Vanishing Girls

Book 38 of my 2015 Reading Challenge

read from July 3 - 7

Vanishing Girls by Lauren Oliver

Summary (via the book jacket)

Dara and Nick used to be inseparable, but that was before - before Dara kissed Parker, before Nick lost him as her best friend, before the accident that left Dara's beautiful face scarred. Now the two sisters, who used to be so close, aren't speaking. In an instant, Nick lost everything and is determined to use the summer to get it all back.

But Dara has other plans. When she vanishes on her birthday, Nick thinks Dara is just playing around. But another girl has vanished too - nine-year-old Madeline Snow - and as Nick pursues her sister, she becomes increasingly convinced that the two disappearances may be linked.

My Opinion

The pages turned quickly, the author is great at building tension, and I was genuinely surprised by the ending which doesn't happen often in a YA novel.

Things that bothered me as I was reading were explained/resolved by the end - I can't say more about that due to spoilers.  But the ending had issues of its own - I can't say more about that due to spoilers.

Looking at the experience as a whole, this was a solid read that I was really into while reading but some issues make me say it was good, not great, after finishing and reflecting on it.

A Few Quotes from the Book

"That's the thing about Dara and me: we're both similar and worlds apart. Like the sun and the moon, or a starfish and a star: related, sure, but at the same time totally and completely different. And Dara's always doing the one shining."

"Don't ask me how I know. I just do. If you don't understand that, I guess you've never had a sister."