THE JUMP

Four high school students compete in a citywide scavenger hunt with the hopes of taking down a major corporation.

Jaxon, who is Black; nonspeaking Hansel, who is White and struggles with auditory overstimulation; Black and Pakistani Yasmin; and Korean American trans boy Daeshim, who also goes by Spider, represent different backgrounds—but the friends share a unifying passion: solving internet-based cryptology puzzles. United as Team JERICHO, the group participates in elaborate scavenger hunts that take place against the backdrop of rapidly gentrifying Seattle neighborhoods. Profit-hungry conglomerates, such as the oil-shilling Roundworld, continue to destroy small businesses and push out working-class families. When the group learns of a new puzzle that appears to be sanctioned by clandestine vigilante organization the Order, Jax immediately enlists Team JERICHO to participate in the game. Though other team members—most notably Yas—are skeptical of the Order’s true intentions, Jax is tempted by the prize, which includes a chance to join the ranks of the secret society. As they soldier on, the teenagers discover that their greatest strength is their loyalty to each other. This action-packed novel depicts the destruction of late-stage capitalism and captures the bonds of friendship through the four protagonists’ alternating first-person narration. Racial and cultural diversity are spotlighted while being seamlessly woven into the plot.

A thrill ride unabashedly critiquing abusive systems of power that mirror real-world behemoths.