Francisco Stork

Disappeared by Francisco X. Stork is a riveting story about a Mexican sister and a brother who have to face impossible choices in order to do the right thing and survive. Sara Zapata is a reporter in Juarez and four months ago her best friend disappeared, kidnapped like so many before her and most likely forced into prostitution by the local drug cartel. So many young girls have been snatched off the streets and so Sara writes a weekly column about the missing. She is sent a clue to finding show more her friend but she also receives death threats against her and her family if she proceeds in her investigation. Meanwhile her brother Emiliano is facing his own difficult choice, he has fallen in love with a girl from a rich family and he will never be allowed to be with her as long as he is poor. He is approached and put under pressure by a member of the cartel to use his folk art business to help smuggle drugs. This would earn him the kind of money he needs and even his girl friend’s father tells him that one often has to do things one doesn’t want to in order to get ahead in Mexico.

Things happen quickly and Sara does gather enough information to help her kidnapped friend but she and her family are told to hide quickly as they have become targets and gunmen are on the way to their home. Now this brave family must choose between the love they have for Mexico and their friends or a chance to survive by crossing the desert into the United States.

The author kept both tension and anxiety levels high in this story. You sense the web closing around these two, they do not know who to trust or who they should confide in. Disappeared is a tense, well written thriller that totally engaged me. His characters, even the villains were well rounded and the situation, although terrifying was totally believable. Although this book bears a YA label, it is exactly what I am looking for in a good thriller. show less

this book really took a turn that i wasn't expecting about halfway through. i thought i was comfortable with the story and the characters and then out of nowhere everything changed. it was a surprising and bold move, and i think maybe shows the point that grief and the idea of duty can drive us to do things that we wouldn't normally do. i like the questions this book brings up and discusses - what is courage? what does cowardice look like? how do you live with grief and loss and a desire for show more revenge? does taking revenge take courage or cowardice? is there a difference between duty and love?

hector is a good character to work through these issues. i wish there was more that connected the first part of the book with the second, other than hector. but the author made that transition well, and it never felt like an abrupt loss, just something i wish there had been more continuity with. overall this is well done and surprising in a lot of ways. show less

"Our mother has been in a vegetative state for years, our father just died, what should we do now?" For a book whose plot is, essentially, a series of logistical issues proceeding from this premise, this is surprisingly page-turny. It was fairly clear to me early on what the best resolution of the logistics should be, but watching the sisters get there was compelling. I especially loved (and was surprised by) the explorations of spirituality, and the character of Rev. Soto. It's definitely show more older YA, or whatever we're calling the "early 20s" category of readers ("New Adult"? Is that accepted now?). It's slow and meditative, romance isn't central, and most of the questions are the "what should I do with my life?" questions of new adults rather than the "who am I?" questions of younger teens. I don't think I'd recommend it to the 14-year-olds who love John Green or [b:If I Stay|4374400|If I Stay (If I Stay, #1)|Gayle Forman|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1347462970s/4374400.jpg|4422413]; I'd be more inclined to give this to an older teen or young actual adult, especially one dealing with family responsibility or interested in spiritual questions. show less

Merideth Says: This is a beautifully written book. Stork nails Marcelo' s oddly formal, strangely lyrical way of thinking and speaking. My only quibble is that the supporting cast are not as well drawn as Marcelo. Arturo (the father) is little more than a sketch, and Wendell is almost a parody of a entitled Ivy League douchebag. Compelling is the word that I would use for this book; I read it almost in one sitting, and couldn't put it down.

Kearsten says: First off, I was completely enchanted show more by this book. Could not put it down, then about halfway through I had to put it aside for a few days because I both wanted it to never end but also because I was uncomfortable with the way things were going.

I just finished it today, and while the discomfort was there, and I did squirm, I'm sooooo glad I read this.

Marcelo is such a fascinating character - being on the autism spectrum, he has difficulty reading social and emotional cues, and so by nature he's outside of the "real world" and as such, is able to observe "normal" people with simple yet spot-on insight. At the beginning of summer, Marcelo makes a deal with his lawyer father - come to work at his law firm, and if he "succeeds," Marcelo can choose for himself which school he'd like to attend in the fall. Fail to succeed and Marcelo has to go to the local high school for his senior year, instead of the special school he's been attending for his whole life.

Marcelo's work at the law firm brings him into contact with several situations and people, some of whom mean him harm, and his struggle to learn how to navigate this new, "real world" is breathtaking and heartbreaking.

I cannot recommend this book enough - it will make you smile, laugh, worry and it certainly made me choke up a bit.

One of my favorite reads all year.

Susan says - This was an amazing book, full of insight and care. Marcelo is a teenager who is on the autism spectrum whose father works as a lawyer. His father tells Marcelo that he will be working for the summer in his father's law firm. This law firm changes Marcelo so much - more than anyone thought possible. He becomes exposed to his father's partner who is sleazy, the girl who works in the mailroom, and that family. It is a wonderful book about Marcelo - he is very measured and careful and analyzes everything very carefully. He has always been comfortable going to his special school and doing what was asked of him. However, his father gets him involved in manipulation and a lawsuit that Marcelo feels is very wrong. The book is fantastic, but I can see that it definitely runs a little fast towards the end - I think it wraps up with a glance at Marcelo's life in the real world that is maybe a little forced. But it was great - tender and loving and clearheaded. Really good. show less