Lost Boy by Shelley Hrdlitschka is a unique read that will take you away to a whole new culture.

I was unsure how I would feel about this book, and honestly I'm still a little confused. Jon left a polygamous community to try to find a life of his own. He doesn't believe in the ways that community follows and desperately wants the girl he loves to come with him. When he escapes and she doesn't, things go south. He tries to learn and grow, but his heart hurts. To top it off, she marries a man that Jon doesn't approve of. Not. One. Bit. Life is hard for Jon, but he learns more about himself and his values along the way.

This is going to be a niche book for sure. It's so weird, because while I'm not one hundred percent happy with how it ended I was enjoying the book all the way through. I had hoped the ending would have a little more to it, since the book felt like it just decided to stop randomly. I wanted more of Jon becoming an adult and coming of age. I wanted to see the bildungsroman for Jon SO BAD. But, this book fell a little flat. Yet, it's still quite the interesting read and is great for people seeking something contemporary yet easy to read.

Lost Boy feels like a YA contemporary novel trying to tackle some tough subjects. There are some horny boy moments and there is some goofy drama in there. But, what more can you expect when you're following a teenaged boy? It felt like the male bildungsroman, but it just needed a little bit more.

I am impressed by this book though. It kept my attention! This book is not my normal read, so that's a big plus for it. I do recommend this book, but you need to enjoy soft, slow reads to appreciate it.

Three out of five stars.

I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads. ( )

I received this eARC from Orca Book Publishers via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of this book in any way.

DNF at 22%

I just couldn't do it. This book is beyond mediocre, it's downright offensively bad. It's boring, the pacing is dismal, none of the characters are interesting or act remotely normal, the dialogue is wooden and childish, the writing is simple and awkward, the worldbuilding is awful, and it felt like a sequel, not a spin-off. I haven't read the other book that supposedly introduced Jon, the horny and passive MC, but this isn't a sequel, so I shouldn't have to read any outside material to understand this character, the world he lives in, or get any grasp on what is going on. I thought this was going to be a similar book to The Chosen One, a novel about a girl who lives in a polygamist compound and falls in love, but is assigned to marry her uncle, and has to make a perilous decision to abandon everything she's ever known for a world she knows nothing of or live a life where she can never be happy. Instead, I got backstory told through long exposition paragraphs, horny teenage boys ogling boobs, emotionless passages about characters that were never introduced, and soap opera drama ("She's in the hospital!" "She's getting married on Sunday!" "To your father!") Like, please. Are you kidding me? I don't have time for garbage. ( )

I received this eARC from Orca Book Publishers via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of this book in any way.

DNF at 22%

I just couldn't do it. This book is beyond mediocre, it's downright offensively bad. It's boring, the pacing is dismal, none of the characters are interesting or act remotely normal, the dialogue is wooden and childish, the writing is simple and awkward, the worldbuilding is awful, and it felt like a sequel, not a spin-off. I haven't read the other book that supposedly introduced Jon, the horny and passive MC, but this isn't a sequel, so I shouldn't have to read any outside material to understand this character, the world he lives in, or get any grasp on what is going on. I thought this was going to be a similar book to The Chosen One, a novel about a girl who lives in a polygamist compound and falls in love, but is assigned to marry her uncle, and has to make a perilous decision to abandon everything she's ever known for a world she knows nothing of or live a life where she can never be happy. Instead, I got backstory told through long exposition paragraphs, horny teenage boys ogling boobs, emotionless passages about characters that were never introduced, and soap opera drama ("She's in the hospital!" "She's getting married on Sunday!" "To your father!") Like, please. Are you kidding me? I don't have time for garbage. ( )

Jon, the Lost Boy of the title, is running away from his community, Unity, which is a polygamous community. He has been caught kissing a girl and decides to leave before he is banished. Unfortunately, he is not prepared for the 'real' world. Taken in by Abigail, who herself was from Unity, in her home in the nearest town where other lost boys have found a safe haven, Jon finds it increasingly difficult to fit in. Added to the difficulty is Abigail's rule that every lost boy must complete high school if he is to remain in her home.

Jon has only worked in construction since he left school in Unity. At school all he learned was mainly religious studies and anything that the Prophet deems appropriate, so high school is too much of a learning curve for him. His life spirals downward out of control, as he discovers drugs and alcohol, and he eventually finds himself homeless. At his rock bottom someone from his past comes back into his life and there is the potential for a change in his situation.

Anything else will be spoilers, so it has to be read to find out how it turns out for Jon.

It was a fairly easy read and most of the characters were well-written and fairly believable. What's hard to believe is that such communities, like Unity (which is a fictitious place), still exist in our society today. The author painted the picture of the community well, without overt criticism, allowing the reader to make up their own mind about how they feel in regard to such communities.

The book is a bit of an eye-opener at times and I'd recommend it to anyone looking for a different kind of YA book from those that are out there. ( )

This was a quick read, that kept my attention. Over all, I did enjoy this book. I appreciated the characters, and was rooting for Jon. This was the 1st book that I have read by this author, and I look forward to reading more of her work. ( )