Abduction by Michelle Isenhoff (Recompense Book 4)

Abduction (Recompense Series Book 4)

Michelle Isenhoff, Author

CreateSpace Independent Publishing/Amazon Digital Services, Fiction, May 15, 2018

Pages: 350

Suitable for Ages: 14 and up

Themes: Abduction, Ruby Parnell’s story, World-building, Future Earth

Synopsis:

If you’ve read the first three novels in the gripping Recompense Trilogy, you’ve read Jaclyn’s (Jack’s) story. You know the important role her grandmother Ruby Parnell played in escaping from Brunay, turning evidence against the Bruelim and initiating the Axis investigation at the end of the Provocation. Now its time to read Ruby’s full story about her abduction.

Ruby’s story is set 47 years before her granddaughter Jaclyn’s (Jack) begins.  Readers will find her world more relatable to their own. She is entirely focused on her upcoming high school graduation and her escape from her Tidbury Bay, a warm  community of seafarers, a beautiful harbor and beaches and the safety and isolation it has offered her. She has given little thought to the disappearances that are taking place all over the North American Republic, because they haven’t touched her town. But Ruby is a restless and lively soul who sees no reason to attend college, even though she is intelligent. Ruby dreams of traveling the world and experiencing life in real-time. She and a friend are talking about getting their teaching accreditation and traveling to Europe to teach English.

Ruby has another reason for wanting to leave — her older sister Opal. The two may be related by blood, but they have opposite personalities.  The sisters live with their grandfather and Opal works at the local cannery. Opal loves nature and wandering through the woods. She is quiet and cares and cooks for the family without complaint. She’s such a model of perfection that Ruby never sees Opal’s betrayal coming the night of her graduation.  In a moment of emotional recklessness, Ruby flees to the woods alone. She awakens a captive of a cruel race in a land she’s never heard of before, Brunay. She will soon discover what happens to the missing girls.

What I like about this book:

Michelle Isenhoff is a prolific author and a skilled storyteller. Her world-building is imaginative and intelligent, with a strong elements of realism. She makes her readers think, ask questions and look at the world around them. Her execution of cliffhangers at the end of each chapter propels the reader into the next one, making Abduction and her other books addictive reads. And her characters stay with you. I’m already plotting out her final book in my head. I would love to be a cell in her brain, because she writes with such ambition.

It is Ruby’s risk-taking and thrill-seeking nature and her stubborn determination that allows her to fight for what she believes and return. She plans a massive escape for all of the women in her compound, but fails. She endures unbelievable punishment and brutality by the heartless Bruelims, and experiences heart-wrenching loss. Yet she still manages to be the first of over 100,000 captives to escape Brunay and shed some light on the reason for the abductions (NO SPOILERS). It is a harrowing story of resilience.

After reading Ruby’s story, I understand the similar personality traits between Jack and her grandmother. They both are on the same unrelenting mission with stubborn abandon for their own safety so that others may be saved.

Fans of the Recompense series, will be thrilled with Abduction. It is a full-length prequel to the series, and is intended to be read at the completion of the main trilogy. There will be five books in the series: Recompense, Betrayal, Retribution, Abduction (full-length prequel), and Reprisal (full-length sequel coming Summer 2018.) Hooray! I still have one more opportunity to see how this series is brought to a resounding conclusion this summer.  Visit Michelle Isenhoff at her website to view all her published work.

Michelle Isenhoff  is a former teacher and longtime homeschooler. She has written extensively in the children’s genre, most notably her work in historical fiction: The Ella Wood series and the Divided Decade collection. She has been lauded by the education community for the literary quality of her work. These days, she writes full-time in the adult historical fiction and speculative fiction genres. Visit Michelle’s fabulous website.

Greg Pattridge hosts Marvelous Middle Grade Monday posts on his wonderful Always in the Middle website. Check out the link to see all of the wonderful reviews by KidLit bloggers and authors.

“Panic” by Sharon M. Draper

Panic

Sharon M. Draper, Author

Atheneum Books for Young Readers, YA Fiction, March 2013

Suitable for Ages: 14 -17

Themes:  Dance, Kidnapping,  Sexual Predators, Sexual Abuse, Teen Dating Abuse, African-American

Opening:  “Diamond knows not to talk to strangers.  But just once couldn’t hurt.  Right?”  (Jacket Flap)

Synopsis:  The Crystal Pointe Dance Academy is shaken when one of its members, 15-year-old Diamond, goes missing and no one can find her.  Diamond and her best friend, Mercedes, make a trip to the mall before a dance performance to purchase tights.  While Mercedes is looking around, Diamond heads to the food court to buy food so they won’t be late.  A well-dressed stranger approaches Diamond and asks for directions to the food court.  He tells Diamond that he’s supposed to meet his wife and daughter there.  Harmless, she thinks.  When Mercedes arrives minutes later, Diamond is gone.

