Gone by Lisa McMann

Ye be warned, there be spoilers here: It took me much longer than it should have, but I finally finished Gone by Lisa McMann. I'll start by saying that I did not enjoy this one as much as I enjoyed Fade, the second book in the series, which now stands as my favorite overall. While I really enjoyed that Janie met her father, and that he turned out to be exactly what I thought he was, I think it sucks that the rest of the book was greatly lacking in any action, real resolutions, or real answers. I get that lots of books can be great while leaving things up in the air, but I was really hoping for more here. To me this felt more like an epilogue more than anything else. I think I might have just ended up expecting more considering how much I enjoyed Fade's action and some of the answers that were provided in there. I would in fact like to know what happens to Janie and Cabe, not just that they're going to end up playing it by ear, but I already from the signing I attended in La Verne, CA that Lisa McMann doesn't intend to go back to the Dream Catcher world. I also wish we could know more about the reason Henry died. We know it was something in his brain, we're guessing that it was because of the isolation, but how did it begin? Were there symptoms that were starting to tell him something was up? If so, couldn't Janie make some compromise between the two choices? Spend some time in isolation, and then some time being a dream catcher? Hmm, I guess that wouldn't be too practical, but that would all depend on how much it all meant ot her, and from what we've learned, that's a lot.

I am glad, however, that Janie took a step towards coping with what her mother is like by the end of the book. Not altogether getting out of the situation and being free, but at least it was obvious she was beginning to rise above it, because it's obvious that this is aimed at those kids who have to deal with the same problems Janie did, and I like that message. I haven't seen that much myself when it comes to paranormal stories, and I'm sure there are lots of people who don't want to read about that kind of problem in the first place, so I think that makes me appreciate the fact that it's tucked in there as a secondary issue as opposed to it being the focus. It eases the unsuspecting reader into that topic rather than forcing it on them.