Then You Were Gone

Jan 15, 2013 Kelly rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya-fiction, read-in-2012

Adrienne and Dakota stopped being friends two years ago, but it's Adrienne who receives a mysterious call for help from Dakota before she goes missing. Before she's presumed dead. Before she's presumed dead because she killed herself. There's no body found, but Dakota's reckless rockstar lifestyle is all the clue anyone needs to draw that conclusion.

It's then Adrienne sinks into deep grief over the loss. Is it her fault since she didn't answer the voice mail for days? Why does she miss Dakota so...more Adrienne and Dakota stopped being friends two years ago, but it's Adrienne who receives a mysterious call for help from Dakota before she goes missing. Before she's presumed dead. Before she's presumed dead because she killed herself. There's no body found, but Dakota's reckless rockstar lifestyle is all the clue anyone needs to draw that conclusion.

It's then Adrienne sinks into deep grief over the loss. Is it her fault since she didn't answer the voice mail for days? Why does she miss Dakota so much when they hadn't even been friends? The further she sinks, the more she moves away from best friend Kate and devoted boyfriend Lee. She finds herself instead drawn to Julian -- the last guy Dakota was with -- and together, Julian and Adrienne are all the wrong things to one another.

Strasnick's book is an excellent exploration of the lines between grief and intimacy. The sharp, fast-paced writing keeps the mystery of Dakota's disappearance propelling forward, but she offers equally sharp sensual scenes between Adrienne and Lee to slow the momentum down to where it needs to be in order to offer up real insight into who these characters are. Because the thing is, none of the characters in this book are exactly who they appear to be. Adrienne may not be a saint, and Dakota, for all she seems to be, may be but a hollow shell of that.

(view spoiler)

Though a small detail, I loved how this featured a blended, non-traditional family, with a live-in boyfriend of Adrienne's mother, Sam. And he's not just there, but he's THERE -- he and Adrienne have a great relationship, and it's through something small he tells her that Adrienne puts together the pieces of what happened to Dakota. Or rather, who happened to Dakota.

My one disappointment with the story came when (view spoiler)

This book reminded me a lot of Like Mandarin, and I think readers who liked that book will dig this. But it is also a deep grief book, and there were certain moments that reminded me of a number of contemporary grief-themed titles. Strasnick's style works for me as a reader, with so much left unsaid or understated and yet, there is so much to be teased out of the story and the characters.

Full review here: http://www.stackedbooks.org/2013/01/t... (less)

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Jan 17, 2013 Reyna Ruiz rated it 3 of 5 stars

Adrienne and Dakota stopped being friends two years ago, but Adrienne receives a mysterious call for help from Dakota before she goes missing. Before she's assumed dead because she killed herself.
Is it her fault since she didn't answer the voice mail for days? Why does she miss Dakota so much when they hadn't even been friends? The further she comes down, the more she moves away from best friend Kate and her very loving boyfriend Lee. She finds herself instead drawn to Julian, the last guy Dak...more Adrienne and Dakota stopped being friends two years ago, but Adrienne receives a mysterious call for help from Dakota before she goes missing. Before she's assumed dead because she killed herself.
Is it her fault since she didn't answer the voice mail for days? Why does she miss Dakota so much when they hadn't even been friends? The further she comes down, the more she moves away from best friend Kate and her very loving boyfriend Lee. She finds herself instead drawn to Julian, the last guy Dakota was with and together, Julian and Adrienne are all the wrong things to one another.
The close friendship moments in this book were really interesting. At the beginning, Adrienne is fully invested in her relationship with Lee, it falls away as she sinks. As she sinks into trying to fully understand Dakota and her motivations. Since their friendship had ended, she hadn't thought of Dakota much other than what she'd seen of Dakota and heard of her. So when Adrienne begins wanting to live like Dakota to understand her, to the point of wearing her clothes and acting her part. Adrienne's and Lee's relationship messes up. Because Lee wants Adrienne and not Dakota. Adrienne goes as far as to look at Dakota's former boyfriend Julian. But it's that moment when they're about to be very close friends, that Adrienne wakes up and realizes how terrible she's being to everyone. When everything comes down and she is at that moment of being fully nude with another person who doesn't actually love her as Adrienne, that's the wake up call she needed. And yet! When she does have this wake up call, she realizes that she likes Julian. For their relationship and with one another. This all ties nicely back to Dakota's return and confessions about who she is to herself and who she wanted to be with other people.
My favorite part was when the story came to the reveal that Dakota is still alive and she'd gone into hiding because she's become pregnant with her former literature teacher Nick Murphy's baby. He's the one teacher she likes and his class is the one she does well in and cares about. At the end we learn that Dakota found her purpose in trying to get attention. An argument could be made that Dakota made up that story to gain attention, but since Adrienne calls out her teacher Murphy and he doesn't abandon her. Then this isn't the case.
I recommend this book because it is an excellent exploration of close friendships. The fast writing keeps the mystery of Dakota's disappearance but she offers equally sharp sensual scenes between Adrienne and Lee to slow the momentum down to where it needs to be in order to offer up real insight into who these characters are. Because the thing is none of the characters in this book are exactly who they appear to be. Adrienne may not be a saint and Dakota for all she seems to be may be but a sunken area of that.(less)