Every other chapter is the voice of one of the main dancers, Diamond, Mercedes, Layla and Justin.  There are parallel stories told as Draper alternates between Diamond’s abduction, the emotional reaction of the high school dance troupe to the situation and the every day drama of their own personal lives.  There are some very important themes of relational and sexual abuse, teen dating abuse,  trust, and family issues woven into the story.  What holds the troupe together is their concern for Diamond and their love of music and dance.  My favorite scene in the book is when the dancers are with their instructor, Miss Ginger.  Each student selects a dance that fits their personality and expresses their own fear or desperation for Diamond  — a beautiful and powerfully moving cathartic release.

Why I like this story:  Sharon Draper has written a gripping and contemporary novel that is very real in today’s world.  It is a must read for teens.  Even though kids are taught at a young age not to talk to strangers,  abductions continue.  There is no tidy description for sexual predators.  But predators have one thing in common — the ability to artfully lure a child or teenager into a web of lies and manipulations that leads to kidnapping.  That is what Draper addresses in her skillfully crafted and suspenseful novel.  Draper handles Diamond’s abduction scene realistically but with sensitivity.   She also has a gift of getting into the minds of each character.  Panic is one book readers will have difficulty putting down because it is a page turner.  Hopefully teens will learn through Diamond the tragic results of taking risks with strangers.  Panic is an excellent book for school libraries.

Book Giveaway:  I will be giving away one copy of Panic during a random drawing on March 29.  All you have to do is leave a comment on this post and indicate whether you’d like to be included in the drawing.   I will announce the winner on Saturday, March 30.

Sharon Draper a New York Times best-selling author has also won the Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe Award for New Talent for Fears of a Tiger.  She won the Coretta Scott King Literary Award for her novels Copper Sun, and  Forged by Fire, and the Coretta Scott King Author Honor for The Battle of Jericho.  She also was selected as a National Teacher of the Year.  For more information about all the books she’s published, resources, activities, interviews and information on school visits, visit Draper’s website.  I’ve also reviewed Draper’s novels, Out of My Mind,  Copper Sun and Double Dutch.

Smarter than the SCOOPERS

Smarter than the SCOOPERS

Julia Cook, Author

Allison Valentine, Illustrator

National Center for Youth Issues, Fiction,  2012

Suitable for Ages: 4 and up

Themes:  Abduction, Child Safety, Predators, Strangers

Opening:  “I was outside playing with Zippy, my new baby rabbit, when I heard my mama calling me.  I carefully set Zippy down into a cardboard box and ran inside the house to see what she wanted.”

Synopsis:  A mother talks with her daughter about how people come in all shapes and sizes.  There are people who are safe people you can go to if ever need help, like a teacher, a store clerk, a police officer, or a mother with children.   But, she also explains there are people who aren’t so nice and are Scoopers who “scoop you up, take you away from your family, and try to hurt you.”   She teaches her daughter some safety rules to help keep her safe.  The little girl is tested when a neighbor comes to school to pick her up.  She goes back inside the school and asks to see her “call list” and phones someone on the list to make sure it’s okay.  At the grocery store a friendly stranger tries to talk with her and she walks away.  She learns that a “scooper” may pretend to need help, or lure her to pet a dog.  The girl thinks about everything her mother says and goes to play with her baby rabbit she captures and puts in a box.  She comes to a very important realization and makes a big decision.

Why I like this book:  Julia Cook’s book is an excellent tool to help parents, teachers, and counselors prepare children with the skills they need to be safe from child abductors.  Cook uses the word SCOOP as an acronym to help children remember five personal safety rules.  For many children, this could be a frightening topic, but Cook has done an excellent job of approaching this subject in a non-threatening manner.   I love the ending when the girl realizes that she is a scooper after she tricks a rabbit away from its mama.   What a great way to get a point across.    Allison Valentine’s pastel illustrations are colorful and expressive.

Resources:  With spring and summer around the corner, this is a good time to discuss personal safety with children.  The book alone is a resource for discussion with children.  It has back matter and safety rules for both children and parents.  This is a book for home and the classroom.  Visit Julia Cook’s website,  to view the many books she has written.

Every Friday, authors and KidLit bloggers post a favorite picture book.  To see a complete listing of all the Perfect Picture Books with resources, please visit author Susanna Leonard Hill’s Perfect Picture Books.

Note:  On Monday, March 25,  I will be reviewing Sharon Draper’s new YA book Panic, about a teenage abduction.  This is very important read for teens.  There will be a book give away.