{"product_id":"stranger-danger-isbn-9780593647448","title":"Stranger Danger","description":"\u003cb\u003eFrom horror powerhouse author Maren Stoffels comes the next pulse-quickening read! There's nowhere to hide when three teens find themselves in the middle of nowhere, with no internet and a killer hunting them down. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eDon't think you can get rid of me so fast. . . .\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eNo phones. No internet. No social media at all. That's what it's going to take to finally get serious about school and focus on exams. Nova, Vin, and Lotus even rented a farmhouse in the middle of nowhere so they won't get distracted. After that, everything can go back to normal.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBut they aren't alone. Someone is watching them from the forest. Someone who knows their secrets. Someone who wants revenge. And things will never be the same again.“…A \u003cb\u003ebemusing\u003c\/b\u003e mystery punctuated by deceptive twists.” —\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003eMaren Stoffels published her first book at age seventeen. She likes  stories that are based on real experiences. Reading her books make you  feel like it could all happen to you. And maybe it will. . . .\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003efacebook.com\/marenstoffels\u003cbr\u003eInstagram: @marenstoffels\u003cbr\u003eTwitter: @marenstoffels\u003cbr\u003ewww.marenstoffels.nlSummer\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI walked across the schoolyard, clutching my bag.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe textbooks banged against my hip with every step.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eoakwood high school\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHad the building looked this big online?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI needed to stay calm—­they can smell fear.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI put a toffee in my mouth.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe sweetness made me feel a little calmer.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Hey, it’s your first day, right?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe man coming toward me looked like he was in his early thirties.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHe was dressed neatly, but his sneakers were all scuffed up.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“I’m Reid Hunter, the head of the biology department here. Come with me, and I can introduce you to your new class.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMy new class . . .\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAny minute now, I’d be seeing the real-­life versions of the online profile pics I’d studied so closely this summer.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Mr. Hunter!” A boy gave him a friendly slap on the shoulder.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eEven before Reid Hunter said the boy’s name, I already knew who he was.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Vin! Good to see you here on time, man.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIt was like Reid Hunter and I were parting the waters. All the students stepped aside for us.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAs long as this man was here, clearly nothing bad could happen to me.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBut what about later, when I had to do it all on my own?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLOTUS\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe streetlights cast patches of yellow on the path through the trees. Spot drags me along, as if he hasn’t been outside for weeks. As he pulls the leash tight for the umpteenth time, I burst out laughing.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Hey, take it easy, Spot!”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI’m following my usual route, through the woods, and then across the bridge and back home. The place is deserted, as it always is around this time. I love going out late at night. Feels like I’m all alone in the world for a while.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSomething rustles in the bushes. Spot tugs at the leash, but in the opposite direction this time, which is weird. He usually runs after every bird or squirrel, so it must be something else.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI pause for a moment and hear it again.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Hello?” My voice sounds unnaturally loud in the darkness.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThere’s no answer. Of course not. Nothing ever happens here.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI walk with Spot toward the big clearing and take my phone from my pocket. Even this prehistoric cell phone, which belongs to my dad, is going to be forbidden soon. Nova came up with the idea of having a complete lockdown so we can focus on our exams. So typical of her, coming up with something like that. And renting a remote farmhouse for a week.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI have no idea where we’re going because Nova refuses to tell us. She wants it to be a surprise.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eJust the thought of the next week is making me nervous. If it were only the two of us, it’d be cool, but now that Vin’s coming, everything’s different. He might be great at lying to Nova, but that doesn’t mean I am too.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMaybe I should have said I didn’t want to go, but then Nova would have started asking questions. And my best friend does not take no for an answer.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI flip open the cell. This isn’t my usual phone; it’s an extra phone, especially for him. It was my idea, just to be on the safe side. If Nova ever goes snooping around in my messages, she won’t find anything.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eNova . . . I feel nauseous again at the thought of her ever finding out.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSome days it’s like Nova can see everything that’s going on inside of me. Like my skin is made of Saran wrap and she can look all the way through me.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMy thumb hovers over the send button. I know what I need to say. The sentence is ready.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHow’s he going to react?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDo I really want to do this?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSpot barks impatiently, as if he’s trying to tell me I have to go through with it.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“You’re right,” I say quietly, and I press send.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWe need to stop doing this. It’s getting too dangerous. x\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhen we reach the clearing, Spot squats down. I dig around in my pocket for a plastic bag.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“What do you think?” I ask Spot. “Did I make a dumb decision?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eNova hates when I talk to Spot like he’s a person, but it’s automatic. Maybe because I can’t talk to anyone else about this.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Think he’s going to be mad at me?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI bend down to pick up the poop. When I stand up, I see something on the other side of the clearing. Someone’s standing in front of the bridge, exactly where I need to go.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn the five years I’ve been walking Spot here at this time of night, I’ve never met another dog owner.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBut then I realize there’s no dog. It’s someone on their own.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAm I seeing this right? Or are they just standing still?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA shock goes through me. Are they watching me?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eYes, I can see it clearly now. They’re looking my way.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSpot has noticed them, too, and he starts growling quietly. He never does that. He’s always happy to see people.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhat’s going on? What do they want from me?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“What a creep,” I whisper as, for the first time in five years, I turn around and change my route. “Come on, Spot. Let’s go this way.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI don’t see anything out of the ordinary outside my house—­the street is as quiet as ever.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhy did that person freak me out so much? It was just someone out for a late-­night walk, someone like me who can’t get to sleep before midnight.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAs I put my key in the lock, there’s a buzz in my pocket. Has he already sent a reply?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLeaving the key in the front door, I take out my phone. I don’t recognize the number on the screen.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThat’s strange. . . . There’s only one person who knows this number.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhen I click on the envelope symbol, the text message appears.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI stare at the words on the screen:\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI know what you’re up to.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDon’t forget: buy dog treats.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eOr that animal could cause problems.","brand":"Underlined","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46300808249573,"sku":"NP9780593647448","price":10.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780593647448.jpg?v=1767737401","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/es\/products\/stranger-danger-isbn-9780593647448","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}