alisoninbookland
Written on Sep 15, 2019
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- ISBN10 1541417879
- ISBN13 9781541417878
- Publish Date 7 November 2017 (first published 4 October 2016)
- Publish Status Out of Print
- Out of Print 14 March 2021
- Publish Country US
- Imprint Tantor Media, Inc
- Edition Unabridged edition
- Format Audiobook (CD)
- Duration 6 hours and 57 minutes
- Language English
Reviews
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cornerfolds
Written on Jul 14, 2019
*Review to come!*
Actual rating: 3.5 stars
nitzan_schwarz
Written on Aug 12, 2017
1. Sera's reasoning. The entirety of Sera's inner monologue about Lucas pissed me off. It was all so unbelievably stupid. I could maybe understand not wanting to have romantic relationships is she had said that they all fail in the end and bring hurt because of what her mother did, but it was all about her being like her mother and ending up hurting someone and--excuse me, are you married? are you cheating on someone? What in this situation is similar to your mother? There are no vows for you to break or children to leave behind. It just honestly pissed me off.
2. The actual mystery. I'll be honest, I knew who did it. Not because Richards set it up well (I personally thought she didn't), but because it was pretty obvious it was not going to be who they thought it is, and the fact only one person was emphasised to have been killed clinched it for me, as well as Richards aversion to actually showing us that kill. This whole novel would've been so much scarier if we actually saw someone dead, but all the time it was things they thought they'd seen, and that was suspicious as hell.
Not to mention that the whole plan is way too convoluted to make any form or sense, relies on too many variables (it relies on them doing exactly as she had planned) and I'm still not sure how she ended up pulling it off.
I was also really unsatisfied with how little we found out at the end. There is no real explanation, only a case closed with "she was crazy and was trying to re-create her sister's death". Except that doesn't make much sense, does it? The newspaper articles weren't really explained, why she thought this would allow her sister to truly rest, what she had against the guy Lucas was supposed to represent... NOTHING!
It was frustrating!
3. We find out very little about our characters. Normally, a horror story like this would be the backdrop to the characters bonding, becoming friends and learning new things about each other. Except we don't. We learn of their character, and we learn all sort of things Sera thinks she figures about them, but very little of the actual truth. Their life situations. Things they like and dislike...
I felt like something was missing. Like, I kept waiting for that moment when I'd know them, but it never came.
Anyways, a decent story, but it lacked what I was looking for.
Linda
Written on Jul 26, 2016
Books like One Was Lost is one of the reasons why I'm terrified of camping in the woods! (That's my story, and I'm sticking to it...)
One Was Lost follows a group of teens as they are on a school trip in the forest, where they have to survive with the means they have with them. We get to know Sera better than her school mates, as the story is told from her perspective. And one of the themes in this story really has to do with perception and perspective! What do we think of other people, and what do we base our "judgement" of them on? One day, at the beginning of their trip, the weather is getting much worse, and not all of them manage to cross the river. The main teacher, Sera and three other kids have crossed, while the teacher assistant and two girls are on the other side. Because of the rapidly rising water, they have to go to higher ground before they start setting up their tent before it gets dark.
And from then on, One Was Lost becomes spooky, scary and more than a little disturbing. The first morning after the group was separated, the kids all feel strange, and the sun has been up for a while already. And it's impossible to wake the teacher! There is mystery, memories of the creepy story the teacher's assistant told at camp fire the first night, and very weird things happening. Sera and the three other students have to either trust each other or separate, as more strange things happen, and they think they are all being drugged somehow, as they wake up to weird voodoo like dolls, more water, and strange sounds.
One Was Lost is the perfect creepy fall read! I never knew what would happen next, and I was at the edge of my seat with the mystery and the suspense! Since it's written in first present present tense, I felt like I was right there next to Sera, feeling her doubts and fears.
Everyone's tall measured against me, but Lucas is ridiculous. He towers. If there was actually a sun to be found int his Appalachian monsoon, his shoulder would cast a shadow you could hide two of me in. I have no idea what you have to eat to grow like that. Corn? Eggs? Small children?
The forest around us mocks my misery on every level. It's like the whole place has gone Disney. Birds trill softly, and sunbeams slant through leaves just this side of golden. Everything smells fresh and earthy and warm. Well, everything but us. I've met hockey bags that smell better than we do.