Gator Reads (Book Review)

The Detour
By S.A. Bodeen

• Seventeen-year-old Livvy Flynn, a bestselling author of YA fiction, is kidnapped by a woman and her apparently manic daughter who have no intention of letting her go. ~From the Catalog

What I thought:  Have you ever heard of the book or movie Misery by Stephen King?  It's the story of an author who is held against his will by an obsessed fan of his book.  Well S.A. Bodeen's book The Detour is pretty much Misery for a Young Adult audience.  In fact, Bodeen references Misery a couple of times throughout the book.  I'm not sure how I feel about this book.  Livvy was not a likeable character.  You kind of didn't care that she was being held and, honestly, hoped she would learn something in the process.  It's kind of weird when you feel empathy for your the kidnapper instead of the person who has been kidnapped.  There are some interesting twist and points that are very relevant for YA audiences.  I would recommend this book to fans of S.A. Bodeen (she wrote The Compound and Fallout), thrillers, and stories with a twist.

~Mrs. Leffel