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Jan 04, 2013 Michelle rated it 2 of 5 stars

Then You Were Gone is a quick read. Literally. I read it in about two hours, one sitting. Which sadly, has become more of a sign that a book didn't hit the mark with me than I was just so into the story that I couldn't stop reading. And that's just it. The story was quick and then it was over and I felt no differently about it at the start as I did at the end. For me, that's all there was: quickness--well-paced scenes that eventually led to a rather generic conclusion. For such a strong premise,...more Then You Were Gone is a quick read. Literally. I read it in about two hours, one sitting. Which sadly, has become more of a sign that a book didn't hit the mark with me than I was just so into the story that I couldn't stop reading. And that's just it. The story was quick and then it was over and I felt no differently about it at the start as I did at the end. For me, that's all there was: quickness--well-paced scenes that eventually led to a rather generic conclusion. For such a strong premise, the book lacked any real depth that made me invested in the characters' lives and the story being told.

The only "showing" scene we see between Adrienne and Dakota is a single flashback that is extended each time we read it. As that's the case, it's hard--right out of the gate--to be emotionally invested in the fact that the two of them abruptly ended their friendship two years ago and now Dakota's disappearance is revealed as a suicide. I wanted to care, or even understand Adrienne's confusion/distance/pain/attitude about Dakota's disappearance/death, but I couldn't. Because we never really see their friendship. So just like her best friend, Kate, and boyfriend, Lee, couldn't understand why Adrienne was letting a girl who ditched her as a friend two years ago come back and muck up her life, neither could I. We're more like Kate and Lee in the story than Adrienne. We don't know much about the relationship Adrienne and Dakota had, we don't really get why she's so attached to it, and as a result, I couldn't get invested in the overall plot--which was, Adrienne coping with Dakota being gone and obsessing over what really happened to her.

The plot tends to lose itself, though. It isn't hard to follow, but it becomes a little convoluted. The over-arcing story is, as I said, Adrienne wanting to know the truth about Dakota's disappearance/death. But there's also the story of how Dakota affects Adrienne, and likewise, her relationships with her friends and boyfriend, who never knew Dakota, and aren't sure how to help Adrienne cope as a result. We see Adrienne's relationships slowly fall apart as she loses herself in Dakota's story, and for a while, it seemed the main focus of the plot would shift to one of Adrienne having to learn to move on and save herself, even if it meant letting the truth about Dakota go. Then, there was the cryptic friendship between Dakota and Adrienne, whose fallout we never get a clear explanation of, (view spoiler) and I thought maybe the end point would be Adrienne finding closure and an understanding of why they parted as friends, and then move on. Also, we see a budding mutual understanding/relationship develop between Adrienne and Julian, one of Dakota's bandmates, who she connects with because he, unlike her own friends, knew Dakota and gets what Adrienne is dealing with, so then I thought maybe the focus would be on them figuring out the truth together, which it mainly was.

But then there was also some of the standard melodramatic, predictable intensity that these types of contemporary stories stray into from time to time...and it fell flat. The truth of Dakota's disappearance seemed really out of nowhere to me, especially since there are no hints of it, and we don't see Dakota's character enough to understand the underlying motivations. We, also, don't really see enough of the other character involved in her disappearance to get a strong reaction, either. My reaction was purely indifference, and I couldn't help but have expected and wanted more out of the entire book. More depth, more characterization, more of something stand out.

I will say that Lauren Strasnick has an interesting writing style, very sparse with a lot of loose sentences and short, punchy fragments. It worked especially well for this story since that's kind of how Adrienne's thoughts become--just little fragments she can't really process deeply or reflect on for long. I'd argue, though, that it makes it hard to learn about these characters and truly see them, which is something I didn't care for, but at the same time, it suited Adrienne's character, who begins pushing away her friends and loved ones because she's so caught up in everything with Dakota that she's not really seeing anything else that's happening around her. It was a little jarring, because I'm used to more description and more reflection in the books I read, but I do feel that the style fit the narrator and the story, and it was one of the things I enjoyed about the story. Even if I didn't care for the book, Strasnick wrote it well, and I can appreciate it that.(less)

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Jan 11, 2013 Sarah rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-2013, r2r-complete

(Source: I borrowed a copy of this book.)
Adrienne and Dakota haven’t spoken in two years. Dakota has been off singing with her band somewhere, but now she’s missing. The Police found her car, and a possible suicide note, but nobody knows where she actually is.

Now Adrienne is feeling guilty – because Dakota left her a voicemail that she never answered, and feeling sad because she and Dakota were no longer friends.

