I seem to be reading books lately that I'm having split opinions on, this book isn't going to be any different in that regard. I'm in love with the premise of the book. As a parent, I can't imagine what it would be like to entrust your child into the hands of someone you thought you could trust, only to have them disappear with no hope of being found. When the camp van arrives to pick Sarah up, Lena had no idea the polite young man was not who he claimed to be. He had all the paperwork, even made Lena sign some consent forms and was able to answer all her questions. He mad Sarah feel at ease about not going to soccer camp instead. So when the real van shows up later on that morning and she finds out the last 3 kids on the stop are also missing, Lena's nightmare is just starting. The fear and blame that Lena and the other parents must feel has to be gut wrenching. The self doubt and mistrust could only make the situation worse. At least I would think it would. While those emotions are mentioned and somewhat explored in the book, I would have liked to have had the author delve into it a little bit more. I wanted to feel the pain and anguish as I'm reading the book, and while I could mentally understand what the parents were going through, I couldn't feel it. My heart didn't start beating any faster nor did my pulse race at any time while I was reading. I wanted more suspense and I wanted to physically feel the aftermath of what took place, and while the ingredients are there, it didn't quite work on that visceral level.I think part of the issue, for me at least, was the way the author kept splitting points of view. We see the story from the parents, children, kidnappers, and police points of view and for some reason they just don't all mesh that well. The going back and forth felt almost to frantic at times, as if the author was using the story telling technique to explore the fear and emotional turmoil, instead of the story itself. It didn't allow me to really connect with any of the characters on a basic level. I liked them and was rooting for them, but in the end I knew it was a book, that it wasn't real, and that every thing would work out in the end. I never got lost in the story, which is a pity. As a parent, I should have been grabbed by the story and the characters, I should have been imagining myself in that position, but I never did. I was entertained and I enjoyed it as a book, but I never really connected.Now with all that being said, I'm still pleased to have read the book. It was entertaining and kept me reading a long because despite feeling disappointed, I still wanted to know how it all turned out and who was responsible to for such a horrific action. Besides this book did accomplish one thing for me, I will now be double checking everything before I ever let my son go off to a sleep away camp. I enjoyed this book, and my initial thought was to rate it four. The story-line is excellent, the characters believable, but the ending was weak. I consider myself an intuitive person, but this stretches the limit a bit too much. Also, the author, in an attempt to conceal the culprit, threw out too many red herrings which left unanswered questions. I would have liked less intuition and more actual solutions. Despite my frustration with the ending, I consider this book a winner.
What do You think about Neem Nooit Afscheid (2011)?
Never heard of this book before but it was one of the best I have read in the last year.
—samipsta
Not sure why I finished this one...think I kept hoping it would get better!
—krasrya
Too unrealistic towards the end for me, but it was entertaining.
—GNMC
