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The Uninvited    by Tim Wynne-Jones Amazon.com order for
Uninvited
by Tim Wynne-Jones
Order:  USA  Can
Candlewick, 2009 (2009)
Hardcover
* * *   Reviewed by Lyn Seippel

Mimi Shapiro leaves New York City to hide from a college professor turned stalker. Her dad generously offers her the use of a cottage he owns in Canada. Mimi's excitement turns to alarm when she finds the cottage is already occupied by a young musician.

When Mimi and Jay sort things out they realize they are half sister and brother and have both been offered the cottage to use, Mimi as a hideaway and Jay to work on his music. Their self-absorbed Dad didn't see any reason to tell either of them about the other. He also didn't bother to tell them that another sibling is nearby.

The story is told in alternating viewpoints of Mimi, Jay, and the third sibling, Cramer. Cramer has always known that Jay Page is his half-brother. He's been too shy to bring the relationship to Jay's attention even when they attended the same small town school. Their lifestyles differ in every way possible. Jay's mother is a doctor and Jay attends college. Cramer works two jobs. His mentally unstable mother is a burned out artist who relies on Cramer for support.

Cramer imagines being friends with Jay. He often breaks into the cottage when Jay is out. Cramer doesn't know about Mimi though and his thoughts about Jay’s new friend aren't brotherly. Plot twists and disturbing characters help build the tight tension that comes crashing to an end with Mimi alone at the cottage during a thunderstorm. The ending will shock most readers.

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