Gone by Michael Grant (Gone Series #1)

Think The Lord of the Flies - by Stephen King.
Apr 7, 2015
3 min read

The sunny little seaside town of Perdido Beach, Californina, has never been anything special. With the exception of Coates Academy, a school for the wealthy and troubled, as well as the nuclear meltdown years ago that gave the town it's nickname, "Fallout Alley", life is mundane and uneventful. One day, out of the blue, everything changes and everyone over the age of 15 is suddenly gone. The survivors are given no warning and no explanation. Left to fend for themselves, some of the teens, such as Sam Temple, try to maintain order without adults or law. His job is made all the harder when Caine, a boy from Coates Academy, tries to seize power for himself. And if that was't enough, some of the the kids, including Sam, are begining to develop strange powers.

Sam is a relatable main character. He's very normal, a kid thrust into a disaster. People look to him as a leader, but he doesn't want anything to do with leadershp, so he must be modest. He thinks there are better people out there to lead, but there's something about him that makes him seem trustworthy, and he's quick to take charge when nobody else knows what to do. Sam is torn. One one hand, he wants to keep order in this weird new world. On the other, he knows it will be very hard to do so. Bullies rule now, and if Sam steps in, it will mean he's taking charge. I think that since he wants what's best for the kids, he'll take on the mantle of leader if it means helping others. It makes for an interesting dilemma that I hope will develop later in the series.

Another rational kid is Astrid, a girl who is described as a genius. She's smart and resourceful, trying to help keep the town together and makes smart decisions that will help people. Although she is very logical, Astrid is willing to be flexible. She knows that the way that the adults and older kids disappeared shouldn;t be possible, but it happened anyways. In the FAYZ, (The name given to the town.) the impossible is possible, with superpowers and mutated animals.

As for the not so great characters, Caine is one of the worst. He's manipulative and smart, knowing how to get the kids of Perdido Beach to listen to him. Anyone who gets in his way, even little kds, is ruthlessly punished so people stay in line and don't speak out against him. Caine's greatest weakness could prove a disaster for everyone: He's arrogant and thinks he's always right. Even though food will soon become a problem, he ignores it in favor of more pressing, personal matters, like how he wants to get rid of Sam so he's the only potential ruler.

Caine's greatest assets - who are also pretty scary - are Diana and Drake. Diana, like Caine, is very manipulative and isn't above some dirty blackmail. Diana helps Caine, but she ultimately is in it for herself only. She helps Caine because it benefits her, and she does anything to keep herself safe. Without Caine's protection, nobody would protect her from Drake, who hates her. Drake is terrifying. He's a sadist and enjoys the pain of others. Caine uses him as a thug to enforce his rules, but Drake doesn't need an excuse to hurt someone. In the end, though, Drake might turn on Caine. The only reason he hasn't yet is because Caine has powers. The moment Caine lets his guard down out of arrogance, Drake might take him out.

Gone blew me away. The world of the FAYZ is very brutal and violent, and it's sad, although not uncommon, to come across dead kids. The gore was facinating in a horrifying sort of way, and I couldn't put the book down. The book was also very chilling with plenty of eerie creatures and monsters that made me shiver. The plot was very fast with plenty of action and fighting, and I could never predict what was going to happen next. My heart rate was off the charts throughout the story, and I caught myself biting my nails more than once! The ending of the book left off with a creepy, foreboding scene that has me dying to read the sequel. While satisfying, I was left with plenty of questions about the FAYZ that I want to be answered, and thes tory has plenty of intriging mysteries! This was a great start to the series, and I would definintely recommend it to anyone who likes a good survival/horror story. Just make sure you don't read it before bed. (Unless you're into that.) 4/5 stars!