What really happened to Dakota? And how long will it take Adrienne to come to terms...more (Source: I borrowed a copy of this book.)
Adrienne and Dakota haven’t spoken in two years. Dakota has been off singing with her band somewhere, but now she’s missing. The Police found her car, and a possible suicide note, but nobody knows where she actually is.

Now Adrienne is feeling guilty – because Dakota left her a voicemail that she never answered, and feeling sad because she and Dakota were no longer friends.

What really happened to Dakota? And how long will it take Adrienne to come to terms with the fact that Dakota isn’t here anymore?

I’m not really sure what to make of this book. I enjoyed reading it, but now that I’ve got to the end, I’m wondering what the point was.
Adrienne basically spends the whole book feeling guilty, and wondering what happened to Dakota. Wearing Dakota’s clothes, and doing her make-up like Dakota used to. Spending time with Dakota’s sort-of boyfriend Julian, and feeling a bit depressed. She ignores her own boyfriend, forgets her school work, and generally does very little (other than smoke).
The strange thing is that Adrienne and Dakota hadn’t even spoken in two years! Whether this made things better or worse for Adrienne I’m not sure, and why they stopped being friends exactly I’m not sure either.

This books focus seems to be more on how Adrienne feels about Dakota being missing, than what actually happened to Dakota, and the things that Adrienne does in an effort to work through how she really felt about her, and how she can grieve for her, which basically involves a lot of doing nothing other than wearing black and ignoring her friends.

Other than the Dakota storyline, there were a few brief snatches of romance, but nothing much, and Adrienne also spent a little time doing her own sort of investigation into Dakota’s life, which doesn’t really seem to get her very far. There is one small mystery that Adrienne solves, but even that feels a little lack-luster.

All that being said, I did enjoy this book, and it was a quick read. I also liked that the book had a satisfying ending – at the end of the book we know exactly what happened to Dakota – thank you Lauren Strasnick for this!

Overall; an enjoyable YA, focusing on being the one left behind.
7 out of 10.
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Jan 17, 2013 Tabitha rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: digital-reads, pulse-it, contemporary, want-to-own-physical-copy, young-adult

While reading this, I mostly didn’t like it. My inner monologue mainly consisted of bitching about how apparently the new trend in YA is depressive contemporary stories with bad endings and that if this turned out to be another one of those books where the point isn’t so much about actually finding the person they are looking for as it is about their journey of self-discovery, I was going to scream and give it a 1 star rating. As you can see by my rating, that is not the case.

Adrienne Knox’s bes...more While reading this, I mostly didn’t like it. My inner monologue mainly consisted of bitching about how apparently the new trend in YA is depressive contemporary stories with bad endings and that if this turned out to be another one of those books where the point isn’t so much about actually finding the person they are looking for as it is about their journey of self-discovery, I was going to scream and give it a 1 star rating. As you can see by my rating, that is not the case.

Adrienne Knox’s best friend stopped being her BFF two years ago. For no discernible reason, Dakota drops her like a hot potato and Adrienne is left to piece her life back together. Now, Dakota has disappeared and everyone assumes it was a suicide. Adrienne isn’t so sure. Days before her disappearance was discovered, Dakota left Adrienne a voicemail sounding highly upset. Adrienne lets Dakota’s disappearance change her. She starts acting out, being a bitch to her boyfriend, ignoring school work, and generally freaking the fuck out. She strikes up a friendship with Dakota’s bandmate, Julian and together, they try to figure out what really happened to Dakota.

Like I said before, at the beginning, I was ready to write this book off as yet another disappointing contemporary YA with a selfish lead character, but boy did I change my mind. At first, when Dakota first vanishes, I sympathized with Adrienne because losing a friend is hard, even if you haven’t spoken in a long time. But as the book progressed, watching her be a jerk to Kate (her new BFF) and Lee (her boyfriend) even though they were understanding and patient with her, I started to become more than a little irritated. The more she pushes Lee away, the more I screamed at her. Get the fuck over it, Dakota didn’t even speak to you anymore!

Then she starts hanging out with Julian, breaking into Dakota’s house, dressing like a goth girl wannabe, and I become infuriated. Everyone around her tries to help, her mom, her mom’s boyfriend, her teachers, her friends, and her boyfriend. She just pushes them away and starts drinking and smoking and generally being a dick. I didn’t see the beauty in the story until it was almost over. This review wouldn’t be complete if I didn’t explain it, but it’s spoilery as hell, so I’ll hide it for those who don’t want to see it.

(view spoiler)

This was written in a painstakingly honest way. Even when I was irritated, I felt like I could really see Adrienne’s side of the picture. It doesn’t wrap everything up in a neat little bow because everything doesn’t get resolved with Dakota, but the important stuff does. I wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone looking for a great contemporary read that doesn’t go exactly the way you expect.
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Feb 07, 2013 Lori rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: first-reads, children-and-young-adult

*I won a copy through a First Reads giveaway *

I’m not sure how I feel about this book. It wasn’t bad by any means, but it’s not something I’d go on discussing for days on end with my friends, as I usually do when I land a great read.

Adrienne’s ex best friend, Dakota, whom Adrienne hasn’t spoken to in 2 years, disappears. Dakota is the dark Goth rocker chick that the usual HS kids are attracted to. She has a wild streak and is pretty much selfish in that she demands a lot of attention from Adrie...more

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Jan 13, 2013 Melissa rated it 2 of 5 stars

This was not a bad read but I have mixed feelings with it. First of all, my interest level while reading varied a lot. I was interested, then not, then bored, interested again, annoyed.. And the book is not even that long!

So Adrienne's ex best friend disappears and what kept me interested where the clues given here and there and I honestly had no idea what happened until I read it. And when the truth came out, I was disappointed ("that's it?!"). Also, I had some problems with Adrienne's behavio...more

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Jan 01, 2013 Voldemortsn0se rated it 2 of 5 stars Recommends it for: someone looking for a shallow, quick read

Shelves: pulse-it

I'm not that good at writing reviews, so this might not make much sense.

I found this on a Goodreads list of young adult novels that were being released in 2013, and I added it to my to-read bookshelf. I really liked the plot idea. A girl's ex best friend goes missing after making a desperate call. It sounds like it would be a good story. I got the opportunity to read it in advance with Simon and Schuster's "Pulse It program, a program for young adults ages 14-18 that allows them to read young ad...more

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Feb 11, 2013 Trisha rated it 3 of 5 stars

Adrienne had this one crazy friend - who was fun and exotic, sexy and crazy. her name was Dakota
and suddenly, one day, Dakota is no longer her friend.

Fast forward years later, and Adrienne never understood why their friendship ended, just that it did suddenly. She's found new, comfortable, stable friends. She has dinner dates, a nice comfy boyfriend and life goes on. It's not sexy and exotic like it was with her crazy friend, but it's life.

But, Dakota has always like the world to revolve around...more

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Feb 05, 2013 Amber rated it 4 of 5 stars

This book ended up surprising me in a good way...the first half was slow to start and it took me a while to adjust to her writing style however about mid way through the book I couldn't put it down. I loved the main character and felt like Lauren did a great job capturing her guilt. Her actions and attitude were closer to how someone might react in real life. At times the way she was pushing the people she loved away and her pain almost made the reader uncomfortable but at the same time it was s...more

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May 02, 2013 Joanna rated it 2 of 5 stars

Then You Were Gone is about a teenage girl, Adrienne, whose former best friend has suddenly disappeared. Adrienne's ex-best friend, Dakota, only left a truck behind at a beach, leading everyone to believe she had killed herself. However, Adrienne does not believe Dakota is the suicidal type. She believes that Dakota is still alive, and will do almost anything to find out.

In her search for what really happened to Dakota, Adrienne seems to ruin or severely strain almost all of her relationships. S...more

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Dec 01, 2012 Brandi Kosiner added it

Then You Were Gone was a quick read, I couldn't put it down and had to figure out exactly what was going on with Dakota. I couldn't decide if I really thought she was dead, and if so, was it a suicide, or was it something sinister? I was glued to Adrienne, the main character and her grief, inner monologues, her inexplicable need to dress and act like her (ex?) friend Dakota.
I liked how Then You Were Gone had snippets from the past friendship of Dakota and Adrienne, showing where Adrienne's fee...more Then You Were Gone was a quick read, I couldn't put it down and had to figure out exactly what was going on with Dakota. I couldn't decide if I really thought she was dead, and if so, was it a suicide, or was it something sinister? I was glued to Adrienne, the main character and her grief, inner monologues, her inexplicable need to dress and act like her (ex?) friend Dakota.
I liked how Then You Were Gone had snippets from the past friendship of Dakota and Adrienne, showing where Adrienne's feelings came from and helping me to understand that there was something deeper there for her, and trying to understand what made Dakota tick and what exactly ended their friendship. For Adrienne, to me it seemed that it was unresolved and a feeling of guilt, because she got that phone call from Dakota and she didn't know why she was calling, and then came the rumors she was missing and the speculation that she had killed herself.
Adrienne's relationship with Lee was one that I haven't really read one quite like though. I liked Lee for the most part though, because he treated Adrienne very well while she was being herself, but then it did seem to me like he jumped ship pretty quickly and did some questionable things... Not that I am saying that the way that Adrienne treated him was okay, but still. It seemed like a character discrepancy to me because it doesn't seem like something he would do.
While we have the weird relationship between her and Lee, and the lost friendship and almost worship of Adrienne towards Dakota, Lauren Strasnick also paints a beautiful picture of true frienship between Adrienne and Kate. Kate is a truly likeable character and I appreciate how she supports Adrienne and is there for her and pushes her at the right time. She also has a mouth on her that provides some tension relief for both the reader and Adrienne at the right moments.
Although this book is a quick read and relatively short, don't let it fool you, it packs a lot of plot, a lot of emotion, a healthy pinch of sarcasm and humor, and explores the workings of friendships and relationships and the effects of grief on your life.
Then You Were Gone is for mature teens, because it has drug use, underage drinking, cursing, sex and foreplay and other mature themes that I can't mention without spoiling the plot... Which disturbed me by the way, the unmentioned, but I totally think that it is an important issue to address... And see the ways NOT to handle it.
Bottom line: Quick and hard hitting story about grief and friendship, both the loss of and the true definition of it.

