Blood Trail

by Nancy Springer

After his best friend is murdered, seventeen-year-old Booger realizes he is the only one who has any idea who might have committed the crime; but he doesn't tell anyone. This novel explores the darker side of sibling rivalry.

For Ages 12 and up

An ALA Quick Pick for Reluctant Readers
An IRA Young Adults' Choice Book
A VOYA Top Shelf Fiction Book
A Missouri Gateway Readers Award nominee

Genres: Mystery, Young Adult, Teen, Fiction, Crime, Realistic Fiction, Horror

105 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2003

About the author

BIO -- NANCY SPRINGER


Nancy Springer has passed the fifty-book milestone, having written that many novels for adults, young adults and children, in genres including mythic fantasy, contemporary fiction, magical realism, horror, and mystery -- although she did not realize she wrote mystery until she won the Edgar Allan Poe Award from the Mystery Writers of America two years in succession. DARK LIE, recently released from NAL, is her first venture into mass-market psychological suspense.
Born in Montclair, New Jersey, Nancy Springer moved with her family to Gettysburg, of Civil War fame, when she was thirteen. She spent the next forty-six years in Pennsylvania, raising two children (Jonathan, now 38, and Nora, 34), writing, horseback riding, fishing, and birdwatching. In 2007 she surprised her friends and herself by moving with her second husband to an isolated area of the Florida panhandle, where the birdwatching is spectacular and where, when fishing, she occasionally catches an alligator.

Reviews

[Sean S · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading blood trails was very suspenseful and fast pace and that's what made this book really good, the book is pretty much the thought of a kid going through so much at once and can't let loose all of his feelings.

I really enjoyed the book because it kicked off fast and I didn't have a problem reading it. The storyline also is very strong and mixed into one great book. There are some slow parts but they are interesting to read overall the book was pretty good especially the ending.

[Jeff · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is very interesting. It is like a horror book. The blood trail is about a best friend of a boy who was murdered. He thinks he knows who did the crime but he keeps it to himself. I recommend this book to people who likes mystery books.

[Rene · Rating 3 out of 5]

A boy's best friend is murdered and now he must decide whether or not to reveal what he knows about who it might be. This book has the crime very close to the front of the book and the reader spends a lot of time dwelling on it. I thought the emotions of the main character were real but that the story (conclusion?) wasn't as sharply in focus as it could have been. Truly tragic idea of a story but not executed very well. I give it a C.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was amazing! It was very suspencful, I didn't want to put it down. It has a very suprizing ending so if you like books that are mysteries and have OMG moments,then this is the book for you. I know that this was the book for me because I love mysterie books and ghost stories like this but this was not a ghost story.

[Susannah · Rating 1 out of 5]

I thought this book was retarded. It is really boring because nothing happens. I listened to about half of it, and then skipped to the end to see if maybe there was a cool twist or something, but nothing. Plus the writing isn't very good and all the characters have stupid names.

[Gwen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great book for some who doesn't like to read. Short and suspenseful.

[Liam · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nancy Springer’s Blood Trail follows a highschool boy named Jeremy as he struggles to overcome the murder of his best friend. The story begins with Jeremy and his best friend Aaron hanging out together just as they always do. However, on their way home, Aaron tells Jeremy that he is scared. When Jeremy asks Aaron what he is scared of, Aaron replies with Nathan, the name of his brother. Aaron then enters his home leaving Jeremy worried and confused. It turns out Jeremy was right to be worried because the next day Jeremy wakes up to see tons of police cars and ambulances a few streets down; his worst fears come to reality when he is informed by the police officers that Aaron had been murdered. Jeremy went home to cry. However, he was not given much alone time before reporters started appearing at his house constantly. Eventually, even detectives showed up; they asked Jeremy if he knew anything about the murder and who could have done it. Jeremy lies and tells the detectives he knows nothing. Jeremy spends the next week debating what to do with the information he kept hidden from the detectives. It would not matter though as he is later forced to take a lie detector test; in which Jeremy’s suspicion of Nathan is revealed to the police. Eventually, Nathan is detained and put on trial. Word gets out that Aaron’s friend told the police it was Nathan. This leads to even more emotional trauma as Jeremy now has people showing up to his house and approaching him on the streets harassing him about how horrible of a person he is for putting the Grinch's (Aaron and Nathan’s family) in an even worse situation. Jeremy becomes even more conflicted with himself. He is not sure of what happened, nor is he sure that he should have revealed his suspicion of Nathan. Aaron’s family turns on Jeremy which upsets him even more. He thinks back on all the memories he made with Aaron, Nathan, and the rest of their family. In the end, Jeremy takes a moment to think by himself at the very waterhole where the book begins: where Aaron informs Jeremy of his fear of Nathan. Jeremy is eventually joined by his mom and sister who help him come to terms with what happened. Finally, the family leaves together to go get a bite to eat.
Blood Trail is a book that takes a certain acquired taste. Some may like this book while others might not. I, myself, was not overly intrigued by this book. The plot really seemed to be missing something; the biggest event of the book happened within the first twenty pages. The story sort of feels as if it is unfinished as well. The ending to the book didn’t feel like the internal conflict had been resolved within Jeremy. Some of Jeremy’s last lines in the book reflect this. For instance Jeremy says, “I’m never going to understand”, he continues saying,”Even if [Nathan] did confess, I still wouldn’t get it” (Springer 104). An argument could be made, however, that Jeremy’s resolution is that he accepts that he will never understand why Nathan did what he did. However, I feel like there was much more that needed to be resolved like the situations revolving around the Gringichs who now hate Jeremy and send their daughter away, separating her from Jeremy’s sister. On a good note, the main focus of the story is Jeremy’s mental health and how he is dealing with the trauma he has gone through; I think there are some good aspects derived from this. Jeremy can be very relatable to someone like me who is a highschool kid. He struggles throughout the book and although the reason he is struggling might not be relatable, the way he reacts to said struggles can be. Furthermore, this book does a great job at gradually helping readers understand more and more about Jeremy and the way he feels. For instance, shortly after Jeremy decides not to talk to the detectives about Aaron’s fear of Nathan, he tries to convince himself what he did was right: “The truth was, I’d told him everything except who Aaron had said he was afraid of. I wasn’t going to snitch on Nathan, because he couldn’t have done it. I mean, I’d known him as long as I’d known Aaron. When we were kids, we all played snow forts together, hunted fossils together . . . went camping, and told ghost stories together” (Springer 22). Jeremy initially has a lot of doubt concerning whether or not Nathan really killed Aaron. However, over time, Jeremy comes to terms with the fact that the Nathan he once knew was no longer the current Nathan. Jeremy matures throughout the story as he is exposed to the harsh realities of the world. In short, Blood Trail follows a very relatable character’s process of overcoming and accepting a very tragic event in his life. Although it is not the most interesting book, it has many deep meanings and lessons throughout as readers are exposed to the struggles one may face inside themself.

