The Girl in the Park    by Mariah Fredericks Order:  USA  Can Schwartz & Wade, 2012 (2012) Hardcover, e-Book      Reviewed by Lyn Seippel Did you ever do – or not do – something and have it come back to haunt you? That's what happens to Rain Donovan. Rain is a junior at a private New York City academy. She's known most of her classmates since grammar school, but she's an outsider. A listener. Wendy Geller is new to the school. She wears the wrong clothes and her dad's money was made in pool services earning her the nickname Pool Scum. She doesn't fit in either, but she wants to belong, no matter what she has to do. An extrovert, Wendy never gives up. They may not want her, but she's there to stay. Rain admires Wendy's tenacity and they become friends for a while. After they drift apart, Rain sees Wendy at parties. She's at the last party Wendy will ever attend. Afterwards she's sure there was something she could have said or done that would have changed what happened that night. While the police get nowhere solving her murder, Wendy is being trashed by the media. Rain knows there is more to Wendy than being a high school party girl. When she learns the police think the murder was done by a classmate, Rain is in a unique position to find the killer. This is more than just a mystery. Rain's personal struggles to speak up for herself and her friend define her, as does her loyalty. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more Teens books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews