Blank Confession Pete Hautman

Blank Confession by Pete Hautman
Shayne Blank walks into the police station, confessing to a murder. Detective Rawls listens to Shayne confession and doesn't know what to make of him. The story alternates between Shayne's confession in a precinct interview room to Mikey Martin, his one friend in town. Everyone assumes Mikey is Mexican even though his mother is Haitian and his father is Italian. Three true things about Mikey - he has a smart mouth, is short and loves to wear suits. All of that plays a roll into the new kid confessing to murder. Shayne is as mysterious as his last name. Two true things about Shayne - rides a motorcycle and is not afraid of bullies.

"Who did you kill?" The kid didn't say anything, same as the first time Rawls had asked him that question instead, he reached for the metal ring attached to a hinge bolted to the tabletop and ran his fingers over it. The ring was there so that a potentially violent suspect could be handcuffed to the steel table, which was bolted to the floor. Rawls sat back and looked at his was 5:09. It didn't matter. This time he was going to wait for the kid to speak, no matter how long it took. It took two minutes and thirteen seconds."

This is the first novel, I've read by Hautman, though I've always heard great things, now I know why. Blank Confession is an intense realistic novel with drugs, violence and bullying that's very hard to put down. I loved it. Its very refreshing to read a well crafted YA novel that's only 170 pages at a time when longer is supposedly better. Very reluctant reader friendly. ages 14up