[Angelo · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book is called Blood Path By Nancy Stringer. The story begins with the main character, Jeremy and his best friend, Aaron, were both hanging out. Aaron seemed a little scared about something. The theme in my opinion is dealing with guilt.

Shortly in the book, Aaron is killed. He was stabbed about 73 times. Before his death, Aaron told Jeremy to call him in 10 minutes when they arrive home. Because of Jeremy not calling Aaron in time, leading to him being killed. My honest opinion on this book is actually really positive, coming from a person who loves horror. The characters make the story much better. Aaron is talking to Jeremy in his head about how he needs to snap out of it. Nathan makes the story interesting as well. He makes it seem The setting of the story is good. A dead boy with a severed head is sitting dead on the streets of a neighborhood. The style of the book is very dark. It gets into detail again with the severed head. Another scene is how Jeremy was working and 2 ladies were talking together about Aaron’s death. Jeremy was imagining the details in his mind, going into details. The details the author goes into this book makes me happy to read this book. The pacing of the book is… odd? The book starts with Jermey and Aaron playing and immediately saying Aaron was scared of something. Shortly 10 pages in, he's dead. Kinda quick for him to die. We hear more but maybe the story would change if he died a little later in the story, just a thought. The conclusion of the book went super quick, and led straight to a different section. It has a summary of what happened but we don't know what happened to Nathan or if Aaron got justice.

To the people who love going into the depths of death and mystery, I would most definitely recommend it. The details are so vivid and dark in this book and the mystery of what happened to Aaron leaves people wondering what happened to him. If I had a friend who enjoys horror. I would most definitely suggest to people who again, love horror or mystery.

[WafflingCozmonaught · Rating 1 out of 5]

Goodness. That was bad.

I like simple and fast writing styles, but the narrative voice is grating. And it's not just the protagonist; I hate all of the characters in this book. They are annoying and unbelievable.

The melodrama is intense, and it has to be because nothing happens in the later half of this story. The conflict is manufactured and contrived. Sorry, but informing the police that your best friend was afraid of the murderer mere minutes before they were slaughtered by said person is not "ratting them out". Just a baffling conflict that dominates most of the pages.

There is ambiguity as to what exactly happened which I thought was nice. This includes a couple interesting scenes that subtly suggest that the killer may be someone different. And I think there is a lesson in the book ending on the demure note that it did.

But, all-in-all, this was really not it.

2/10

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Devastating is the impact of a young person's murder in a small town. Springer in short fashion has one feeling the raw emotions. Then she explores with us the dangers of sibling rivalry, a form of domestic abuse. Is this Cain versus Abel again? This short read is quite provocative.

[Alma · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book was absolutely amazing. It was simple and thrilling at the same time, and the people, well characters are people that you can relate to. Gossip goes around and it goes around here too so it makes sense to use that as an example to connect to the readers. Good book lol.

[Lisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was disappointed that the book never came to a conclusion. It could be a good tool for a counselor to use and would provide a lot of stepping off points for discussions of sibling rivalry, crowd mentality, really knowing someone but I felt cheated.

[Jax · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hands down one of my favorite books of all time. Its suspenseful and page turning I could not put it down until I read the entire thing! Definitely recommend it if you like horror/mysteries!

