Girl, Stolen by April Henry
Sixteen year-old Cheyenne Wilder is sleeping in the back of a car while her mom fills her prescription at the pharmacy. Before Cheyenne realizes what's happening, their car is being stolen--with her inside! Griffin hadn’t meant to kidnap Cheyenne, all he needed to do was steal a car for the others. But once Griffin's dad finds out that Cheyenne’s father is the president of a powerful corporation, everything changes—now there’s a reason to keep her. What Griffin doesn’t know is that Cheyenne is not only sick with pneumonia, she is blind. How will Cheyenne survive this nightmare, and if she does, at what price?
Review:
Girl Stolen was an exciting and original mystery that had me gripping the pages right to the very last word. Cheyenne was a great main character who I liked right away. Her plight was heartbreaking and I just wanted to tell her everything was going to be okay.
Cheyenne was a main character different from any I've read about before. An accident a few years earlier left her blind and changed her life forever. Although the third person narration didn't let me connect with Cheyenne as much as I would have liked, I did feel for her and everything she was going through. April Henry really did her research because I learned so much more about what it is like for a blind person, especially a teenager who wasn't born blind. The novel contains some flash backs so the reader can better understand what happened to Cheyenne and also to read about the heart breaking first months when Cheyenne wanted to give up after realizing she would never see again.
The novel starts off with a bang (Cheyenne being kidnapped) and the reader is constantly at the edge of their seat until the end. It was horrifying to read about Cheyenne's ordeal because she could never truly understand her situation. The second she realized it wasn't her stepmother getting into the car left my heart pounding and I was terrified for her- especially because she was also very ill. As the novel progresses you realize Griffin didn't mean to kidnap Cheyenne, only to steal the car. Unfortunately things take a turn for the worse when Griffin's money hungry father realizes Cheyenne's father is the head of Nike and will do anything to get Cheyenne back.
Readers also got to read things from the side of Griffin, the guy who accidentally kidnapped Cheyenne and must now face the realization that his father is not just going to let her go. I liked being able to see things from both Griffin and Cheyenne's perspective and it made me realize he wasn't really a bad guy.
It's hard to review this without spoiling anything because there are so many twists and turns in the plot. A few things were a little predictable but there was one scene at the end that truly freaked me out, I totally didn't see that coming!
Girl Stolen was a great mystery that was completely different from any "kidnapping" story I've ever read. It was intense, heartbreaking, and I highly recommend it. I can't wait to read more by April Henry in the future!
Overall: 4 out of 5 stars
September 28, 2010/Henry, Holt, and Co./213 Pages/Young Adult
September 28, 2010/Henry, Holt, and Co./213 Pages/Young Adult
Source: Publisher
Other books by this author: The Night She Disappeared
Links: Author's Website/Goodreads
Great review! I didn't know it was in third person, but that POV allows for more insight into more than one character. It's good to know that the kidnapper is made up to not be as bad as is first implied. I can't wait to read this one!
ReplyDeleteWow, this book sounds impressive!!
ReplyDeleteTHe sotry is very original and I can already tell how heart-breaking it must be!
Thanks so much for this rec/review!
Great review. I'm hoping to get this from the library in a few days. I'm glad you liked it.
ReplyDeleteDo you think this 3rd person narration made it unusually hard to relate to the character, or do you typically feel that way about 3rd person narrative?
I really want to read this, I love that cover. Great review :)
ReplyDeleteI've heard mixed reviews about this one but I'm glad to hear you enjoyed it. I'm intrigued by the premise. This is still on my TBR list but I haven't had a chance to buy a copy just yet.
ReplyDeleteLove that cover so much!
Oh, I love this book so much! Please check out my review here: Girl, Stolen by April Henry
ReplyDeleteI could not put the book down! i finished it in a day! i was really surprised at how it all took place and really surprised at what happened at the end, even the secret about Griffins mother was a big shocker to me!! loved it so much that i recomened it to my friends already about five people have read it after me!
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