Safe House by James Heneghan

Twelve-year-old Liam Forgarty awakes suddenly in the middle of the night and witnesses his parents murder. Having seen the face of one of the gunman, Liam finds himself on the run hiding from the assassin. Liam seeks shelter with the family of his best friend, but the assassin finds him there and he only narrowly escapes a bullet. Liam soon finds himself hiding at a Catholic safe house with only his memories of his parents and the memories of his time in the Youth Circus and his flirtation with Nicole, a protestant girl at the Circus, to keep himself sane. When the assassin arrives at the safe house, Liam must flee for his life again. The fast-paced action of Liam's flight from the assassin is somewhat slowed by the frequent flashbacks to Liam's life before his parents brutal murder. The flashbacks, however, make Liam more human and his losses more real to readers. There is too much character development for a reluctant reader seeking lots of action, but not enough for a reader looking for a well developed cast of characters. The conflict is presented with a definite Catholic bias, but contains an obvious message against revenge. A short appendix at the end gives readers a small timeline explaining the conflict between Catholic and Protestant Irish in Northern Ireland.