Pretty Girl-13: A Powerful and Haunting YA Thriller About Kidnapping, Lost Time, Courage, and Hope

: [...]This was a fascinating and emotionally harrowing read, in the best way. Like If You Find Me by Emily Murdoch, Pretty Girl-13 deals with the devastating aftermath of trauma and recovery. Like Murdoch's Carey, Angie has been held captive for three years; now sixteen, she stumbles back home, broken and alone. However, Coley's character Angie has a post-traumatic twist: she still thinks she's thirteen. The plot deals heavily with Angie's struggles to realize that the girl in the mirror is her, to reintegrate with her traumatized family, and to find out just who lived her life for three years. The "who" turns out to be several "whos"--alternative personalities who lived Angie's trauma for her and now battle to keep her in the dark.The portrayal of Dissociative Identity Disorder is (for the most part) admirably accurate, down to the way some of Angie's other personalities try to communicate her, to warn her, while others take control violently and turn her into someone else. I rooted for Angie as she tried to reclaim her life and struggled with slowly realizing the horrors she had been through those three years--and other secrets she'd never dreamt of. The role of family and friendships is also crucial here; I really enjoyed that the plot was as much about Angie learning to be a friend and daughter again as it was about her hidden trauma. What I didn't like for spoilery reasons is the end. I thought it was too sensational and not necessary. There was also a bit of crazy brain technology that is totally implausible. But other than that, this was an exciting, thought-provoking book that successfully avoided being exploitative and instead portrayed trauma sensitively and richly.plot . 4/5All in all, this book nearly had me peeking ahead. It was so hard not to! I loved that Angie got the details slowly, because I felt like I was right alongside her, looking for clues and making horrible discoveries. The tension was high through the whole thing. And, except for the weird sci-fi brain stuff and the brevity, the process of reintegration therapy is really well done. I also liked that the mystery bits alternated with scenes of regular life: going back to school, facing her old friends, getting close to boys, struggling with her father's guilt. It touched on the after-effects of trauma that you don't usually see. Like I said, my biggest beef was with the ending, which was just a little too coincidental and totally unnecessary.concept . 5/5Coley takes a view on the post-traumatic landscape that's often attempted and rarely done well. DID (Multiple Personality Disorder, which is NOT SCHIZOPHRENIA SERIOUSLY GET IT RIGHT, PEOPLE) is sensationalized in the media to the point of absurdity. Coley, on the other hand, obviously did her homework. The alternate personalities she portrays are richly developed and mimic real accounts of the disorder. They're also not superfluous; they drive the story and allow for a mystery in Angie's own head. Her frustration at having all the answers locked away by other pieces of her mind is a thrilling and terrifying driving force for the plot.characters . 5/5There are so many extra characters in this, because not only do we get Angie, but we get her alters. Each of them are a distended part of her, but also feel like people in themselves. It makes for really interesting scenes with Angie sort of communicating with herself and feeling broken and dashed to pieces. Angie's plight is easily sympathetic, and she's an endearing character in herself--sweet, sensitive, and hugely determined. Her struggle to control the behaviors of her alters and learn this new self showed a lot of strength. Her parents are also very realistically portrayed. They're not only joyful at her return, but filled with guilt and doubt and confusion. It was also nice seeing some of Angie's old friends coming back to her. Some weirdly fast, but maybe that's how best friends work. There was also an adorable boy who played a very appropriate and non-overstated role.style . 5/5Coley's writing in this was key. She did a good job writing Angie's voice as torn between the young girl she thinks she is and the older girl she's become unwittingly. It could be very rich at times, and pretty, and disturbing. She did a great job of giving each alter their own, unique voice.mechanics . 5/5The story was very polished, with good pacing. It never felt too draggy or too fast-paced. There was just the right tension all the way through, with mini-climaxes and drops to keep you on your toes.take home messageA powerful story about one girl's struggle to put the pieces of herself back together after an unspeakable trauma. Read more

