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Stacy A. Padula’s third book of the Gripped franchise, Gripped Part 3: The Fallout, is a realistic, yet unfortunate portrayal of how quickly drugs and alcohol can change people. The third book follows the same group of kids as the first two novels, some college aged, but most just out of middle school, as they navigate social circles and temptation. While the majority of these kids are catholic-raised and have barely hit puberty, they are passing around hardcore drugs like candy. Almost every character at some point assures themselves that they “won’t get addicted from one hit”, but that is quickly shown to not be the truth. Best friends start to hate each other, couples start to lose trust and break-up, and families fall apart all thanks to taking a couple pills or a couple shots of alcohol.
One of the main themes in Gripped Part 3: The Fallout is how easy it is for unnecessary conflict to arise when under the influence of substances. For example, Jason curses Chris, starts a fight with Jon, and makes his girlfriend visibly upset while either drunk or on an acid trip. However, when he wakes up, he not only regrets his actions, he doesn’t remember doing them in the first place. Being drunk and/or high is starting to make him do things completely out of character, and he is not the only one. By the end of the novel, so many friendships are uncertain and so many relationships are ruined all because someone made a stupid decision while under the influence.
Despite all the conflict and turmoil, one of the more uplifting plot points of Gripped Part 3 was the reunification of Taylor and Marc. In the two prior novels, readers learned that Taylor had gone down an awful road with addiction and that Mark had distanced himself from his older brother because of it. Although the events that caused Mark to finally reach back out to his brother were not in good spirit, he was able to see that his brother was serious about getting sober and putting his life back on track, thus potentially opening the door for a real brotherly relationship to exist between them again. Through this, readers can see that no matter how bad things may get, addiction does not have to ruin one’s life forever, there is always time and hope to turn things around.
Gripped Part 3: the Fallout is perfect for readers who enjoyed the first two novels and are eager to see where the characters end up next. This novel is also great for teenagers who are entering high school or are already in high school and are starting to become exposed to substances. No matter how wealthy the town is or how good the students are, drugs and alcohol are going to be part of young adults’ growing up. Through knowing the real potential consequences of abusing such substances and how they can impact daily life instead of just pretending they don’t exist, hopefully teens can be informed enough to make smart choices.
ABOUT EMILY MCDERMOTT
Emily is a recent graduate of Bridgewater State University where she completed a Bachelor’s Degree in English with a concentration in Literature. While at Bridgewater State, Emily worked in the Academic Achievement Center as a writing consultant where she helped enrolled students with any stage of the writing process. Being in this position helped Emily realize that working as an editor might be something she could see herself doing as a career. Currently, she is employed for a small business in her hometown of Bridgewater, MA while actively searching for jobs within the publishing field. She spends most of her free time reading books, playing with her dogs Neely and Kevin, going on coffee runs with her friends, and watching the Bruins with her dad.
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