Book Review: Missing Since Monday by Ann M. Martin

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Missing Since Monday by Ann M. Martin follows Maggie and her older brother when their father and stepmother leave on a long-delayed honeymoon, trusting the siblings to care for their four-year-old half sister, Courtenay. When Courtenay fails to come home from daycare one Monday afternoon, Maggie and her brother are thrust into a frightening mystery. With no adults around to help, they must piece together what happened and find a way to alert their parents before it’s too late. This standalone novel for readers ages eight to twelve was one I completely missed as a kid, but as an adult and a longtime fan of Ann M. Martin’s The Baby-Sitters Club  series, I couldn’t resist picking it up. The first chapter or two felt a bit choppy to me at first, but once the story found its footing, everything began to come together nicely . Because this is a short children’s book, the characters aren’t deeply developed, which is to be expected. That said, Martin does an excellent job conveying Maggie’...
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Book Review: Bring Me Back by B.A. Paris

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While on their way home from Paris, France, Finn and Layla stop at a rest area. When Finn comes back to the car, Layla has disappeared without a trace. Fast forward ten years, Finn has fallen in love and is living with Layla's sister Ellen. With Finn's and Ellen's impending nuptials right around the corner, Finn receives a phone call that someone has seen Layla. On top of that, he's receiving sinister emails and items left at his house from Layla's and Ellen's childhood.

Bring Me Back by B.A. Paris captured my attention from page one, and I had trouble putting it down. If I hadn't been so sleepy, I would have stayed up all night long to finish it.

Even though clues were dropped throughout the book, I was totally shocked when I got to the end. Every guess I made was wrong, which doesn't happen to me often. Even the artwork on the cover is a bit of a clue, even though I didn't realize what it was until I finished. (I loved everything about the cover artwork . . . especially the colors.  It just popped.)

It was ten times better than her first book Behind Closed Doors, but it wasn't quite as good as The Breakdown, which is why I gave it 4 stars instead 5 stars.  B.A. Paris just keeps getting better.

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