The plot is every mother's, teacher's and community's nightmare. 2 kids disappear off of a school playground and when they are found a little girl is dead and the other is a boy with Autism who has retreated into himself which in turn makes the characters have to look into their pasts and unearth secrets that will change all of there lives. It starts of fairly linear but then it delves into a variety of storylines including a group of middle schoolers in a social skills group for "kids wit...more The plot is every mother's, teacher's and community's nightmare. 2 kids disappear off of a school playground and when they are found a little girl is dead and the other is a boy with Autism who has retreated into himself which in turn makes the characters have to look into their pasts and unearth secrets that will change all of there lives. It starts of fairly linear but then it delves into a variety of storylines including a group of middle schoolers in a social skills group for "kids without friends" and the bullying they have endured and seen, and Adam's (the boy with autism) mother's past including a best friend who is now does not leave her house and Kevin a boy who she knew in high school that has physical limitations of his own. Lots and twists and turns and overall great mystery that was a fun ride.
I do bid warning, if you have a child going into middle school or in Special Ed, it may be a hard read.
I also have to give credit to the author, being a mom to a child with Autism she did a nice job depicting the mom's struggle through her son's life. ( )

Gives insight into living with a child who has autism

This book tries to be a suspenseful mystery as well as general fiction that sheds light on autism. The mystery fails but the author succeeds in creating a fascinating character and, by telling the story from various points of view, gives the reader a well-developed picture of autism and related issues of childhood and development. ( )

may want to finish reading at another time

This book was an interesting read--the dialogue was in a great narrative voice and the characters were all sufficiently complex to warrant your attention. The mystery aspect of the novel was more of an after-thought, a plot device to tell the story of relationships (parent/child, friendships, male/female). The story left you wondering about the loss of childhood innocence and if any relationships are really as stable as they may seem on the surface. ( )