Title: Jane Anonymous by Laurie Faria Stolarz
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Genre: Contemporary, Young Adult
Length: 310 pages
Book Rating: B+
Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through Edelweiss
Summary:
Bestselling author Laurie Faria Stolarz’s thrilling novel Jane Anonymous is a revelatory confessional of a seventeen-year-old girl’s fight to escape a kidnapper—and her struggles to connect with loved ones and a life that no longer exists.
Seven months.
That’s how long I was kept captive.
Locked in a room with a bed, refrigerator, and adjoining bathroom, I was instructed to eat, bathe, and behave. I received meals, laundered clothes, and toiletries through a cat door, never knowing if it was day or night. The last time I saw the face of my abductor was when he dragged me fighting from the trunk of his car. My only solace was Mason—one of the other kidnapped teens—and our pact to one day escape together. But when that day finally came, I had to leave him behind.
Now that I’m home, my parents and friends want everything to be like it was before I left. But they don’t understand that dining out and shopping trips can’t heal what’s broken inside me. I barely leave my bedroom. Therapists are clueless and condescending. So I start my own form of therapy—but writing about my experience awakens uncomfortable memories, ones that should’ve stayed buried.
When I ask the detectives assigned to my case about Mason, I get an answer I don’t believe—that there were no traces of any other kidnapped kids. But I distinctly remember the screams, holding hands with Mason through a hole in my wall, and sharing a chocolate bar. I don’t believe he wasn’t really there and I’m determined to find him. How far will I have to go to uncover the truth of what happened—and will it break me forever?
Review:
Jane Anonymous by Laurie Faria Stolarz is a disturbing, gut wrenching young adult novel about a teenager’s kidnapping and aftermath.
Jane Anonymous is a typical teenager who lives somewhere in the New England region. Her life is completely shattered when she is kidnapped and held prisoner for seven months. With the narrative weaving back and forth between then and now, her experiences both during and after her time in captivity are revealed through a book Jane is writing as therapy.
Jane’s relief at escaping her captor is tempered by the loss of Mason, a fellow victim who helped lift her spirits throughout her seven months long ordeal. She is also struggling to reintegrate into normal life. While everyone is thrilled she is home, her parents and her best friend Shelley are also have trouble dealing with Jane’s return. Jane finds it difficult to discuss what happened to her and no one seems to know exactly what to say or do around her. Although Jane has avoided her friends since her return, she unexpectedly reconnects with her guypal Jack.
Jane’s time in captivity is revealed through absolutely heartbreaking passages. She valiantly tries to resist doing what her captor expects of her until Mason convinces her to co-operate. With Shelley’s voice guiding her, Jane continues to try to find a way to escape. Seven long months later, Jane is no longer in captivity yet she finds it virtually impossible to free herself from the invisible shackles of her traumatic ordeal.
Jane Anonymous is a raw, visceral and heartrending young adult novel that is also quite emotional. Jane is a courageous young woman who is tormented by her experience. Laurie Faria Stolarz paints a realistic portrait of surviving a horrific kidnapping and the rocky road to recovery. Highly recommend to older teen and adult readers.
