Q&A with Maeve Shortt on “Gripped 3: The Fallout”

An Interview with Maeve Shortt—Cape Cod, Massachusetts

About Maeve Shortt

Maeve is a senior at St. John Paul II High School, where she is a member of the National Honor Society and a school retreat leader. She is a captain of her school’s varsity field hockey team, plays on the varsity lacrosse team, and is a player on the Cape Cod Field Hockey club team. Additionally, she was elected as a Cape-Cod All Star this past season. She is also a Climate Change Ambassador for the Cape Cod Commission. In the spring, Maeve will be attending the Mountain School of Milton Academy in Vershire, VT as a one-semester program. She hopes to study business and finance in the future.

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1. This book touches upon the use of Adderall, acid, marijuana, alcohol, and Xanax. For that reason, parents may not want their children to read the novel. However, the author feels there is much to be learned. What do you think tweens and teens could learn from reading Gripped Part 3 that would be beneficial for them? I believe that tweens and teens would learn from this novel how “peer pressure” can be much different than how everyone expects it to be. For example, Chris did not feel any pressure from his friends when he was initially “experimenting”, but instead much later. When he was trying to stay clean, he felt pressured by his own best friend without Jason even trying. Chris had to avoid his friends completely to steer clear of any pressure he would have been putting on himself to partake in the fun. 
2. Why could adults benefit from reading Gripped Part 3? I think adults would benefit from reading Gripped Part 3 because it would give them a higher sense of awareness about what their children could be exposed to. The sexual content and party scenes shown throughout the Gripped series could help any parent guide their child into making the right decisions as they enter their teen years. I also believe that adults would benefit from seeing how accessible many substances are to teenagers, which could hopefully lead to that changing. 
3. What storylines were most intriguing in Gripped Part 3? What kept you wanting to turn the page? The storyline that was most intriguing to me was Cathy and Jason’s relationship. I feel like they have had many ups and downs, but ultimately I think they both want the best for each other. Jason had a tremendous effect on Cathy’s Xanax use, as did she with his experience with various substances. I can’t decide if their relationship is healthy and beneficial for the two of them, or if they just “trade” one bad thing for another. For example, when Cathy stopped using Xanax to calm her anxiety, she began taking an “edible” every day. 
4. As drug use abounds in the series, some characters are trying their best to sober up, while others are getting deeper and deeper into substance abuse. How do you think readers can benefit from reading about Chris’s journey from the beginning of the series until now? I think readers can benefit from reading about Chris’ journey because it accurately represents the difficulty that is quitting addiction. Not only did Chris suffer physical pain, he suffered emotionally as well. Chris was forced to choose between his best friend, or getting better. Unfortunately he was faced with the unenjoyable task of cutting Jason out of his life, at least until he was successfully sober. Readers can then understand all of the consequences that substance abuse will unequivocally lead to. 
5. At this point in the series, what character intrigues you the most and why? At this point in the series, the character that intrigues me the most would be Cathy. I find her character development to be the most interesting, and she has so many complicated relationships to speculate on. Cathy and her twin sister Chantal have been through so much together, and for them to go from being inseparable to not speaking whatsoever is drawing for any reader. 
6. What does this book teach readers about why people begin using drugs? This book teaches me and other readers that drug abuse does not always necessarily begin due to a life-trauma