Marley's Ghost — Brian Katcher

Marley was dead to begin with...When Marley died in a freak motorcycle accident, no one took it harder than his two nephews, Aaron and Kyler. Seventeen-year-old Aaron, who was adopted from China via a religious charity, worries that the heaven he was taught about is not for sinners like his uncle. But how could a benevolent God refuse a nice guy like Marley? And if being a nice guy is all that it takes to get into heaven, why bother to go to church? And is it wrong to even think such thoughts, especially now that he's starting to date Vanessa, the most faithful girl in the youth group?Meanwhile, fifteen-year-old Kyler has lost the only person who ever treated him like a normal kid. Always in fragile health, Kyler is constantly babied by his family. His uncle was the only adult who didn't treat him like he would break. Marley encouraged Kyler to take risks, to be assertive, and to maybe ask out Jessica, his long time crush. Now that Marley is gone, Kyler is doomed to more years of ointments, noise-cancelling headphones, and gluten-free snacks. How is this fair?When closing down Marley's fishing cabin, the cousins discover some geographic coordinates that point to a location in a South Carolina swamp. They're probably nothing...except someone has started following the boys, trying to get those papers. Something is in that swamp. Something Marley buried there. Something big.Accompanied by Vanessa and Jessica, the boys head off on a Maine to South Carolina road trip to discover Marley's legacy, and maybe to say good bye to their uncle in their own way.***Marley might be gone, but the adventure has just begun—an adventure that will allow Kyler and Aaron to explore what it means to be brave and good. An adventure that will teach them what it means to believe—and that the most important belief is in themselves. —Holly Schindler, author of the award-winning A Blue So Dark