Revolver, Marcus Sedgwick. What a thrill of a read. The cover and title are enough to draw a reader into its fast turning pages. This was a "Chloe-you'll-have-to-wait-until-I-finish-this-book-before-our-walk" kind of story. It drew me in from the first two quotes, followed by the first line, "Even the dead tell stories." And those stories will arise from young Sig's dead father laying on the table only feet from him, who can't be buried because the ground in Giron, 68 Latitude North is just too frozen. The year is 1910 and hopes of gold brought Einar Andersson, his wife and two children north to the frigid temperatures. Stranded in this remote area, finding work as an Assayist (one who checks the purity of gold), Einar comes across Mr. Wolff, a giant of a man, demanding to have his gold tested. When told his gold is worthless, Wolff strikes a deal with Einar, only to be tricked and angered, setting off a ten year search for the constantly moving Andersson family. He finally finds him as Einar's chilling, decaying corpse lays on the table with Sig watching over him. demanding his share of the gold, of which Sig and his sister, Anna, know nothing. Their only hope of survival lives in a box in the pantry: an 1873 single action Army Colt revolver. But Wolff has his own gun. The ending has a satisfying twist that may surprise you.

I recommend reading this before suggesting it to mature readers, due to content that some may consider questionable. If this were a movie, it would probably be rated PG-13. This book earned the Prinz Award for Excellence in Young Adult Literature.