First, the woman he’s been seeing decides it’s time to “take a break” from each other, then the obnoxious new language arts teacher, Franco Delacorte, shows up on his doorstop with a very undesirable attitude. Franco has been paired with Will for an outdoor adventure, and Franco is less than accommodating.

Every year instructors take the new students out on a hiking trip called SMOOT, Saxton Mills Outdoor Orientation Trip, in the White Mountains. Will is saddled with Franco and five teenage girls, one of whom is Dee Tyler. Her father is Jonathan Tyler, a very famous musician who used to be Will’s good friend. That is until Jonathan ended up stealing and marrying Will’s girlfriend.

The SMOOT adventure ends up being a nightmare. Will has a suspicion that the group is being followed, Franco is behaving oddly, and then Dee disappears. Will is being held responsible, and no one buys the idea that he’s being set up. What happened to Dee? Will she be found alive and well? Is Franco involved? Can Will clear his name and find who is responsible?

I was hooked even before Dee’s disappearance. The tension and suspense are so thick that Will is paranoid by the end of the second chapter. Eslick does such a good job of keeping the questions and accusations flying, that I was still trying to figure out who the good guys were when I hit the climax of the story.

And oh what an ending! This one was full of outdoor adventure and survival at its best. After Will realizes what he has to do to prove his innocence, I couldn’t bring myself to put this book down.

My one quibble is that the story sometimes broke momentum. There were instances when tidbits of information felt tacked on and lacked purpose. The best example of this is towards the end of the book when one of the secondary characters asks Will about Vietnam. Poof! Out of nowhere, Will was in Vietnam. There was no build up for this revelation and really no point to it either.

Aside from that, Tracked in the Whites is a promising debut novel. The subtitle is “A Will Buchanan Mystery” which leaves this reader hopeful that this is a start to what could be a promising new series. Having the main character be the teacher at a prep school and an expert outdoorsman provides endless opportunity for suspense and adventure. No doubt a pleasing thought for outdoor enthusiasts and mystery lovers everywhere.

--Wendy Crutcher