A review by jacki_f
Ketchup Clouds by Annabel Pitcher

4.0

This is Annabel Pitcher's second novel and like her first, My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece, it's a young adult novel with much broader age appeal. It takes the form of a series of letters written by 15 year old "Zoe" (she uses a false name) who lives in Northern England, writing to Stuart, a murderer on Death Row in Texas. She feels a connection with him because she also feels responsible for the death of another, a boy that she was involved with. That's about all that we know and the story of exactly who has died, how they died and why Zoe holds herself responsible unfolds gradually over the course of the book, as she takes Stuart - and us - through the events of the year leading up to the death. Along the way she talks about the issues in her family, her relationships with her sisters, her problems at school and the dilemmas of being a teenager.

This is a book with enormous charm that completely pulls you into the psyche of a teenager. It's not perfect: around the three quarter mark I did feel slightly frustrated that the revelations were being dragged out too long (and not going to come as the complete surprise that they are presumably meant to be), and the ending is also a slight let down. Nevertheless it's a very engaging read with some excellent characters. Zoe herself makes some stupid decisions along the way but the narrative device allows you to understand her and if not approve of her decisions, at least to get them.

I really like Annabel Pitcher's writing. While I didn't think this was quite as good as her first book, I still felt it was one of the better books I've read lately.