Found: The Missing Book 1

Haddix, Margaret Peterson. 2008. The Missing Book 1: Found.

I may be a bit biased--slightly--since I love, love, love Margaret Peterson Haddix. My expectations were high with this her first book in a new series. And I was NOT disappointed. I was WOWed. I'm not foolish enough to think that this one will WOW every single kid, teen, or adult out there. But for those that love science fiction and mysteries...this one is for you.

Here's the opening of the prologue: "It wasn't there. Then it was. Later, that was how Angela DuPre would describe the airplane--over and over, to one investigator after another--until she was told never to speak of it again. But when she first saw the plane that night, she wasn't thinking about mysteries or secrets."

What Angela DuPre witnessed on her first day of the job was indescribably unbelievable. Perplexing. A plane that appeared and disappeared on the runway. A plane that she found minus the pilot and flight attendants. A flight were all thirty-six passengers were babies. Sounds crazy, right? How could an unscheduled plane--a plane that did not show up on any of their radars--land on their runway to begin with? How could it have gotten there without a pilot on board? Why babies? But even more strange was the fact that once the babies were unloaded, and the proper authorities called...the plane vanished into thin air. Angela DuPre witnessed the unbelievable alright. But she wasn't crazy.

The Found opens thirteen years later. Our hero is a boy named Jonah. He's got a best friend, Chip, and a slightly younger sister, Katherine. Our book opens with the arrival of several mystery letters. Two letters. Thirteen words. Lives are going to change.

"You are one of the missing."
and
"Beware! They're coming back to get you."

Found is a suspenseful, mysterious action-and-adventure novel that will thrill those that love science fiction. Of course I can't promise that it will "thrill" every reader. But I know it kept me reading. I couldn't put it down. And I was loving every minute of it. The pacing was just right. The characters were nicely developed--and are sure to improve upon with each novel that is published in the series. The only problem with the book is that it left me wanting more...wanting more now! I don't want to have to wait for the next novel to come out. I want to know what happens to Jonah and Katherine and Chip NOW! There's this intensity and immediacy that I just don't find in many other books.



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© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews