Natalie Richards is great at writing creepy, suspenseful books. I'll give her that. I really enjoyed Six Months Later, so I was excited to read One Was Lost. While it was creepy, it was also a little convenient and cheesy (ahem dolls) for me. The ending seemed unrealistic, which kind of made me wonder why I bothered. I was really enjoying things and then.... oh.

I swapped my kindle back in 2018 and am unable to recover this title. I appriciate the opportunity that was given for review but sadly can't complete it for this title. Many thanks.

Just the right level of fear for a YA novel. Stranded teens and a creepy stalker -- what could be more terrifying. A great story with a unique twist.

I have not had the time or interest to get through this book, unfortunately. I requested based on the author and would love to get to it eventually.

I'm very sorry for the delay in sending feedback for this title. Unfortunately, I did not end up finishing this book. I want to thank you so very much for the opportunity to read it. My apologies for any inconvenience this may cause. And again, I'm very, very sorry for the delay in sending feedback.

I truly hope to continue working with you on other titles in the future.

While I felt that the book did try to take on common themes (teens in the woods, complicated OC), the main character, instead of adding to the book made it difficult to connect with her due to her odd insecurities. The plot did pick up with the suspense, but it fell flat towards the middle.

This is a creepy thriller that will hook all readers who only want to read thrillers.while the plot is not the most unique I've read, this book is perfect for more advanced middle schoolers who like "creepy books".

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to preview this ARC of One Was Lost by Natalie Richards.

Our story starts at the beginning of a highly anticipated senior camping trip. Sera, Lucas, Jude, and Emily, along with other fellow classmates and teachers set up camp for their first night. Sera and Lucas have a romantic history, but Sera is going to do everything in her power to ignore it, and him. However, there won't be much time for romance after the teens wake up the next morning groggy and confused. Their gear has been ransacked and they each have a word tattooed on their wrist. Something very sinister is going on, and it's going to get much worse before it gets better.

I had a lot of fun with this one. It's quick and readable, and I can totally see the YA appeal. The story line, especially towards the end got a little weak to me, but it didn't take away from the enjoyment of it.

I had mild success with the other book I read from this author. I’m not an experienced mystery/thriller reader, so I tend to get duped easily and find them more impressive than other people do. I feel like her books for me, so far, have been simplistic in most ways. The writing, the dialogue, the mystery itself – it all feels kind of plain and uninteresting, sometimes even awkward?

I predicted whodunnit but couldn’t figure out the motive throughout the book, so the ending was slightly interesting I guess. I probably should have guessed but you know how bad I am at that. The characters were okay but it was kind of annoying that there was a romance involved? I could have gone without it for sure. There was some interesting character building for the main girl though. I didn’t expect to dive that deep into her family life in this sort of book, so that’s one good thing?

It was a quick and easy read, not super creepy or anything despite the cover. I wouldn’t recommend it overall because I have a feeling it’ll fall out of my brain within the next week. Nothing to write home about. In one emoji: 🤷🏼‍♀️

This story of a hiking trip gone wrong was not that much of an attention getter. The character's were not that likable.

2.5/5 stars

I found this book to be a quick read but without substance. I saw who the killer was pretty early on, and was a little disappointed in who the author chose for it to be. I've read worse than this book, but I've also read better. This is a great book for anyone looking to read something quickly to get them out of a read slump. Sort of like a palate cleanser.

I was a little leery going into this book. The Premise sounds exciting. It's a horror. The cover is creepy and I just wanted to read it but I have read two books by this author, one I loved, one not so much. Well, this book fits into the category of one I loved. This book was just what I needed to get my horror blood racing. I truly enjoyed the chills and thrills of this book.


Six teenagers and two teachers go for a hike in the woods for a class trip. Sera thought this would be a great time to clear her head get away from the boy she can't stop thinking of. But that boy, Lucas, decided he needed a getaway too. So Here she is in the middle of nowhere with her crush. If that doesn't make things bad what about the group getting separated. Two girls and the teacher on one side of the river, Sera, Lucas, and two other teens, and one teacher on the other side of the river. When the Sera and the other wake, their teacher is out cold and they overslept, the food and water are gone, the phones going. Their clothes, gone. Everything is destroyed. They are stranged in the woods with a knocked out teacher... oh and there is a number 3 in the dirt and a word written on each of their wrists. To make things worse, really bad things start to happen and it seems there is a killer stalking them in the woods.


