Jane Anonymous was dark and definitely scary. It was scary because these stories are real. We read them on news everyday. I think author described the feelings perfectly. I couldn't put it down and finished in two days. I had a lot of emotions after reading this. I highly recommend.

Slightly dark, definitely heartbreaking, Jane Anonymous is everything you would expect from this author and the subject matter.

This is a story that will resonate with you, shake you up and dump out all the pieces again as you struggle and grieve right along with Jane, with her parents, and with her friends as the story slowly unfolds from “then” and “now”.

All the feels! Stolarz takes you on a wild roller coaster of a ride through the ups and downs, the heartache, the triumphs, and the dark dark lows. Emotional, endearing, triumphant, heart wrenching, eye opening, and most of all, a deep connection to this so very broken character that you will be thinking about her long after her story has ended.

***Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review***

I wanted to get into this book so much, The plot was solid, but the writing seemed a little forced. I may not be the audience for this book, though. I appreciated the author’s take on a sensitive and serious subject.

This story follows 17 year old Jane who was abducted and then found after 7 months. It goes back and forth between past and present time. I haven't read a lot of thrillers but I feel like this was somewhat formulaic and predictable to an extent and that took from my enjoyment. I want to be shocked. Jane was unlikeable and I'm not sure if that was meant to be a thing. I felt like her parents, the police officers, the therapists, her friends, etc. didn't act in realistic ways. I don't know everything about the psychology of abduction victims or victims of people who have been kept captive, but the true stories I've read, I feel like things were handled differently by all, even the victim. I also didn't care for the last 25% of the book where things started to resolve. After all the nitty gritty, it seemed too fluffy and quick - almost as if it were part of a different story. This one just wasn't for me.


Edit: After a good 20 minute discussion with my husband, I think I'm taking this down to a 2 star. The more I think back, the more I dislike this book. Especially the Epilogue and the weird spider metaphorical thing.

I am partial to abduction stories and feel that I've read all the tropes out there. This one had a plausible abduction story (which I appreciate since I can't continue reading if it's just too stupid) and a good flow of events leading up to the unpredictable ending. I like that I didn't see it coming. The characters were a little stereotypical (parents, perfect cute guy, etc.) except for the abductor. That was interesting.
I completely recommend this one!

I love a book that gets me hooked right away! This was such a gripping and intense story that puts a lot of emphasis on how a traumatic event can affect the mind.

Jane is seventeen and will soon be starting her Senior year of high school. She has a great best friend, a potential new boyfriend and loving parents. Life as she knows it becomes shattered when she is kidnapped and held in a small room for months.

The story moves back and forth to before she was kidnapped to the present and highlights her struggle to settle back into a normal life. We have all had those moments when a song or a certain smell will trigger a memory for us, but for Jane these moments are a potential hazard.

Her sense of safety is not only shattered from the kidnapping, but also from the later knowledge of how much planning went into it and how she had put trust in someone she shouldn’t have.

Even though this story covers a situation that is a nightmare, readers go into it knowing Jane is back home safe and that every day is a step towards her recovery. Because of that, the difficult parts are so much easier to read. Sensitive readers should be aware that there are some references to self harm.

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for allowing me to read an advance copy and give my honest review.

The Quick Cut: A teen girl writes down her experiences after being held hostage for seven months.

A Real Review:
Thank you to St. Martin's Press for providing the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

We all hear about these tragic stories where a kid gets kidnapped and held hostage for years, but can never imagine what's it's like to be in those shoes. Tragedy happens all the time, but what if you could feel that for yourself? That's the story in this book centered on Jane.

Jane was living her usual life when everything got turned upside down. She went to pick up her best friend's birthday present and ended up kidnapped instead. For seven months, she was trapped in a room with no one to talk to. How does someone cope after that? Can she learn to move forward again?

Just as a preface here: this book is very dark and includes some very traumatic content. It is not for the faint of heart and anyone reading this book should know that from the start.

That being said, this book is amazing. You truly do feel like you're with Jane every step of the way. From being trapped in that white room to being with her parents back home, you experience the entire range. The complex road back to health isn't straight forward and you feel that with her.

I did have a few issues with the book though. It's a touching story with so much content that screams PTSD, but they're were so many questions left unanswered in a satisfying way. An overarching vague answer is given that leaves you left wanting.

A traumatic story that brings you along for the journey in a profound way.

My rating: 4 out of 5

There are some interesting things, I do like the way Jane is telling her own story. There are sloppy bits, though, and I saw the ‘twist’ coming. I also hate to see ALL therapists/psychiatrists shown as such bad care providers. Many people she interacts with use not even the most basic common sense in caring for a traumatized survivor.

This story felt very real and scary. Also, I felt broken just like Jane, while reading both then and now. It makes you think and have all these emotions. It was definitely a great read and gripping but also at the same time so difficult to get through because I just didn’t want to know if something worse happened to her while she was asleep or unconscious when she got sick. I guess it was a scary read for me because I am a mom to a teen daughter. But I definitely recommend this book. It is good and eye opening.