For more of my reviews, check out Blkosiner’s YA and Teen Book Blog: http://blkosiner.blogspot.com (less)

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Jan 17, 2013 Jodi Papazian rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya-reads

This was an OK read. The chapters are short and the pace is quick so I went through it pretty quickly. I just never really got a chance to like any of the characters. I didn't feel much sympathy for Adrienne and Dakota had zero redeeming qualities. For some reason, the writing style distracted me. The sentences seemed very halting (for lack of a better word) and didn't seem very complete.
There was a lot of debauchery throughout - excessive drinking (at school - really, no teachers ever noticed...more

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Jan 21, 2013 Christina (A Reader of Fictions) rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: finishedreviewcopy, yabc-reviews

Then You Were Gone falls into a subset of contemporary fiction I usually do not like one bit, though obviously I did not know this when I requested it. See, Then You Were Gone is about a whole bunch of poor little rich kids living super self-destructive lives because of neglectful parents and all of that jazz. It also features an MC who desperately wishes she could be like her former best friend, Dakota, who is made of magic and sex and rock star glimmer. Neither of these fairly oft-seen plots u...more Then You Were Gone falls into a subset of contemporary fiction I usually do not like one bit, though obviously I did not know this when I requested it. See, Then You Were Gone is about a whole bunch of poor little rich kids living super self-destructive lives because of neglectful parents and all of that jazz. It also features an MC who desperately wishes she could be like her former best friend, Dakota, who is made of magic and sex and rock star glimmer. Neither of these fairly oft-seen plots usually thrills me, but Strasnick's is the best instance of this plot line that I've ever read.

So many books about poor little rich kids spiraling out of control are melodramatic and with this totally bored air, as though they're too good to care about anything even though they're living these shiny lives of desparation. They're whiny and superior and do nothing with so much opportunity. I just find those books so frustrating most of the time.

What Strasnick does differently is the heroine's approach to everything. Where the heroines in such stories tend to lack self-awareness or pity themselves, Adrienne really does not. Adrienne knows she's fucking up her life, and she knows there's no one else to place the blame on for that. Adrienne knows she's losing her grip, both in classes and in her romantic life, but cannot seem to stop herself. She has to find out what has happened to her former best friend, a search which leads to her failing even her best class and smoking like a chimney. In the search, she learns a lot about herself and her relationship with Dakota.

Now, even before Adrienne went off the rails after Dakota's disappearance, she and her friends were a whole bunch of hot messes. These kids go through life half-drunk. Th, do, though when she starts slumming with the smokers her position in the A list is threatened.

This book, slight though it is, has plenty to scandalize and shock the reader, but Strasnick approaches these things in a very straightforward way. The writing fits the story well, fairly simple and to the point like Adrienne herself. Strasnick's treatment of her subjects kept the book from straying into some sort of sensationalized Gossip Girl kind of thing, and more of a dark look at real problems some teens have.

I would have liked to see a bit more character development throughout or perhaps have been more grounded in who Adrienne was before Dakota's disappearance. From the beginning of the book, Adrienne has already been thrown for a loop by Dakota leaving her a message before mysteriously disappearing. She's not herself, and this version of Adrienne, is distanced from everything, single-mindedly focused on figuring out what happened. As such, she's hard to emotionally connect with. Such a connection would have thrown her dark spiral into sharper relief.

Then You Were Gone is a quick read that I found to be quite enjoyable and emotionally honest. This was my first experience with Strasnick's work, but I do plan to read more of her work because of how good this is.(less)

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Feb 12, 2013 Alexa rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: challenge, books-i-own

Well, first of all (starting with the ending hahah) (view spoiler)

Other than that, it was weird, I understood nothing about the main character, Adrienne. She seemed rather unsure of herself but her sudden change in style was confusing. I see no reason as to why? She hasn't spoken to Dakota in over 2 years, what i...more

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Feb 10, 2013 Nicole rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya-contemporary-challenge, 2013-read, ya-contemporary, 1-star

As seen on The Quiet Concert

DISCLAIMER: I understand that authors write these conflicted novels for one reason or another but there should be some clear cause and effect to explain why a teen could stumble down a dark path. Without that clarity, the book looses its purpose.