I have lots of thoughts about this book and they all lead back to this... I wanted a horror, a thriller, I got one. There were some flaws I guess with the book but I didn't seem to mind. In my opinion and experience in reading horror and thrillers, it's sometimes hard to find good characters or good plot. I seem to find one or the other or just so-so for both. I read horrors and thrillers for the feelings. Sometimes I need a book that just gives me the creeps. This book did that and it was just what I was looking for.

The characters and the plot weren't bad. The lost in the woods was fun. The survival and the stalker making things difficult. That was very fun. The reveal... it was so-so as it always is for me. It is hard for me to find a reveal to completely surprise me and/or wow me. The reveal never bothers me. I don't care if was set up well or perfectly executed. I don't care if it makes complete sense. I mean let's face it psycho killers rarely make sense right. I mean they are all crazy and psychotic, so does it need to make sense to me.... only a little.

This book read like an old teen horror movie or book from the nineties. Which I just love. So this book made me feel good all the way around... well except for when it was making me tense. Which it did. The suspense was there for sure. It was a little nailbiting for me. It was also pretty clever on hiding who did it. Now did it surprise me... no, I figured it out right before it was revealed... but I wasn't trying too hard. I just wanted to enjoy the ride. There wasn't really too many hints throughout the book to help figure things out. The readers are just as much in the dark as the characters. I like that. I tend to try and figure things out and sometimes that takes away from the enjoyment of the read. SO I was so happy just to enjoy the ride.

So on to the characters. I liked all of them well enough. They filled their part in the story but they weren't anything I would write home about. I liked the main character, Sera, enough. She was a bit annoying at times when she goes on and on about not becoming her mother. Her mother left her and her father for another man. She followed her heart as Sera sees it. Her heart controlled all and Sera is determined not to let her heart control her head. To me though it made her a little cold. She wouldn't allow herself to fall for a boy. Oh, get over it. Really though that was the only thing that really drove me nuts about her. I mean she made some stupid choices but it's a horror story... they didn't make stupid decisions, there would be no story.

Lucas I really liked. I found him charming and funny and sweet. He tried to hide it behind the bad boy persona but only because that is how everyone chooses to see him anyways. I liked the way he took charge, tried to think things through, and tried to keep everyone safe. There were times I felt his intentions were too much Sera based where there were others out there to think about too, but in his defense, no one knew what was going on and who was behind the craziness.

The other two teens that were with Sera and Lucas, Jude and Emily. There were pretty cool in there own way. Emily had issues for sure but she was smart. I mean really smart and I really think others should have listened to her more... but she didn't know how to assert herself. Jude was a bit hard to read at times. he tried to keep his life, his feelings, himself private. He didn't need an audience for his life. I did like that about him. He just needed to learn to trust a little bit in a situation where trust may be the only thing to keep you alive and get you out.

So the characters likable but not totally loveable... except for Lucas... the story was written well. I loved the writing style. The pace was just right for this type of read. The plot was between original and predictable. The suspense... highly rated. All in all, I read this book for a good horror- suspense. I got that and I am completely happy with the experience.





Loved it! It was just the right of chill and thrill

DNF'd after about 40%. might try again at a later date but I've lost interest in these types of novels.

i tried to get into this book but i couldn't after 10% I think it was the writing style

This book was creepy in a very wonderful way! It was well written, and the characters were well fleshed out. I will be interested to see what this author has to offer in the future!

Forever ago, NetGalley provided me an advanced copy of One Was Lost by Natalie D. Richards.
When I got it, I was thinking "Great, another teen murder story." Oh boy, was I wrong.
It starts out a little slow, but by the time it's over you're like Wait.... Did I just finished this book in 6 hours? (I really did just finish this book in 6 hours.)

A senior hiking trip took an ugly turn when the weather got rough. It separated the group, 4 with Mr. Walker and 2 with Ms. Brighton. Sera, Lucas, Emily, and Jude were all terrorized in the night. They became Darling, Dangerous, Damaged, and Deceptive. Their backpacks and snacks were scattered all around the campsite and their teacher was out cold. Did someone really drug them? Was this just an elaborate senior prank? Who would go through the trouble of torturing them on their final trip?
What is happening on the other side? Are Madison and Hayley okay with Ms. Brighton? Could they be dead? Could someone be picking them off one by one? They have to figure out how to survive on their own without their teachers. They have to figure out how to stay sane and not completely turn against one another. Could some of them charm their way out of the limelight?
Who will survive a night in the woods?

