang, with Sharon McKay on trial for the murder of her best friend, Ann Rice. Sharon is poor but talented, so talented musically that she has been accepted to Juilliard. Ann was the beautiful and rich one. If you think you already see where this one is headed, boy are you wrong.

The “witnesses” are all friends of the girls in one way or another. Most attended Wonderwood High together in Utah. True to life at this age, romances and loyalties are fluid among the friends, and also true to life at their age, they often blame Heaven for woes they’ve brought upon themselves by their own actions. When Pike wrote for this particular age group, he always seemed to be writing for the slightly smarter, slightly more “experienced” teenagers, and it gives his characters a bit of bite, and realism. When they do stupid things, it’s because that’s how they would really act in a particular situation, and it rings true.

The narrative is mesmerizing, floating back and forth between the trial, and Sharon’s memories of everything that led up to the event in question. Though on trial for a murder she didn’t commit, everyone saw Ann and Sharon go for a walk near the cliffs. But it’s what everyone heard that is at the root of the murder charge, since Ann’s body has not been found. Ann screamed “Don’t!” and then she was gone. But what really happened, and why?

I really need to tiptoe around all the secrets slowly revealed as Sharon’s suave and astute attorney, John Richmond, — who may want a little more in “payment” than Sharon has planned — questions the young men about what happened, about the history of the girls in relation to the boys, and about the suicide of Ann’s brother. It is obvious to the reader that Richmond has figured out what happened, and has a plan to get at the truth. But even if he does get an acquittal for Sharon, is that the end, the real truth?

I wish I could say more, but this one has more than one twist, including some unexpected violence, and an ending that’s so, so…Well, you’ll have to read it to believe it. I can’t recall the last time I couldn’t put a book down, no matter how good. This one had me up half the night because I had to know how it all ended. Fall into Darkness has a page-turning narrative and terrific movement. The characters are written as real young adults of the time, giving this an edge. Everything about this courtroom thriller filled with flashbacks is top-tier. Loved this, and can’t imagine anyone not loving it. Highly recommended. ( )

This book was reminiscent of one of Pike's other novels, Gimme A Kiss. I was a bit annoyed by it at first, but then Pike actually mentions the other book. Not by name specifically, but there is no doubt through the context clues that he's talking about it! I loved the Pike-ception, even though this book was not his best work. I would recommend reading Gimme A Kiss before reading this book, but it's not necessary. ( )

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Sharon McKay is on trial for her best friend Ann Rice’s murder. Never mind that there’s no body, no real witnesses, and no evidence. Sharon and Ann’s friends saw them hike up to the cliff that night and heard Ann scream “Don’t!” before she either fell or was pushed off the cliff. Everybody seems to be convinced that Sharon killed Ann.

Scenes of the trial from Sharon’s POV alternate between scenes prior to the accident/murder from Ann’s POV. What Sharon didn’t know was that Ann was obsessed. Ann’s brother, Jerry, had loved Sharon and had killed himself after their relationship ended. Ann blamed Sharon and wanted her to suffer. What better way to do that than frame her for murder, thereby ruining her bright future? (I’m sure you can think of better and less risky ways she could have gotten her revenge, but just roll with it.)

I loved Christopher Pike’s books when I was a teen. They haven’t held up quite as well for me now that I’m an adult, but I can understand why Teen Me loved them: they almost always have shocking revelations and riveting banana pants moments.

The first half of this book was a straightforward murder...story. I can’t really call it a mystery, because everything was laid out for readers to see: Ann’s motive, her plan, who she decided to involve. All of it by page 32. The main question seemed to be “Did Ann survive her regrettably complicated plan or not?”

However, I trust Pike to always find a way to complicate things, and about halfway through the book he did just that. Bad things happened during Ann's plan. A character I hadn’t paid much attention to did something unexpected. Yes! Great fun up ahead!

Except not so much. Honestly, this book could have used more banana pantsery. Pike used up what little there was too quickly and put everything out in the open too fast. The ending was just...boring. And a little too silly to take seriously. I couldn’t help but laugh at all the kiss-related dialogue at the end. Paraphrasing: “You’re a bad kisser!” “No, you are!” “That was the best kiss I ever had. Really!” Oh, just stop it.

I almost missed the epilogue because the last couple pages were slightly stuck together. If anything, the epilogue actually made things worse, adding “depressing” to “mediocre” in the list of words I’d use to describe this book. I was not a fan of the implication that Sharon might have to pay her lawyer back with sexual favors, or settle for a lesser lawyer. I suppose the “it’s going to cost you” could have been referring to money, but there were a few lines earlier on that suggested otherwise. In general, I’m not surprised that the ending was changed for the made-for-TV movie (although Wikipedia’s description of the changed ending makes it sound like more of a mess than an improvement).

One more thing: I imagine the courtroom scenes would make actual lawyers and judges cringe. I’m pretty sure that real lawyers can’t get away with telling objecting lawyers to shut up (yes, he actually said that out loud, but the judge was so dazzled by the story he was laying out that he didn’t say anything).

(Original review posted on A Library Girl's Familiar Diversions.) ( )

Another relatively strong mystery from Christopher Pike. He was excellent at mixing thriller with whodunnit stories. This one wasn't as good as the one I read before it, but still worked by starting with a trial and then flipping back and forth between that and the backstory. At first I was worried it wouldn't work, but it actually did. The motive was a bit weak, really, and the mystery didn't hold strong long since the author explained it by mid book. The point was mainly seeing the trial unfold, be discovered, and the events which followed afterward.

I especially loved the bizarre lawyer as a character. Not conventional, but fun. The heroine with her addiction to music wasn't fully fleshed out, but she worked well for what she needed to be in the story. The baddies had weak motives that only work so far. This is more of a plot-drive tale than a character-enriched one, as in standard with most mysteries and YA.

Easy to get into, hard to put down, but not particularly nail-biting with tension, suspense, or intrigue. When reading the book it's enjoyable, yet won't be something you'll remember much a year after reading it. Pike is an excellent author who has written a good book here, but if you looked at his other library of offerings, you'd be more impressed. ( )