Review: The Leaving - Tara Altebrando

 Synopsis

"Eleven years ago, six kindergarteners went missing without a trace. After all that time, the people left behind moved on, or tried to.
Until today. Today five of those kids return. They're sixteen, and they are . . . fine. Scarlett comes home and finds a mom she barely recognizes, and doesn't really recognize the person she's supposed to be, either. But she thinks she remembers Lucas. Lucas remembers Scarlett, too, except they're entirely unable to recall where they've been or what happened to them. Neither of them remember the sixth victim, Max. He doesn't come back. Everyone wants answers. Most of all Max's sister Avery, who needs to find her brother--dead or alive--and isn't buying this whole memory-loss story." (Goodreads)

Searching for a Slumpbuster

Despite a slow start, the summer of 2015 was one of my best reading periods. I was really looking forward to another good run this year, but the slump has really settled in. If you take a look at my Goodreads reviews, most of what I have read doesn't go above 3 stars. I just cannot find a book that draws me in. Slumpbusters come in all forms, and they are usually fluffy contemporaries in my case. However, I wanted something that would hook me from the first page and keep me guessing. I saw a couple of friends give The Leaving good ratings on GR and we had it at the library so I went for it. I knew very little about the premise, so that helped add some intrigue for me.

Telling the Story

Altebrando decided to write this 400+ page novel from 3 different perspectives: Lucas, Scarlett, and Avery. Lucas and Scarlett are two of the five people who were returned 11 years after their disappearance. Avery is the sister of Max, the only boy who did not come back. While I get that she would want to include the narrative of someone who had experienced the shift in her community and family post-"Leaving", Avery's story doesn't seem absolutely necessary. She is simply there to show how much life has moved on but her parents haven't. And while she does care about the whereabouts of her brother, it kind of gets clouded by her sudden feelings (annoying, in my opinion) for Lucas. 

Lucas and Scarlett, along with the 3 other teens who return, have no memory of where they were, why they left, or how they got back. A large part of their stories intertwine and involve their own personal investigations and their struggle to understand themselves and regain their memories. Scarlett's narrative is literally spaced out, filled with blank spaces, sometimes almost all but the end of a page is completely empty. It makes sense, given her situation. Words change format, spiraling or lining up vertically. It was an interesting approach. Lucas's memories come in the format of these bold blocks with random words. I got the feeling that they were bright memories and that they affected him mentally and physically. I liked that the approach to each of their stories really defined how they were feeling. 

I'm disappointed that Altebrando used 3rd person narration. Though the book is separated into the stories of 3 characters, it is told in 3rd person. I feel that it didn't help keep the voices unique and it also made it a little harder to actually connect with the characters. 

Unanswered Questions and Missed Opportunties

This book genuinely kept me interested because the mystery could've gone in so many directions. Though there was a conclusion and questions did get answered, it all happened so fast that I didn't actually feel satisfied. In fact, I have more questions. 

Memory plays a huge role in the novel. Obviously, a lot of it has to do with the fact that the 5 teens who have come back have large gaps in their memory. But as they talk about their issues with specialists, memory is discussed as a pretty subjective thing for everyone. We forget things that have actually happened and sometimes replace real memories with things we've watched or heard from other people. 

This is a fascinating topic and has so much potential. I really wanted the book to explore this more, but I don't feel it did a good enough job.  

Overall

2 Stars

In Goodreads speak, 2 stars equals "Ok" and that is exactly what this book was. I read it and I was intrigued by the possibilities. Unfortunately, I was disappointed in the insta-love, Avery's seemingly unnecessary contribution to the story, and the lack of clarity. Ambiguity can be great, but some stories (like this one) require more closure.