The story takes place in Buckler, Texas. Buckler is very small.  It doesn't have many houses.  In fact, there are probably more condos than houses! There are not many places that you can go or visit.  Buckler is very chaotic, and there are lots of crimes and  scams.  People do not care about anyone but themselves.  Buckler is very scary. Lots of people are undercover.  You can't trust anyone, not even the police, because you don't know who is who. 

     Abbie is the main character in the story, and she is 16 years old.  She is very mature for her age.  She would rather watch the news than watch other teen TV shows.  She cares about school and homework.  She solved Mrs. Merkel's c case.  Abbie is very kind.  She treats her mother very nicely after her divorce.  She helps Davie, her brother, realize what their father did to them. She helped Mrs. Merkel whenever she needed her.

     The conflict in the story is Abbie's father left her and the rest of her family.  Three rising actions were Mrs. Merkel figures out the roofers scam, and she finds out about stealing cell phone numbers.  Even though Mrs. Merkel was a big pain and always criticized Abbie, Abbie still put with her. Abbie learns how to cooperate with people around her.  

      My overall impression of the novel was that it was very interesting.  The author was very elaborate, and the novel was very detailed.  The thing the author could have done better is she really didn't describe Abbie's life outside of school.  I would recommend this book to people who enjoy mystery and suspense.