Pete doesn't mean to start anything, he's not asking for a fight, or the attention of the mighty PBs. But one small act of defiance is all it takes. A sassy thriller for the twenty-first century. Ages 14+.

Two teens dare to take on a multi-national corporation in this YA thriller novel by award-winning writer Bernard Beckett. Deep Fried is a fascinating mixture of intrigue, psychological thriller and rebel-of-the-moment youth culture. Peter and Charlotte are itchy, bored by life. They decide through a chance happening to take on a corporate giant (a very large corporate giant cleverly disguised as the Prince of Burgers). Using the media and the internet, they quickly gather quite a following. However, the corporate giant fights back using some very slick enticements and snares to really test the ethical and moral fortitude of our hero and his catwoman. The pitfalls and seductions of the internet are nicely drawn, there's some rather obsessive stalker behaviour, not to mention chat rooms and hackers, lots of suspense and a great thriller ending. Politically savvy, fast-paced and compelling Deep Fried tests the temperature of the disenchanted. A standout novel featuring the debut of Clare Knighton along with veteran writer for teens, Bernard Beckett.

Prizes
Shortlisted for New Zealand Post Children's Book Award: Senior Fiction 2006.

Bernard Beckett is one of New Zealand's most popular writers for young adults. He is a high school science teacher and has been awarded a NZ Science, Mathematics and Technology Teacher Fellowship to explore DNA mutations. He is also the author of the award-wining YA novel Genesis, which has been published internationally, and Falling For Science. Clare Knighton is a former student of Bernard's and this is her first book.