Dead Straight Line - out on April 9th 2026.

"It is rare to read a book that will touch such a disparate bundle of nerves, depending on who reads it. The premise is powerful, and every 13-year-old will be able to elevator pitch this novel. 

The chapters are punchy, the pace is fast, and the prose is highly accessible.  It’s perfect for English lessons in Years 8, 9 and 10, and it will provoke a lot of discussion.

Adults who read this novel may well feel unsettled by the plausible, inevitable plot as it develops, event by event, within the realms of contemporary life, online reaction and stifling community stigma.

Dead Straight Line meets readers, teachers and schools in a perfect storm of teen alienation, toxic masculinity, lack of opportunities for youth, crushing societal expectations, punitive school sanctions systems and a disturbing vacuum of male role models. The disconnect between the boy’s view of the world, his value system, and public opinion, is spot on.

Perfectly pitched and unerringly relevant, this is an outstanding story for 12+ year olds that explores trust and responsibility. Every Year 8 and Year 9 student should read it, and it will grip early teens in the same way Kes by Barry Hines did a couple of generations ago.

Dead Straight Line is the best YA novel I have read in the past 10 years."