The Dark Beneath
by Alan Gibbons
GCSEs finished, Imogen is looking forward to a summer of freedom and her job at the village pub. Instead, a plan to set up a new asylum centre in the village uncovers undercurrents of hatred and violence and Imogen's world is turned upside down by three refugees: Anthony, the introverted, obsessive landlady's son; Farid, an Afghan asylum-seeker; and Gordon, an embittered loner.
Tightly-written and fast moving, the plot is both credible and full of menacing suspense. Gibbons deftly describes Imogen's dawning realisation of the dark currents all too ready to erupt into the everyday, and creates a chilling portrait of the damaged individuals who destroy her safe, summer world.
This title was shortlisted for the 2004 Booktrust Teenage Prize.
Publisher: Orion Children's Books
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Alan Gibbons
Alan Gibbons has been writing children's books for 17 years. He is the winner of the Blue Peter Book Award 2000 'The book I couldn't put down' for his best-selling book Shadow of the Minotaur. He has also been shortlisted twice for the Carnegie Medal and twice for the Booktrust Teenage Prize. He has won the Catalyst Award, the Leicester Book of the Year, the Angus Book of the Year, the Stockport Book Award and the Salford Librarians' Special Award. His books have been published in languages including Japanese, German, Italian, French, Thai, Spanish, Danish, Dutch, Swedish.
Alan was a teacher for 16 years. He is now is a full-time writer and independent educational consultant and a campaigner for library services. He lives in Liverpool.
http://www.alangibbons.com/
Alan Gibbons Photo: Barrington Stoke
