Jake has always been a little quieter than the other children. He has always preferred to stay at home as a young child, and now at seventeen, Jake has only a few select friends. On the other hand Laney, his younger sister by two years has always been a social butterfly being able to fit in any situation.
Jake’s father Simon who stayed at home with the children writing medical papers while their mother Rachel worked out of the home as a lawyer, has often wondered what he could have done to help Jake fit in more with other children as he grew up. Had he hung on too tight? Too protective?
Now, the unthinkable has happened. There has been a school shooting and Jake along with another boy are the suspected shooters. But where is Jake? While his blood is found on school property, Jake is nowhere to be found. Simon and Rachel can not believe their son would do such a thing and as the press and the parents of the victims press in wanting answers about Jake, Simon wonders again… what could he have done differently – and more importantly, were was their son now?
Finding Jake was a hard but important read. I read this book in two days, devouring the pages and experiencing this tragedy through Jake’s parents eyes. It is always hard to know what to say about books like this. It is well written. Author Bryan Reardon puts you right there and my heart stayed in my throat most of this book wondering who would find Jake – his parents, the police… and when they did, then what?
I highly recommend this read. If you ever read Nineteen Minutes or We Need To Talk About Kevin, you need to read Finding Jake. This is not the book you think it will be.
- Hardcover: 272 pages
- Publisher: William Morrow (February 24, 2015)
Book Journey 
hmmm sounds intriguing. Have you read In Doubt (druscilla campbell) – it sounds like it may have some similar ideas
I have not read that one, I will look it up! Thanks!
I loved this book…it was difficult but so important. The author lives not far from me. That’s not important to the book but kind of exciting for me!
That is exciting! I would find that exciting! 😀
You’ve convinced me I need to read this soon.
I read this one in January and could not wait to post about it. Today is release day.
This book is on my shelf – I can’t wait to read it.
I hope you read it soon!
Is this for young adult or a general adult audience? At any rate, it just might have to go on my TO READ list.
I would say general audience, while the story is about Jake, he is not really around for most of the book, it is mainly his parents and second guessing how they raised him or what they may have missed.
This is on my to read list and I’ve heard it’s good. I’ve read the other two books and enjoyed them both if that’s the right word, though We Need To Talk About Kevin is one I don’t think I could read again. Emma
I rented the WNTTAK movie and it sat for almost a week before I felt I could handle it. I dont think I could read that one again either but I have read Nineteen Minutes twice, once on my own and once with my book club.
The first review I read about this book reminded me of Nineteen Minutes. That one is one of my all time favorite books, so I need to pick this one up!
You will like this one then!
I read this one last year before I came back to blogging. And I totally get what you meant in your last sentence. This is a good one.
I really liked it. Different that the others I have read like it and different is usually good.
I’ve been trying to win a copy of this at Booktrib, it looks amazeballs. Then I read your great review and want the book even more! 🙂
I am so glad!
This one sounds really interesting! Being a parent myself these kind of stories always hit home in a way, especially when told from the parent’s perspective. I’ll definitely add this to my to-read list!
Oh good!
This actually sounds kind of similar to another book I’ve read, Defending Jacob by William Landay, which was a fantastic read!
This sounds like a very intense read! I’ll have to keep my eye out for it.
I really liked it!
I agree this book isn’t an easy read but it has covered lots of important issues which we parents and/or the society need to be aware of. I felt for Jake’s family while reading this.
This is definitely a book worth reading.
I did too. I liked how they went back through the decisions they made when he was younger and what they could have done differently.
This is why I love your blog – the books you recommend are not the ones you see everywhere in the blogosphere. Thanks for this one. I suspect I will enjoy it thoroughly. Excellent review.
Thank you! I try to keep it between older and new titles but it is mainly what I read and what I thought 😉
This sounds a bit like Defending Jacob by William Landay. It’s spooky stuff for sure!
I’m on hold for the audiobook of this one. It sounds fantastic!
This sounds like a book I would most definitely enjoy!
I’ve heard about this one – sounds very good. Like you, I thought of Nineteen Minutes, a book that really blew me away. It’s good to look at things from different perspectives.
Thanks for the review!
Sue
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