Reading Level: Young Adult

Life hasn't been pleasant for Elliot Sutton. In fact, it's been downright awful. During fall term at school, he was badly beaten by a gang of bullies, so much so that his family moved to a new town, with a new school, so Elliot can have a fresh start.

Elliot is scared, and determined. He invests his savings in new clothes and a new hairstyle - all designed to be just right, nothing to make him stand out as either a loser to be picked on, or too stylish and therefore envied. Elliot knows how to play this game, but he's in danger of forgetting who he really is, since he thinks facades are necessary for his survival. He's cool, aloof, and careful, and resists getting involved.

Holminster High seems like a better school, but soon Elliot begins to see that something else is going on here, after witnessing a younger boy being punished in one of the bathrooms. Then, Elliot himself is issued an invitation to meet the "Guardians," a secret society that makes the rules at Holminster, using power for power's sake. Maybe Elliot has done his job of re-inventing himself too well.

— Kay Morris