title: Lessons from a Dead Girl
author:  Jo Knowles 
description: "Knowles does a credible job of exploring friendships, particularly those of girls, in all their complexity and depth." -- <i>Teenreads.com, November 2007</i><br /><br />"The concise, clear style of this short novel belies the sophistication of its subject matter... [Knowles'] characterizations are sharp and nuanced, and she handles Leah, Laine, and the complex dynamic between them with respect and insight." -- <i>School Library Journal, December 2007</i><br /><br />"[Readers will] be riveted by this haunting story of a girl's journey to understanding." -- <i>Booklist, December 1, 2007</i><br /><br />Spare and evocative prose weaves the story of Leah and Lainey's turbulent and abusive friendship. Fast friends from a young age, Leah is outgoing, "smart, so the teachers love her and . . . beautiful so the boys love her," while Lainey is plain and introspective. During the younger years of their friendship, Leah is sexually abusive to Lainey, claiming that the two are "practicing." As the girls grow older, Lainey pulls away from Leah, confused and hurt by Leah's opprobrious behavior. Lainey falls in with new friends, while Leah becomes self-destructive. Over time, Lainey comes to understand the roots of Leah's odd behavior, but by the time she comes to fully grasp it, it's too late. Clearly and concisely written, Knowles's provoking exploration of children abusing children portrays the tense and finely crafted dynamics between the two girls. Lainey's character is extremely well-developed showing her metamorphosis from hypercritical and withdrawn to self-realized with a focused and knowing clarity. A razor-sharp examination of friendship, abuse and secrets. (Fiction. YA) -- <i>Kirkus, October 1, 2007</i>
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  The Girl Who Shot First
  
  
  The Dead Fields
  
  
  Book 1
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  By Angel Lawson
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
    
  
  
  By Angel Lawson
  
  
  Cover by Samantha Marrs
  
  
  © Angel Lawson 2015
  
  
  All rights reserved
  
  
  
  
  
  License Note
  
  
  No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed
  or electronic form without authorization of the Author. Any distribution
  without express consent is illegal and punishable in court of law.
  
  
  
  
  
  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are
  either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and
  any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is
  entirely coincidental
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
    
  
  
  I thought I understood quiet. How it sounded or more like, how it didn’t
  sound. But there’s nothing like the end of the world to put things into
  perspective. Before there was always something, some sort of constant. The
  steady hum of an air conditi