Making Her Mark

By Julie Duffin
April 2024 View more Books

Naperville author Angelique Burrell released her debut novel, A Mark in the Road, last October and already has snagged an award. In January she won the 2023 Soon to Be Famous Illinois Author Project, a statewide competition that celebrates independently published books.

A Mark in the Road is a young-adult thriller about a boy who has visions when he sees skid marks. During a cross-country road trip, he and a friend discover a tire mark near a missing woman’s car. Suddenly the gift he’s always dreaded leads them on a journey that tests their courage and their relationship.

Burrell drew inspiration from her own curiosity. “Whenever I see skid marks on the road, I always wonder what happened to cause them,” she explains. “While on a long road trip with my family, I began imagining a character who could actually see what caused them. The story took shape from there.”

As an English and creative writing teacher at Hinsdale Central High School, Burrell is very familiar with the YA genre. “I have been surrounded by teenagers for decades so in many ways their world is a part of mine. I think my exposure to teens has put their voices in my head. And maybe I’m a bit of a kid myself.”

Photos: Angelique Burrell