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite a bit of profanity and the ending was a bit vague, but as you all can see by my rating this book was still very good! Intriguing, mysterious, and just the right amount of creepy.

[Bryce · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this book was really cool and very detailed.

[Saskia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good solid story and a better-than-average novella. Would recommend.

[Sheralyn S · Rating 3 out of 5]

probably psychologically accurate if your best friend is murdered. Not a satisfying ending, like life.

[Kathryn Walters · Rating 3 out of 5]

it did what it needed to, it wasnt anything great but it wasnt bad i hated the sister and feel bad for the kids

[Candace Smith-Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow, very bone chilling with lots of emotion. Loved this brief snapshot of what Jeremy is goes through. I wish it was longer with resolution

[Kiely Lara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cried for 3 chapters straight, will read it again.

[Janette]

I picked this book up thinking it was a mystery. It isn't (despite what the cover says). It's really a book about how a boy is changed when his best friend, Aaron, is murdered.

It's a very moving book in that way. I really felt for the main character, Jeremy, and the whole time I read the book I kept thinking how horrible it is that some people actually have to go through this experience.

What made it worse for everyone involved was that it was clear from the get-go that one of Aaron's family members (I won't spoil it by saying which one) is the murderer.

Jeremy can't believe that the family member would murder Aaron--although the book mentions that statistically, you're much more likely to be murdered by a family member than you are by a stranger. (That's something to think about the next time you're picking out Christmas presents.)

We're never told why the family member killed Aaron, although the characters talk about some different possibilities. The book is very open ended that way. Jeremy can't get closure about this crime, and neither do we, the readers. On one hand, I understand why the author did this--in real life, how do people get closure when their friends are murdered? But it made the book feel incomplete to me. I wanted something more. Still, I can see where this would be a valuable book to start a discussion about the issue of murder.

[Katherine Gingrich · Rating 3 out of 5]

Blood Trail is about the best friend of a boy who was murdered in a small town. Before he dies he askes his best friend Jeremy to call when he gets home because he is scared of his twin brother, Nathan. He eventually can't take it anymore and tells the police what he was told. In response there is a storm of vandalism on his house, thretening phone calls, and people calling him a traitor because Nathan was the prime suspect in the murder.
This book brings to light how one act can have so many consequences that are unforseen.

Violence:4 There was a very violent Murder.
Drugs:There were references, but none of the charactors used them in the story.
Sex:0
Language:3 It was hardly every other word, but there was quite a lot.

[Diane · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jeremy and Aaron, 17, have been inseparable since second grade. Now, Aaron has been brutally murdered. In a small town like Pinto River, this seems unimaginable and the rumors fly. Who would do such a thing? Small towns are supposed to be safe from psycho serial killers, aren't they? But Jeremy knows something that no one else does: Aaron told him that he was afraid of his twin brother, Nathan. Now Jeremy doesn't know what to do. Could Nathan have done this to his brother? Should Jeremy tell the police?

[Keith · Rating 3 out of 5]

YA. Murder. Fiction. Grief. Mystery and detective stories. A great read for reluctant male readers, as it deals also with football.

[Maddie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this book is most appropriate for 5th graders and up. It does contain some gross references since its a book about murder. This book shares a story about mystery and suspense. There were scenes in this book where I was very grossed out, so therefor I do not recommend this book for people who are easily discussed and not ready for horror. I recommend this book to people like me who like mystery, suspense, and some horror.

[Margaret Pinard · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this to see if I could get any pointers for technique of a mystery for middle reader/ YA level readers, especially since I loved this author's book Boy on a Black Horse. But the ending left me hanging, the story seemed very short and jumped gaps of time where nothing interesting must have been happening... not my favorite. More of a YA novel about dealing with grief than one about a murder, as it *spoiler* is never brought to a resolution.

[Karla · Rating 3 out of 5]

Booger enjoys life as an athlete in a small coal town with his best buddy Aaron until Aaron is brutally murdered. All leads point to Aaron's bookish brother Nathan. By sharing what he knows with the police, Booger manages to incur the wrath of most of his neighbors--especially Aaron's parents. I was hoping for more action, and the story was left largely unresolved.

[Caitlyn Shields · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is about a boy whos best friend is murdered. Before he was murdered he told his friend that he was scared to go home. His friend is hiding something though, something that might reveal the killer. It was a good book with a lot of suspense. It was a good book, but not one dying over. It isnt a definite read. More like a quick read that is enjoyable.

[Segen W · Rating 1 out of 5]

I give this book a 3 star rating because the cover makes you think that this book is a mystery but it isn't. I wished this book was longer and more descriptive. I honestly didn't like this book. I wouldn't recommend this book because it gets you disappointed. In the middle of the book it kind of gets interesting but then it starts getting really boring at the end.

[Yara · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Blood Trail By Nancy Spencer is a book that will make you think. Its about a friend that trys to find out who killed his best friend. Things Start changing when he starts quetioning his best friends twin brother... Didn't you know that jealousy kills....