This book was such a quick read.
Definitely recommend for a beach read if you like your books a little darker.
Sourcebooks Fire also provided me an exclusive excerpt of One Was Lost, check it out here!!

DNF.....This one really wasn't for me. I didn't make it past chapter two. It just didn't capture my attention.

Voluntarily read and reviewed an arc of this book.
Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for the opportunity to read and review One was lost by Natalie D. Richards. The first two chapters show the setting and describe the main and surrounding characters. The action and suspense begins in the third chapter. There's some kind of animosity between Sera and Lucas that comes to light a little at a time. As I read, I learned more about the four main characters and the struggles each of them has in their lives. Being in a forest is a perfect setting for a horror story and the bridge washing out helped move the danger of being stranded along. Nice steady pacing of the mystery and suspense. The book kept me wondering to the end. Great horror story for young adults, 5 stars!

I received a copy from Netgalley.

The premise of this one sounded interesting enough, a group of teens on a senior field trip wind up stranded in the woods, spooky things start happening, teachers go missing and they’re being stalked by an unknown figure who writes strange things on the arms of four of the kids. Dangerous. Darling. Damaged. Deceptive. With no clue what’s happening, stranded from their classmates by bad weather, and suspicions mounting, the kids must pull together and figure a way to get to help and safety.

Kind of reads like a cheesy teen survival movie. It’s certainly got all the right elements, and the plot was fairly fast paced. Only once it got to the reveal it was more eye rolling than shocking, at least for me anyway. The other problem I had with it was there are no depth to any of the characters. The main character Sera is sensible enough with a snarky tone, and clearly has some sort of a past with one of the boys on the trip, Lucas. Rich boy Jude has a clear attitude problem, ditzy Melanie and Hayley seem to be into drama, and quiet Emily doesn’t seem to say much at all.

But there’s no real reasons explained for anyone’s attitude. We get a little insight into Jude as the novel progresses and there are a few flashbacks as to what happened with Sera and Lucas, some sort of a potential romance that didn’t go very far, and Sera backed off. All that’s mentioned is something to do with her mother and not wanting to repeat her mistakes.

More questions than answers. Once the spooky things started happening, the suspicion and tension builds fairly quickly, though it seems everyone is quick to point figures without much evidence. And while they’re trying to figure things out with scary shit going down Sera and Lucas seem to be inexplicably drawn to each other. Cue more eye rolling from the reader. The romance felt forced and unnecessary, though in a way I can understand wanting someone to cling to in an increasingly dangerous situation.

There is a fair bit of background on Lucas’s character, but almost nothing on Sera herself. Though to be fair, stupid romance decisions that can be blamed on teen hormones aside, Sera is pretty logical and fairly sensible for the most part.

Spoilers, but these bits really irritated me

There was one stupid scene where she hears something at night whilst in the tent and thinks it might be bears in their camp. And she goes OUTSIDE in the pitch DARK to see what’s going on. Leaving her tent-mate Emily asleep inside the tent. For fuck’s sake.

One teacher is missing, presumed dead after an icky find and the other is alive but appears ill, and all they want is a grownup who can help get them sorted, so it becomes all about waking the teacher and getting him on his feet. Sensible, no? Though once the teacher is awake enough to get his bearings and not being sick, once he doesn’t immediately believe every word they tell him they start thinking he’s the one responsible.

There’s also a story about a girl who died in the woods many years ago on a trip similar to theirs. Deemed an accident when kids went partying in the woods, but there are hints there may be more to the story. Never really explored until the end.

Which in typical teen horror movie fashion, turned completely stupid. At least, it did for me.

Kind of a blah read for me in the end. Interesting premise, not so great execution. Would have liked some more character depth and background info filtered into the story.

Thank you Sourcebooks Fire and Netgalley for approving my request to view the title.

Entertaining YA mystery with lots of fun twists and turns. The outdoor setting was a fresh break from the multitude of urban and suburban locales YA predominantly takes place in.