Adrienne and Dakota were "friends" growing up and by "friends" I mean Adrienne followed Dakota like a cowed puppy. She didn't make her own decisions and wasn't her own person. Even though Dakota was selfish and manipulative,...more As seen on The Quiet Concert

DISCLAIMER: I understand that authors write these conflicted novels for one reason or another but there should be some clear cause and effect to explain why a teen could stumble down a dark path. Without that clarity, the book looses its purpose.

Adrienne and Dakota were "friends" growing up and by "friends" I mean Adrienne followed Dakota like a cowed puppy. She didn't make her own decisions and wasn't her own person. Even though Dakota was selfish and manipulative, Adrienne worshipped the ground she walked on. Then after Dakota breaks all ties on their "friendship" Adrienne still obsesses over her from a distance. I really couldn't understand this relationship, or Dakota's appeal. Yeah sure, we all have friends who may have the more dominant personality, or who we secretly envy a little for being skinnier, or prettier, or whatever, but a true friendship implies trust and caring and some level of equality. But Dakota selfish and and controlling. How did Adrienne fall in love with her? The whole dynamic seemed extremely unhealthy and unjustified.

When Dakota disappears, Adrienne falls apart and destroys what semblance of a life she has made for herself since she broke up with Dakota. Adrienne is convinced that Dakota wouldn't kill herself despite the suicide note and washed up boot. But this isn't a mystery novel. Instead, its 200+ pages of Adrienne treating her self, her boyfriend and friends like shit before she stumbles across the truth of what happened. It was so frustrating to read through. She makes bad decision after bad decision like the entire reason for her existence was Dakota. She stopped going to school. She started smoking. She dressed and acted different. She even slept with her boyfriend just to distract herself.

I didn't understand her reaction at all. I would understand sadness and I would understand a desire to know what happened for closure. But that didn't seem to be what compelled Adrienne. It was more like she still felt rejected over being dumped 2 years ago, and not having Dakota to fixate over anymore. Again, I couldn't understand why Adrienne became so unstable, even with the information we get at the end of the novel. Maybe if I did, I wouldn't be so harsh on this book, but I probably still wouldn't like it.

To top it all off. The writing and dialogue was choppy and unnatural. People do not speak every sentence in three words or less. It drove me crazy. I don't know if the author was going for an informal style but whatever it was meant to be, i didn't like it.

I hate to say it, but I can't recommend this novel. As I reflected back on this read I had to reduce my initial 2 star rating to 1 star. I just didn't like it and I was confused the entire time. This novel is neither suspenseful nor heart-wrenching. Rather, it represents poor decision making and unhealthy behaviors. If you would like to form your own opinion, at least I can say that this book is a very quick read.(less)

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Jan 16, 2013 Isamlq rated it 3 of 5 stars

The girl’s life is shaken up by a certain someone’s absence. It shakes up all aspects of the lead’s life, touching a little on BFF who read smart and funny and not at all lacking in personality… as well as affecting the romance she was having with a boyfriend who in turn read like a puppy too loyal for its own good. Or maybe that’s Adrienne? Puppy dog loyal even when she’s aware of how and who Dakota was/is/could be?

It’s Adrienne’s eventual frank recognition of where she’d fallen short as well a...more The girl’s life is shaken up by a certain someone’s absence. It shakes up all aspects of the lead’s life, touching a little on BFF who read smart and funny and not at all lacking in personality… as well as affecting the romance she was having with a boyfriend who in turn read like a puppy too loyal for its own good. Or maybe that’s Adrienne? Puppy dog loyal even when she’s aware of how and who Dakota was/is/could be?

It’s Adrienne’s eventual frank recognition of where she’d fallen short as well as her (not so easy) acceptance of the consequences of those things that mark her truly different. In this lead is no ‘woe is me/pity me’ lead rather she knows what’s up and deals… except her manner of dealing has her behaving bat shit crazy. It’s the why (or more apt, the who) behind this that confused me (just as it confused boy-lead) the most.

It’s Dakota. She’s different and with this ineffable quality drawing others in. There’s this odd fascination people have for her… that in her eyes borders on pathetic because while they’re watching/wanting her, she knows it but doesn’t care. For her they’re malleable boys? Funnily enough there’s truth there, even when it’s hurtful. Hurtful truths, that’s what this girl embodies. And for some reason, I feel there could have been more to her (for all the characters in fact.)

The writing in this one, of Adrienne’s voice specifically, is different and at times even disconcerting. She’s in your face and factual about the day to day of her life; there’s a presentation of teen girl’s life of hooking up and getting smashed, hanging out and being an ass) peppered with said teen girl’s confused/confusing thoughts. I thought it all different as it’s not filled with bubble gum-pop niceties (though there are those, too.)

So her voice was interesting a bit confusing but definitely different EXCEPT I do feel TYWG could have been more emotionally intense. The turn out is almost a let down the way it stands. Would it have been more interesting to let things continue on with the idea of the other being gone? I think so. Why? It’s the in-between Adrienne’s finding out then later knowing the facts where a lot of the ~~crazy~~ true emotion happened. There she was: reacting and slowly driving herself (and all others) bat shit crazy. And I loved it… because I saw her becoming this person she didn’t like.

