Title: Untraceable (The Nature of Grace Series)
Author: S.R. Johannes
Genre: YA
Publisher: Coleman & Stott
Release Date: November 2011
Rating:
Summary:
16 year old Grace was reared in the wilderness. Her first pet was a bear named Simon. Her first potty, an oak tree. And, her first swing, an oak vine. Grace has lived in the Smokies all her life, patrolling with her forest ranger father who taught her everything he knew about wildlife, tracking, and wilderness survival.
When Grace’s dad goes missing on a routine patrol, unlike everyone in her sleepy mountain town, she refuses to believe he’s dead. After finding a Cheeto’s bag and stolen government file, Grace is convinced she’s one step closer to proving all the non-believers wrong.
One day, while tracking clues, Grace is rescued from imminent danger by Mo, a hot guy who has an intoxicating accent and a secret. Grace has never felt a connection like this before, certainly not with her ex-boyfriend, the adoring, but decidedly unrugged, Wyn.
After a few run-ins with the town’s police chief, her father’s partner, and some new evidence, Grace travels deeper into the wilderness that has always been her refuge only to learn that her father’s disappearance is not a mere coincidence.
Soon she’s enmeshed in a web of conspiracy, deception, and murder. And it’s going to take a lot more than a compass and a motorcycle (named Lucifer) for this butt kicking heroine to emerge from an epidemic that’s spreading like wildfire, threatening everything and everyone she’s ever loved.
Review:
Reading nature books has never been my thing. I remember reading “The Hatchet” in elementary school and while it’s supposed to be this genius book, I felt like it was completely dull, filled with way too much description and never ending. This book couldn’t have been more different. From the moment I started reading until I was done, I didn’t want to be doing anything else other than living in Grace’s world trying to find out what happened to her father. There are so many wonderful things to say about this book that I’m not even sure where to start, so I’ll begin with the characters. Grace is such a relateable person. I spent the entire book rooting for her and empathizing with her. She is only 16 years old but is wise beyond her years. Grace stands up for what she believes in and will stop and nothing to do what she knows in her heart is right, even if nobody else is on her side. She is torn between the mysterious and charming Mo, a guy who seems to appear out of nowhere to protect Grace, and Wyn, her ex boyfriend whom she has known since she was little and has always been her best friend. I was personally torn between the two because they were both fantastic in their own ways.
This book starts out after Grace’s father has been missing. She is still entirely convinced that he is still alive while the rest of the town has accepted that he is dead, even Grace’s mother. Everyone in Grace’s life tries to get her to come to terms with her Father’s fate but she continues on a mission to prove he is still alive and while doing so, untangles a web of lies, deception, murder, and pretty soon Grace is questioning her trust in everything and everyone she’s ever known.
In an earlier post, I stated that I need to feel something in order to love or even like what I am reading. This book made me feel so many different emotions in a short amount of time. S.R. Johannes definitely made it impossible for me not to love Grace’s story. I can’t even explain how much I enjoyed reading Untraceable. It captivated me until the very end and I cannot wait to read the next book in The Nature of Grace Series.
You can check out more info on the author, Untraceable, and her blog tour here.