One day, as Jane runs to her work to grab a gift for her friend, she is kidnapped by a man posing as a customer. She spends the next seven months trapped in a compound with other teens who have been captured. The story alternates between "then" when Jane is captured and "now" as Jane deals with the aftermath of being rescued and returned to "normal" life.

I really loved this story. There have been far too many news stories of women being captured by men, so many of whom aren't rescued -- or are, so many years later. Jane is only captured for seven months and already her mentality and well-being are so irrevocably altered. Habits created during her capture stay with her, and no one seems to understand her difficulties; Jane herself can't understand people anymore, and prefers to be left alone. It's heartbreaking to see her so broken, though there is some hope for her. I loved the idea of Jane writing her own story out, in order to reclaim her authority over the story.

Overall, a really great story. It's not much of a mystery (beyond wondering who took her and how she got out), but it's more interesting for how Jane changes from her experience.

Book Review
Jane Anonymous by Laurie Faria Stolarz
Pub Date: 07 Jan 2020
Read courtesy of Netgalley.com

LOVED IT! I got almost half way through the book before I even stopped to make my usual notes. Gripping, engaging, accessible, and intriguing. Then when I did finally make my first note, it was to express how the box of brownies Jane has with her in captivity reminded me of Wilson in the movie "Castaway." And that's a good thing (for me) since I love watching that movie.

I cannot go into how much this book pulled me in, or I will give away some of the plot. Suffice it to say that I 😲OMG'ed to myself when the abductor was revealed. Since this genre isn't my usual fare, maybe I just wasn't able to piece things together, so I was wonderfully surprised. I'd rather like to think, though, that Stolarz did a great job of weaving a believable tale that allowed her reader to be, well, wonderfully surprised! I had another WOWOWOWOW moment about 85% through the story, which I also cannot describe without giving away some of the mystery. However, it occurred regarding a drawing when the psychological background of the abductor was being revealed. Stolarz crafted both believable characters and a plot that didn't use ploys to make it happen.

I also really liked the way Stolarz allowed Jane to organically find someone with whom she could click in order to get the help she needed after her kidnapping. It felt real or natural for a traumatized teen to reject the counselors her equally traumatized mother wanted her to see.

I also liked Stolarz's use of NOW and THEN to guide the reader through the story. My favorite use of this was between chapters 59 and 60. I liked that NOW chapter 59 was followed by another NOW chapter. It kept the reader in an important moment of the story.

Regarding the plot thread of the shelter dog, I did note to myself that "maybe it's too obvious a connection between Jane and the dog's plight, but maybe that's how it works in real life, too." And being a dog love, I'm glad that sometimes, yes, that's exactly what happens; we heal each other.

In both books and movies, I get the feeling it is really difficult to create an ending. While I was pleased that the story didn't have a tidy ending for Jane, the epilogue felt extraneous and forced, like Stolarz had to try to explain what really couldn't be explained... Jane just had to work through what happened to her, and leaving the reader with a dreamlike final explanation detracted from the work the reader knows Jane has ahead of her. Still, a 5 ☆☆☆☆☆!

A very nice book by Laurie Faria Stolarz. I’ve never read a book by this author before so I wasn't sure what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed the story and the characters.

Absolutely fantastic!
This was entertaining from the get-go and just kept going.
I was able to figure out the "twist" early on, but somehow that only hooked me more?
I needed to know the whys and the hows of what led up to it.
Highly recommend this to freaking everyone!
Much love to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for my DRC.

Posted to Goodreads: Jane was an average seventeen year old girl until that day, the day he took her. After that Jane day's life was split into three parts before she was taken, her time in the basement, and her life after she returned home. She knows she should be happy to be home and back with her family but she can't be really happy because a small part of her will always be back in that basement just trying to survive.

Stolarz's book grabbed me from the first page and I couldn't put it down. The story of a teen girl being taken and just trying to survive was incredibly well down and scarily realistic. Jane's struggle during her abduction and her trying to adapt to life back home felt as if it was ripped from a terrifying headline. The only weakness of this story was Jane's relationship with Mason which felt unnecessary. However, even with that issue this book was a must read for fans of YA mysteries/thrillers.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher I was able to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
***
3-3.5 stars. I have feelings and they’re difficult to pin down.

