High school can be hard enough, but for 16-year-old Dylan Jones, finding the body of fellow student Hector Maldonado in a dumpster only makes things worse. Already unpopular (he’d dived into the garbage to ditch the two bullies chasing him), now Dylan has a new nickname: Body Bag. Then a rich girl named Ashton Browning—who attends the prestigious school across town—goes missing. Dylan decides to find her in order to become a hero, lose the nickname, and get the “mojo” he’s looking for. The investigation leads him beyond his neighborhood in an Oklahoma City suburb and into the elite world of Ashton’s wealthy classmates, a secret exclusive club called Gangland, and luxury limos. Soon Dylan has reason to believe Ashton’s disappearance may be linked to Hector Maldonado’s death by supposed accidental overdose.

Helped by his longtime best friend, Audrey, and Randy, his coworker at the local grocery store, Dylan dives into the mystery. He encounters Nash, Ashton’s wealthy and smooth-talking ex-boyfriend; Beto, a boy from a poorer side of town who is Hector’s cousin; and Ashton’s secretive brother, Tres. Search parties, car chases, and a creepy man with a switchblade all surround this double mystery, as the bumbling Dylan tries to make sense of the various motives and clues. Readers will happily follow Dylan as he stumbles his way through the investigation. The deeper into the mystery Dylan gets, however, the more he could lose sight of who are his true friends—and who are his enemies. Tim Tharp’s fourth young-adult novel, Mojo, is a fun read, full of suspense, twists, and comical moments. Readers will thoroughly enjoy the time they spend with Dylan Jones.