Instead of that, here there’s a return to the before. And I’m stuck wondering if a ‘return to the before’ was really possible with everything else that had happened. More than the neat pairing offs, I’d have preferred more emotional confrontation and recognition that you so and so behaved the way they did because… because of … something more. And see, this is my problem: for such an confusing emotion heavy progression in the story, that ending felt way too neat; it’s the ending that’s almost too happy (save the lack of consequence for key people, of course.)

3/5
(less)

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Apr 13, 2013 Kyra Jones rated it 3 of 5 stars

i like this book because it shows real attachments and messy situations that REALLY happen that no one really understands. sometimes life gets really complicated and no one really understands us, if you know what i mean because i have been there and no one really understood me either. one of those spots in life where you don't know where you went and who you are any more and people are there fighting for you but it doesn't really feel like it. where you make stupid decisions and then feel dirty,...more

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Jan 14, 2013 Ashley rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2013-january, ebook

I didn't really like this book. All the characters kind of sucked, especially the main assholes, so I didn't really care about what happened to any of them. The only characters that had any saving grace was the new BFF Kate, and the mom's boyfriend Sam. I wasn't a fan of the writing style, either. I can't quite put my finger on why, it just seemed really choppy or something.

On the plus side, the book was really short, so it was a super quick read. So at least I didn't invest too much time or ene...more

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Mar 24, 2013 Bobbie rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2013-reads, cliche-cliche-cliche, could-have-been-better, cover-love, all-the-feels, shinyyyyy-covers, ya, meh, contemporary-fiction, gary-stues, i-never-listen, kill-me-now, mary-sues

You know, for once I'm at a loss for words. I really don't know WHAT to think of this book. I didn't expect this at all.

I'm going to be nice here and not be a big ol meanie, but this did remind me of a cult-classic book that is a favorite of mine. Just on a way more average scale.

The suspense part of the book was well done, but by the time I was halfway through I had it mostly figured out.

Like I said, this just reminded me of a favorite book of mine. In more ways than one. Actually, comparing...more

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Jan 21, 2013 Abigail rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: contemporary, life, free-standing

This book had me at: In the tradition of 13 REASONS WHY...

MARCH EDIT:

This book was 'bleh'. Honestly, I really like contemporary novels, but nowadays, all the ones I've read recently are pretty crappy, sad to say. i liked the plot; i really did. but the way Adrienne acts just makes me want to hit myself. She's a mess, and she has a boyfriend, Lee, taht totally in love with her, and so she just treats him like trash. I'll admit, if my boyfriend weren't with me every step of the way, I'd kill him,...more

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Apr 11, 2013 Jeanbooknerd rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: reviews

It was a phone call that went unanswered that began Adrienne Knox’s quest to find a missing friend. Two years prior, Adrienne and Dakota stopped being friends. And just a week ago, Dakota had left a stifled voicemail to her but she never returned the call. Dakota is presumed dead when a suicide letter surfaces but her body is never found. Adrienne falls into a deep grief over the loss of an old friend. She feels that it is her fault because she didn’t answer back the voicemail Dakota left. Altho...more

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Feb 12, 2013 Abbe Hinder rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: simon-and-schuster, serious-topics, lovey-dovey, i-don-t-even-know, female-pov, boring-as-hell, annoying-protagonist, what-the-hell-did-i-just-read, reviewed

Although my hopes were high for this novel and I was very disappointed, I think that it might be able to touch someone's heart. But it could also annoy the crap out of them just like it did me. Then You Were Gone is told from the perspective of Adrienne, a girl who seems to be freaking out over the disappearance of her ex-best friend. Everyone around her has told her again and again to forget about her, yet she can't.

At first, I really liked the writing style. Very short chapters, and short sen...more Although my hopes were high for this novel and I was very disappointed, I think that it might be able to touch someone's heart. But it could also annoy the crap out of them just like it did me. Then You Were Gone is told from the perspective of Adrienne, a girl who seems to be freaking out over the disappearance of her ex-best friend. Everyone around her has told her again and again to forget about her, yet she can't.

At first, I really liked the writing style. Very short chapters, and short sentences too. But after awhile I realized that there isn't much description of things and that the writing just jumps from one thing to another with no smooth transitioning. Which also explains the characters.

The characters in the story are all very annoying and shallow. I understand that Dakota is supposed to be mysterious and that everyone hates her but secretly envy her but I would have enjoyed a lot more information about her. The only flashback or memory told in the story is from a few years ago when they were pretty good friends. That's it. What annoys me even more is that this same memory is repeated throughout the book but with a little more information every time. There isn't much (if any at all) backgrounds or personalities for the characters which left me frustrated. Because of this, it was very hard for me to get through much reading because Adrienne didn't pull anything out of me. All she seems to do is complain, whine, or piss off the people who care about her.

