Jane Anonymous A Novel

*3.5 stars

Great YA mystery/realistic fiction about Jane, a teenager who is abducted. The story goes between before, during and after. There are good twists and turns. A quick read. I think all high school readers would be engaged with it, as well as adult readers.

i like the book to be honest. it kept me on my toes and all i wanted was to keep reading.

I feel conflicted about this book, not due to the quality of the writing but because of the subject matter. Stolarz dives deep into the psyche of a kidnapping victim. I suppose this book falls close to the psychological thriller genre but not quite into it since we know that Jane escapes. She really inhabits the complex emotions a survivor endures and the fact that there is no real happy ending. Stolarz accurately depicts the reality of trauma and mental illness in a way that gives a wide berth of stereotyping or saying that therapy fixes everything. This is a complicated story and not one to be taken on lightly. I still recommend.

Disclaimer: I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to Fantastic Flying Book Club, Netgalley, and Wednesday Books for this free copy. All quotes in this review are taken from the Advanced Reader Copy and may change in final publication. Oh my gosh guys. I’m not even joking about how hard this was for me to read especially in the beginning. This book alternates between the past and the present, and the past starts on the day that Jane Anonymous gets kidnapped. I couldn’t even imagine being in her situation, and especially watching a bunch of shows like Criminal Minds and all that where the episode could deal with a child being kidnapped, and then the gang has to find them before that person ends up dying. Stuff like that is so stressful to watch honestly, like I don’t know how we can continue to watch them and can be desensitized by that kind of violence. So I’d please, please, please be careful about this one if this is something that you could be triggered by, because while some the shows and movies that we watch could be told from the rescuer’s point of view (like a detective or something like that, you know?) this is told from Jane’s point of view, and she’s dealing with the past and the present. From the moment she woke up that morning and didn’t think that anything was really going to be different. The only thing different about that morning – before everything I mean – was that her best friend Shelley ended up coming home early from camp, and she wanted to have breakfast with Jane because she missed her so much. And of course, Jane kept procrastinating bringing the gift home from her work, so when she goes to get it… low and behold there’s a stranger that somehow convinces her to open the store for him so he could “get his girlfriend a present for their anniversary.” Sometimes you can’t trust people and what their true intentions will be, despite wanting to believe the best in everyone. Or at least believing that there is some good in the world, worth fighting for. In Jane’s case, that didn’t happen, and that one mistake could have cost her so much more than seven months of her life. And books like this really end up breaking my heart, and I get really intrigued by how authors can get into the minds of someone like this. I don’t think I could do it, and I don’t know if I would even want to. This is my second Stolarz book, and her reputation of writing books that can make me feel strange has continued. Strange isn’t always a bad thing, and it’s not in this case. In this case, I’m just hurt for Jane, and the aftermath of everything that she had to endure. And who is the real monster in this novel? Is it who we think it is? Or someone else? You’ll have to see, because with Stolarz, I don’t feel like it’s always as it seems.

Thank you to Wednesday Books and Netgalley for the free review copy! JANEY ANONYMOUS by Laurie Faria Stolarz gripped me from start to finish. I had never read a young adult book that focuses on such dark themes (TW for abduction, captivity, and emotional abuse), and while this book is definitely not for everyone, personally I enjoyed it...for the most part.  I think the book's unique perspective combined with its dark theme makes for a really interesting coming-of-age story, and one that lends itself to more of a psychological thriller than anything else. But while the writing is both compulsive and addicting, I personally felt a bit uncomfortable with the relationship that Jane ultimately develops with her captor. While I'm no expert, I think this book likely exhibits a case of Stockholm syndrome, and perhaps even romanticizes it to a certain extent. Abduction and emotional abuse are sensitive topics (especially when marketed towards a teen audience), and I sometimes felt like the seriousness of these subjects were overshadowed by a desire to make the plot more "entertaining." Nonetheless, I think what makes psychological thrillers so interesting is that they deal with inherently problematic and controversial topics, which is definitely a discussion that JANE ANONYMOUS clearly nails. While this book wasn't perfect, I'd be very curious to read what Stolarz writes next.

*I WAS PROVIDED A PHYSICAL COPY OF THIS BOOK IN RETURN FOR MY HONEST OPINION. THIS DOES NOT AFFECT MY REVIEW* I had to wait a while to come to terms with this book. If you're looking for a powerful read, I can tell you, you've found it right here. Jane Anonymous centers on a girl who's been kidnapped and forced to live in a certain style that appeases her kidnapper. The twist on this book is that it's told from differing points of view, one from when Jane was held against her will and one where she's recounting and coming to terms with everything. I feel this really made the novel great, because we don't know how everything went down, but we figure it out by tying the pieces of the two POVs together. Another thing, THE CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT! By God, it is so difficult to find a book that focuses on each and every one of its characters, and the author didn't just deliver! She exceeded expectations and spoon-fed us what we wanted. I can't even begin to choose which character I felt was most developed because they were all equal in that department! The plot was well written and planned out as well. I felt like I was constantly on a rollercoaster of surprise and neverending emotions, and I loved every second of it. The only thing I had a problem with were some of the more filler-like chapters. Those had a tendency to drag just a bit, but otherwise, no other problems! I loved this book, and I really think it should be publicized more than it currently is. I wholly believe that every single person should read this. For that, I rate it 4.5 stars.

Blog | Twitter | Instagram | Review can also be found here at Booked J. As always, a copy of this book was provided by the publisher or author in exchange for my honest review. This does not effect my opinion in any way. The first thing you should know is that Jane Anonymous is one of the best upcoming YA releases of 2020. Months have passed since I read my ARC of the novel, yet it lingers in my mind. Almost as if I read it yesterday or even merely hours ago. Talk all consuming and unforgettable. Jane Anonymous is thrilling, undeniably fascinating, chilling, complex and impossible to put down. Laurie Faria Stolarz pens a beautiful, heartbeat inducing story that features all the best traits a YA contemporary could have. This is a story of coming of age like you so rarely see it: in the key of survival, armed with aching echoes of danger and how a young woman could possibly cope after enduring so much at such a young age. As the timeline rotates, we can feel the story as it pulses. The characters seemingly real enough to reach out and touch. Bleak, honest, achingly heartbreaking and just as we are lured into a false comfort in the story's final moments we are dealt one final shock. If you want to know only one thing of Jane Anonymous it is that the story is so engrossing, you might very well loose hours to it without realizing. Truly, it is one of the best YA thrillers I've read since The Cheerleaders and Dangerous Girls , that served up hefty feelings of nostalgia for YA classics such as The Face on the Milk Carton . This was my first real experience with Laurie Faria Stolarz as an author, but I've heard nothing but phenomenal things about her Blue is for Nightmares series. Based upon my experiences with Jane Anonymous, I cannot wait to begin to explore her backlist in the future. If you are looking for a wild ride of a novel that is beautifully written, captivating, and intensely dynamic look no further than Jane Anonymous.