Five suicidal teens set out on a road trip.  The plan is to visit the graves of celebrity suicides and pay their respects.  The pact is to finish their trip at Death Valley and end their lives there.

That is the premise of “Crash Into Me”.  Owen met the four other teens in a suicide chat room and they devised this road trip as a way to escape the lives they have come to hate.  Of course, when they leave behind everything, they free themselves of some of the stress that is causing these suicidal thoughts.  

Albert Borris does a good job of portraying Owen’s confusion and frustration with himself and the world.  Tragic events have led Owen to this decision, though they are not made perfectly clear until the end of the book.  But it is easy to see how someone could convince themselves they have nothing to live for when they have no idea what is out there…which is kind of the point of the book.  

This will appeal to any reader who likes realistic, angsty tales that put you in the front row, along the lines of Ellen Hopkins or ‘Living Dead Girl’.  The ending reminded me of an 80s movie, with everything wrapped up a little too neatly after the messy trip that was the story but I can’t think of any other way to end it without making it completely depressing.

Solid 3 stars.