Berserk

15-year-old Chas and his mate Devil are pretty well bringing themselves up on an estate gone feral. His indomitable Gran tries to exercise some control but her tough love usually turns to indulgence in the end.

For the kicks Chas writes to a prisoner on Death Row and unwittingly sets off a sequence of events that will prove ultimately very dangerous and scary for himself, his mother and his friends.

The plotting is deft, the voice of the first person narrative is very contemporary and the author demonstrates a very detailed, realistic grasp on the attitudes and lives of many of our current crop of teenagers. Yes, there is a lot of anti-social hoody behaviour, but in truth Chas isn’t all to blame and he does have a heart for his mates, his troubled mum, his harridan Gran and his would-be girlfriend.

Kennen won plaudits for her first book, Beast ; this thrilling and at times amusing read should also cause a stir.