My Ramblings on Runner by Carl Deuker

Runner by Carl Deuker
Author Website

Summary:
But the weather-beaten sailboat Chance Taylor and his father call home is thirty years old and hasn’t sailed in years. One step from both homelessness and hunger, Chance worries about things other kids his age never give a thought: Where will the money come for the electricity bill, grocery bill, and moorage fees? So when a new job falls his way, he jumps at the opportunity. He knows how much he will earn; what he doesn’t know is how much he will pay. (from goodreads)

My Ramblings:
I'm slowly workign my way through my TBR pile. In part because I'm trying to save money (why buy new books when you have at least 50 unread on the shelf??!) and in part because I know I picked these books up for a reason, and I want to know what it is. 

This one is pretty easy to get into. Chance is a bit of an outcast, his mother left, his father is a drunk who has issues keeping a job and their home is a 30 foot sailboat that hasn't sailed in forever. Chance and his father have no money and no prospects, so when Chance is approached with an offer that would solve all their problems it's easy to see why he says yes. Chance loves to run, and there are people who need things picked up and delivered and doing so would make Chance some quick money. So he says yes, and basically becomes a drug carrier and worse, he begins to pick up packages that aren't drugs, but are much, much worse. I'm not going to say what they are, you'll have to read the book to find out. 

For the most part this one moves along well, there were a few moments where I thought the foreshadowing was a little too obvious, like when the girl Chance likes keeps suggesting he research how easy it would be for people, drug smugglers in particular, but even illegal aliens and terrorists, to come in by way of the coast. However, keeping her interested in the issue as well as with what was up with Chance gave Chance an outlet that he needed when he was ready to get out of the game. 

The ending of the book moved a little too fast for me, but I liked how it ended. It was sad on several fronts, but at the same time you really were able to see how Chance was going to make it. He had made some incredibly stupid and dangerous mistakes and people were hurt, but he also made the right choice when it counted and was able to come out of it in a way that made you feel like in the end he would be alright. 

Overall this was a good, quick read that I think a lot of people would really enjoy. I think that it would draw in any reluctant readers (especially boys) and I plan on adding it to my library collection with my next book order.