2 Die 4 by Nigel Hinton

7/10

The inspiration behind 2 Die 4 lie within the author’s dark imaginings of receiving a phone call from a person who does not speak. This story was the result of that idea and proves that modern themes can have such an impact on readers.

In 2 Die 4, Ryan looks at what is on offer at a car boot sale, when something takes his eye, a mobile phone that looks brand new. It's the man who is selling it, not the phone, that looks dodgy. His scared look, his dark rimmed eyes and the fact that he seems to want to get rid of the phone, even going so far as to knock the price down.

There are strange things about this phone. Unlike most phones of its kind, this one is solar powered, and voice activated. It doesn't need charging, and the texts and calls are free of charge.

Ryan doesn't at first realise that anything is untoward but soon the alarm bells begin ringing.

2 Die 4 starts as a subtle story of a kid who buys a mobile phone but soon changes into a dark, cruel tale of a boy plunged into a dangerous and evil world of violence. His parents and friends at school are not prepared for what happens to him due to his ownership of the phone. His hatred his step-father grows, as does his mother’s of him.

Readers can expect to become just as taken in by this novel as Ryan was with the phone.

The author of several novels for Barrington Stoke, Nigel Hinton's shorts, Until Proven Guilty and Partners in Crime have proven just as readable as this one with its interesting and engaging dialogue and original subject matter.

Terrifying horror. Barrington Stoke specialise in books for reluctant, struggling and dyslexic readers.