First, let me point out that I am not a reader of science fiction. However, I am so glad to have read The Captain's Kid! I couldn't put it down, mainly because the story line was so intriguing with just enough mystery to keep it moving along at a quick pace. Additionally, the main character, Brandon Webb, the "Captain's kid," was such a unique teenager. Smart as a whip, he still has the boyish clumsiness and goofiness that allow him to keep a positive attitude in perilous situations. With both parents working for the Space Survey Corps, Brandon grew up in an intellectually charged environment, which is clear by his genius in math and computer programming (or "hacking," as some would refer to it). Brandon's mother, missing and presumed dead, never returned from a space mission four years prior to Esperanza, a war-torn planet.One day, Brandon's father, Gordon, receives a call, and he's back working for the SSC and planning a resupply mission to Esperanza. Having promised Brandon to never leave him behind, he must make good on his promise. So, Brandon is about to go on his first space mission, a "nube," embarking on a year-long voyage on the starship named RELIABLE to Esperanza, the place his mother was last alive. He is nervous, but also very excited, having always dreamed of journeying in space.When Brandon boards the ship and meets some of the other "space kids," the trip becomes even more interesting for him. There's Karthik, the son of RELIABLE's head cook, who quickly becomes his best friend and confidant. And then there is Audrey, whom Brandon is instantly smitten over from the start. If only he can play it cool and not screw up his chances with her, being the klutz that he is. When Brandon becomes the main target of sabotage, however, he has to figure out who on the ship could be an enemy and why they are trying to put a stop to the mission and his life. As the RELIABLE gets closer to Esperanza, Brandon grows closer to Audrey, the danger aboard ship intensifies. Can Brandon and his friends figure out a way to save the mission, and themselves in time? You'll have to read it and find out for yourselves. You won't be sorry - it's a great adventure with a neat ending. The book is well written, and very clean. Middle grade kids, young adults, and adults alike will enjoy this fast-paced space adventure.Another really cool thing about this book is that Liz has a YouTube channel (LizColeyBooks) with a read-along serial of this book read by Liz herself as part of the Undercover Reading series. Anyone is welcome to subscribe and listen to Liz narrate this story and others.

If you're looking for a nice, simple and sweet story, this isn't it. "Pretty Girl-13" is a thrilling, shocking story that will have you hooked from page one. It dabbles into many harsh subjects like rape, kidnapping, assault....etc. The basis of the story is about a sixteen-year-old girl, Angela, who comes home one day, thinking she's coming back from a camping trip. But she's really been missing for three years. And she doesn't remember anything. Her psychologist figures out that she has dissociative identity disorder aka multiple personalities that helped her cope with her traumatic past. The majority of the story is about Angela trying to figure out what happened the last three years of her life, and trying to rid herself of her "extra" personalities.This book was very dark at times and unpredictable. Coley does a great job at really shocking the reader. It was very unpredictable at times. She kept flinging out surprises, and it kept me on my toes, which I like. I hate when stories are predictable because it makes me want to burn the book and throw it out the window."Pretty Girl-13" is a dark, thrilling book that will keep you on the edge of your seat. The main character goes through a lot of harsh, traumatic events so prepare yourself. Overall, I liked the book but here were parts I didn't like. Like that Angela refers to one of her personalities as "The SLUT" personality, which is kind of wrong because that was her personality that dealt with a lot of her sexual abuse. Also, there are some plot holes in her story and I don't want to say them because it might spoil the story for some people, but even so it was still a good read.

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I didn't read much this week because I was in a bit of a rut. This book showed up in the Kindle Daily Deals and it looked interesting, so I bought it. I didn't even read reviews because the first review I looked at said it was best to read without knowing anything about the story, so I did. I started the book earlier tonight and did not put it down. It is a great read. That's all I will say - don't want to give any details.

Considering its subject matter--I won't tell you what that is because I don't want to give away the ending--this book was an amazing read. The author did a good job of revealing everything at a proper place, with more than one twist that I wasn't quite expecting.

Excellent read!!!Couldn't put the book down!

Pretty Girl Thirteen is a novel with an unusual premise which is why I bought it but I'm not a big fan of "psychological" novels (nobody ever behaves in a realistic way) and I thought this might be one so put off reading it for a while and now I wish I hadn't as it had me enthralled. Angie returns home 3 years after being kidnapped with no memories and believing she has been away for 3 days. The novel centres on how she comes to terms with her ordeal and deals with her DID (dissociative identity disorder).I already knew that DID is a psychological hot potato - no one can prove that it actually exists and isn't revealed by therapists planting the suggestion, like the controversy over historical sexual abuse revealed through hypnotherapy - so I was interested to see how Ms Coley dealt with it. The answer is fantastically well. I found myself not caring about my doubt as I got immersed in the story which is so well written I couldn't help ignoring the rest of my life to see what was coming next. Obviously in the cold light of day the science is a bit ropey but it's fiction and as a page turner it's top class.Angie is a very strong character, determined to do what it takes to get her life back on track and whilst she has a few wobblies she has a maturity that most of us can only dream of. I don't think the other characters are particularly developed, only insofar as needed to reflect Angie, her thoughts and actions because this book is all about Angie.If you are prepared to suspend your disbelief, or perhaps more aptly, allow Pretty Girl Thirteen to suspend it for you through the plot and writing it is an excellent read and I recommend it highly.