Jane Anonymous, not her real name, narrates the story of her abduction, from the moment she was taken onwards, the then, while trying to recover in the now. The story jumps back and forth to when she was taken over 7 months ago.
The stories are short and fast, following Jane as she tries to come to grips with what she went through, what she’s missed, and who she is now. What she went through changed her profoundly and she struggles immensely with a whole host of emotions. She has a hard time communicating why she can’t or doesn’t want certain things and just overall expressing her emotions following what she went through. She has people tip toeing around her, people brashly getting in her face, and people earnestly trying to just keep things moving along like it’s any old day and that she went to visit grandma instead of being held captive for 7 months. Jane suffers through highs and lows, honestly more lows than anything else.
It’s a really fascinating book from a psychological standpoint, and it’s gripping because you want to know as much as you can and want to learn with Jane why this happened to her and you want to cheer her on as she accomplishes normal day to day things again but also protect her as much as possible.
The ending left me feeling a little bereft, I know it’s supposed to show her continuation towards healing and is not supposed to be a neat enclosed ending but it feels lacking in some way shape or form (I think it was the epilogue really, I’m not a big fan of it, I get what it’s supposed to represent but it’s not working for me.)
It is an overall good book, a bit uncomfortable in reading at times. (Especially if you start to pick up on some of the clues before it’s dropped on you near the end.)

A solid 4 star read! I flew through this book for several reasons. I love short chapters, the writing was really engaging and suspenseful, and I liked Jane's voice. The plot is a very well-used one, but I thought the author handled it really well - the whole time I was excited to find out why Jane was taken / what her kidnapper wanted / how she escaped. The bit with Mason was interesting, and I did like that there were additional elements that made this story different - the audio to make it seem like there were others locked up, the trauma Jane dealt with in the "present," and just the overall story. Definitely enjoyed this one.

4 Stars

Poor Jane! This book was both sad and creepy. It was also really good. I liked the back and forth between now and then although toward the end it got more confusing because they were such similar pov. I really wish it would have shown her adopting Lemon or Brave but in my ending she got both!

Although I enjoyed Stolarz's writing, I found myself annoyed a lot while reading this. The story alternates between now and then, which I found effective in holding my attention. Jane is a teenage girl who was taken and held captive for seven months. She chooses to write about her experience as a form of therapy. The plot was predictable but the story flowed. What got me irritated was how Jane's mom and best friend, Shelley, treated her and expected her to act. It seemed selfish and I didn't like any of the parts with them in it.

While I wished there was more suspense and thrills, I did enjoy the writing and would read a book by Stolarz again.

I received an advanced copy through Netgalley in return for an honest review.

Jane Anonymous is a very brave, strong girl who must somehow learn to trust again. Her old carefree life is gone. She laments that her recent abduction caused so many people, including her parents, grief and turmoil, but she is barely managing to hold on to her own sanity as she battles her fears and trust issues every second of the day.

This is an outstanding novel about abduction, Stockholm syndrome, overcoming self-blame in abuse situations, and finding the right fit when it comes to choosing counseling. Jane's road back to recovery was hampered by several bad encounters with medical staff and police detectives, who could not understand or would not listen to the signs she was giving. You sense a lack of sensitivity on the professionals' parts - probably due to a lack of proper training or a lack of empathy.

It is difficult to review this novel without spoilers, so read no further if you want to retain the element of surprise when you read this superb story. I found it interesting that the author showed a smidgen of compassion for the "Monster" abductor. Our society contributes to the creation of such "monsters" when we turn a blind eye and allow children to be abused and neglected. Violence is always harmful to any human psyche and can become learned behaviour. My heart broke for young Mason, who was locked in a dark basement as a child and (was potentially?) beaten with a baseball bat by his abusive, alcoholic father. That "baseball bat attack" conversation rang so true that I wondered whether it had actually happened - but at an earlier time in Mason's life. Jane's "Monster" abductor, like so many others out there, believed that he was in love with her, but he lacked the social skills or mental stability to approach Jane in the usual, accepted manner. I appreciated this humane approach: too many authors adopt a lynch-mob mentality which lowers the tone of a story. Some of us humans are way more messed up than others.

Jane's relationship during her captivity with Mason, in their joint battle against the Monster, was sweetly heartbreaking. I could truly understood why she grieved for him when she finally escaped. Apart from the Stockholm syndrome aspect, Mason was probably experiencing the happiest moments of his own life during those stolen hours. in captivity. I kept thinking that we failed poor Mason and those like him by not being more vigilant on his behalf during his own period of childhood neglect and abuse.. I don't think that the "twist", such as it was, is hard to guess, but it was still a very painful reveal, in so many ways.

I highly recommend this beautifully written, fast-paced, edge-of-your-seat suspenseful novel. I read it in one day: you simply can't put this book down! My thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for a free ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

"Our broken pieces are what make us whole."

Jane Anonymous switches back and forth between the past and present as 17-year-old protagonist "Jane" returns home after being held captive for seven months. As Jane attempts to accept and face her traumatic experience, she also learns to find comfort in the small and large kindnesses of the few around her (including #1 character friend, Jack, [we love you, Jack]) who are able to relay an attitude of understanding and patience.

The shifts between the "Then" and "Now" of Jane's life are masterfully developed and placed to piece together her experience as a captive and her self months later as she struggles to find the closure and answers she needs to face what happened to her. The book is beautifully written, and relays the issues explored within (e.g. significant trauma) with the sensitivity and compassion they deserve.