Written by Timmy Weiss, Weston, MA
Timmy Weiss is a senior at St. Sebastian’s high school. He is a varsity tennis and varsity soccer player, as well as a part of MPA (men with positive attitudes), the newspaper named The Walrus, and the peer mentoring club. He enjoys traveling, spending time with family and friends, volunteering, and going to sports games. Soon he hopes to study communications in college.
After reading Gripped Part 4: Smoke & Mirrors by Stacy Padula, Timmy was asked to share his thoughts on the characters’ arcs. His responses are below.
Luke
My opinions on Luke have completely changed after this book. I used to think Luke was just a guy giving drugs to everyone and kinda a bad boy, but I’ve learned in this book how nice of a person he is. In the end of the book Michelle even says he is the nicest Davids boy.
Jordan
Another character my opinions have changed for. He seems like an extremely caring and thoughtful person. Caring for Julie, Marc, Taylor, Michelle and so on. Jordan has matured at his time at Notre Dame and is becoming a great role model.
Taylor
It’s great to see that Taylor has been sober for awhile now. People who see him say he looks better and he really is trying to get out of the drug business. His morals seem to be coming back.
Jason
Jason in this book was kinda all over the place. I didn’t appreciate how he kept giving drugs to Cathy to “help” her. It was hard to tell if he wanted to help her or if he was being selfish by making her take drugs. She would have a much better time with him with the drugs and that’s all Jason wants to do sometimes.
Cathy
Cathy made some weird decisions in this book, which either calls for a change in her character or the situation being severely off. She was sober at times and would still take Jason’s offer to do drugs that she has never tried before just because her boyfriend said it would make her feel better. Cathy is much smarter than that (at least I thought) so I was very surprised by her behavior in this book.
Synopsis
After spending her first month of high school grounded, Cathy Kagelli is finally allowed to socialize and uncover what her boyfriend, Jason Davids, has been up to without her. When Cathy realizes Jason has been experimenting with a variety of drugs, she devises a plan to save him from himself… but she just may lose herself in the process.
Meanwhile Taylor Dunkin finds himself playing a game with even higher stakes because his life, his reputation, and the safety of everyone he loves are all on the line. Taylor’s two younger brothers, Jordan and Marc, have been at odds for years, but they are brought together to decipher the mysterious clues Taylor is leaving regarding his whereabouts. As secrets are revealed, the Dunkin boys’ relationships will be changed forever. In Taylor’s weakest moment, he made a deal with the devil, and now there is a reckoning. But who will pay the price?
Books by Stacy A. Padula 
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