The Party

This cautionary teenage tale blends romance and drama but skates over the deeper issues in a bid to be humorous. The brainchild of London-based theatre facilitator Ben Tomlinson, it follows his romance debut Loverboy. Changing the title A Party to THE Party, it addresses the problems teens face in yearning to be popular, the importance of not judging a book by its cover and the expectations of parents. 

Self-confessed gaming geek sixteen-year-old Noah has a major crush on the luminescent Saskia who loves to party. The trouble is his parents do not trust him with a free house for his birthday and his mother wants him in Norfolk to help clear out his grandmother’s cottage. With the help of his close friends Caitlin, who thinks she likes Michael, and Woody, who has a secret, he begins to scheme. Cue operation leverage. Cue a resentful sister. Cue a vengeful ex. Cue chaos. Cue meltdown.

Intercut with text speak, references to Macbeth, incidents of self-discovery, self-esteem issues, questions about perceptions, blurred boundaries and awkward situations, the book is a rollercoaster of teen emotions as drink, drugs, confusing behaviour and sudden surprises amp up the drama factor. After one heady night this group of teens will never be the same again but how bad will the fallout be? Will a fledgling romance last and have lessons been learnt?  With some tenuous plot moments, this will nevertheless appeal to fans of realistic contemporary YA fiction.