Source: Conference
Format: ARC
Length: 368 pages
"When sixteen-year-old Kyra Agnew wakes up behind a Dumpster at the Gas ’n’ Sip, she has no memory of how she got there. With a terrible headache and a major case of déjà vu, she heads home only to discover that five years have passed . . . yet she hasn’t aged a day.
Everything else about Kyra’s old life is different. Her parents are divorced, her boyfriend, Austin, is in college and dating her best friend, and her dad has changed from an uptight neat-freak to a drunken conspiracy theorist who blames her five-year disappearance on little green men.
Confused and lost, Kyra isn’t sure how to move forward unless she uncovers the truth. With Austin gone, she turns to Tyler, Austin’s annoying kid brother, who is now seventeen and who she has a sudden undeniable attraction to. As Tyler and Kyra retrace her steps from the fateful night of her disappearance, they discover strange phenomena that no one can explain, and they begin to wonder if Kyra’s father is not as crazy as he seems. There are others like her who have been taken . . . and returned. Kyra races to find an explanation and reclaim the life she once had, but what if the life she wants back is not her own?" (Goodreads)
I went through a bit of a reading slump recently and was trying to find something that would grab my attention to help pull me back into reading. I knew I didn't want fantasy but after a string of contemps, I wanted something with a little more to it, so I decided to try The Taking. I had previously tried reading The Body Finder but gave up a few pages in, so I was a little leery going into another Derting novel. I did end up liking it but didn't love it (as seems to be my theme).
I read a few reviews before starting The Taking and liked that Lisa said it had an X-Files vibe to it. As a fellow X-Files fan, it definitely does, so if that's you, you'll probably like The Taking. Things are mysterious and we, along with Kyra, have no idea what happened to her in that five years. I loved that she hadn't aged at all. Definitely added more intrigue as to what might have happened to her.
Unfortunately, there were some aspects of this book I didn't like. There was major insta-love going on with Kyra and Tyler. I can handle most insta-love, but this kind was almost insane. He was 12 when she disappeared and now she's falling for him when it's only a day later for her? I don't believe that. I also wanted more closure at the end, but I get that this is the first in a trilogy.
If you're a Derting fan already or like your contemps with a splash of paranormal, try The Taking! If you want more than an easy read, though, I'd skip this one.
