Notes from My Captivity

by Kathy Parks

Aspiring teenage journalist Adrienne Cahill travels to Siberia to debunk legendary claims of a family of hermits living in the wilderness, but when disaster strikes, Adrienne winds up being held captive by the family she didn't believe existed.

• ISBN10: 0062394010
• ISBN13: 9780062394019
• Publish Date: 18 June 2019 (first published 10 July 2018)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
• Imprint: Collins
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 368
• Language: English

Reviews

[Sam@WLABB]

Adrienne thought this would be a summer to remember. She planned on writing THE article, which would be her ticket to college, but when their trip takes a tragic turn, Adrienne just hopes to get out alive.

• Pro: It was amazing to see the changes Adrienne experienced during this story. I really liked the way Park slowly peeled back her layers to let us actually see what was at the root of Adrienne's pain. I also thought she was quite funny, and her commentary during the first part of the book was pretty hilarious.

• Pro: After many years, Adrienne was still grieving her father's death. Her pain was heartbreaking, and I cheered as she made progress working through her grief.

• Pro: Faith was a big theme in this book. Faith in a higher power, faith in your family, faith in a legendary family, faith in yourself. It pops up over and over again in this story, and Parks approached it in a very thoughtful way.

• Pro: The Siberian setting was pretty much new for me, and Parks did a great job exposing us to both the beauty and the dangers of the land, as well as the challenges faced by those living there.

• Pro: There were tears! There were several moments in the book, which just hit me in the feels. The fact that I shed tears for these characters means I formed an attachment to them.

• Pro: The bond Adrienne formed with the Osinov's was really special. She worked hard to earn their trust and affection, but by the end, there was not doubt that the love was reciprocated.

• Pro: I wasn't expecting it, but I pleasantly surprised by the magical elements Parks incorporated in this story. They were used wisely and added a little mystery to this tale.

• Pro: There were some really heart-pumping moments in the story, and I really felt the urgency to survive during these scenes.

• Pro: What an unexpected, but beautiful ending. This book presented itself as one thing, but it was really about so much more, and the conclusion left me in a happy place.

Overall: An inventive and intriguing exploration of grief, faith, family, forgiveness, and love.

*ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

[shannonmiz]

You can find the full review and all the fancy and/or randomness that accompanies it at It Starts at Midnight

It's mixed feelings time, y'all! Some parts of this book were kind of awesome. I mean, Siberia? Sign me up! I love survival stories in general, and in that respect this book delivered for sure. But then some things really threw me off, too. So let's discuss them all, shall we?

The Things I Liked:

• Adrienne really grows a lot during the book. She starts off kind of bratty, honestly. And I get that she was still grieving the loss of her father (and I assume she always will, I don't think people "get over" such things) but that really didn't mean that she needed to be awful to her stepfather, who was kind of risking a lot to take her on this trip. Alas, she learns quite a bit about herself on this journey, and I really loved watching her development.



• The survival part of the journey was awesome. Especially when the group her father worked with was in the mix, as they made me chuckle a lot. But even when there were moments of humor, it was clear that the terrain and climate were no joking matter. And frankly, I'm a sucker for a survival journey, so that worked.



• It definitely had intense moments, and I wasn't always sure if or how things would work out. It was good that the story definitely did not feel safe, and that the stakes seemed very high at every turn. Made for a very readable experience, as I was eager to know what was going to happen next. Plus, the intensity definitely made for some solid feels. 

The Things I Didn't:

• The first part of the story focuses a lot on her stepdad's mission, and whether the family is real. Unfortunately, the synopsis tells us which way that played out (so don't read it if you don't want to know!) and so that part of the story seems a bit anticlimactic, maybe even unncessary to an extent. In addition, we spend a lot of time getting to know the members of her dad's team (and her dad himself), which is good. Until they aren't in most of the story (also in the synopsis) because they straight up are killed off, every last one, after I came to care about the whole lot of them! Which, rude.



• There was a bit of magical realism in the book that didn't really attract me. I think it kind of made the story seem... a little "much"? Like if you're already in Siberia being captured by a family you thought was fake, maybe that is enough outlandish stuff for one book?

Bottom Line: Incredible setting, awesome adventure. It would have been a bit better if the title/synopsis hadn't given so much away, but still a fun read.