Another thing that bothered me is that the book is rushed a lot. Don't get me wrong, I love a book that's fast paced and full of emotions but this is not the case. It jumps from two girls who don't talk any more to one of them gone and the other going berserk like her life depends on finding her. It doesn't fit, it's too confusing and too odd.

There are quite a few relationships in this book and one of them is the relationship with Lee. At first, it's cute and all, the right amount of affection in the writing to keep it interesting. But after a few chapters, everything just changes and leaves behind a big mess of things. It's all disorganized and odd, Adrienne doesn't seem to do anything while Lee doesn't either. They're written like stick figures trying to go together which left me kind of annoyed. I was looking for a relationship that went with the story, not something that leaves it in a mess. To be honest, I wouldn't recommend this story to anyone just because I couldn't even finish it. But if you're up for it, give it a try.(less)

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Mar 04, 2013 Jasprit rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: arc-galley, out-2013, ya-cc-13, read-in-2013, ya, mystery, contemporary, realistic-fiction

“Either way she did this. She chose this. There’s nothing you need to sort out. Finding her, jamming all these jagged, arbitrary puzzle pieces into place, won’t get you any closer to understanding why she shit all over you and your friendship”

Adrienne and Dakota have been best friends forever, they were inseparable until little cracks started to develop and then one day Dakota and Adrienne just stopped talking. The sweet innocent Dakota that Adrienne knew abruptly changed into some dark edgy per...more “Either way she did this. She chose this. There’s nothing you need to sort out. Finding her, jamming all these jagged, arbitrary puzzle pieces into place, won’t get you any closer to understanding why she shit all over you and your friendship”

Adrienne and Dakota have been best friends forever, they were inseparable until little cracks started to develop and then one day Dakota and Adrienne just stopped talking. The sweet innocent Dakota that Adrienne knew abruptly changed into some dark edgy person that Adrienne didn’t know anymore. They went two whole years without talking until Adrienne receives a random voice message from Dakota out of the blue, asking her to call back. Adrienne thinks nothing of it and so leaves it until Dakota’s announced missing a few days later. Adrienne’s happy with her current life she has a boyfriend who loves her and a best friend in Kate who she can confide in at anytime. So she’s not expecting to find herself caught up in the middle of the investigation with the guilt of not calling Dakota back clawing away at her.

The changes of Adrienne’s character over the course of this story were heart wrenching to watch. The happy girl who had fun with her friends; was a dedicated student all disappear in the blink of an eye. A lot of her friends didn’t know she was so close to Dakota and so don’t expect any of her behaviour. Or they don’t understand how she could be affected so much by the disappearance of a girl who she hadn’t spoken to in two years.

But the more Adrienne’s behaviour changes, she starts turning up drunk to dinners, is dressing in more darker clothes with dark make-up, isn’t making the effort in her school work and becoming more withdrawn. The more concerned her boyfriend and friends become. But Adrienne can’t do anything about it, she finds herself spending more time with Dakota’s on/off boyfriend Julian smoking and following a dark and dangerous path, but she can’t stop until she uncovers the truth.

I hated watching Adrienne come apart when she had friends who truly cared about her and when were given flashes of her friendship with Dakota in the past it had me thinking what did Dakota ever do for Adrienne? Dakota didn’t deserve this time and frantic energy that Adrienne spent worrying away over her. What I enjoyed the most with this book was the mystery part of it, of slowly unravelling the clues along the way and discovering the secrets into Dakota’s character. I’m glad that Adrienne did have Julian there as a form of support as they went into their journey about Dakota, a person who they both thought they knew. Because with the shocks and twists that were thrown their way I’m glad they weren’t alone in their road to discovery.

Then You Were Gone was book I picked up spur of the moment, but I’m so glad that I did as it resonated with me days afterwards. Then You Were Gone is a dark, gritty novel chock full with surprises that I highly recommend giving it a try.(less)

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Mar 05, 2013 Tammy Dahle rated it 5 of 5 stars

My thoughts:
I love that moment you start a book and few pages in you realize that you've stumbled on an amazing story. All sense of time blurs and eyes can't seem to move fast enough down the page.
At the center of the story is Adrienne-who receives a mysterious voice mail from an old frenemy who has disappeared. Has Dakota been the victim of a kidnapping/murder? Did she possibly commit suicide? Adrienne is left feeling guilty for not returning what could have been a call for help and puzzled as...more

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Apr 04, 2013 Zemira Warner rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: mystery, thriller, contemporary

3.5 stars

This is one confusing book. I had no idea how to feel about it, well, I still don't. I'm not sure what to think of the main character. Should I sympathize with Adrienne? Mostly I don't understand why was she so upset when Dakota disappeared.

Adrienne and Dakota were friends since they were kids but Dakota suddenly drops her without explaining why. Adrienne is an average student with a small group of friends when her former best friend Dakota vanished. Everything is just weirder since Da...more

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May 13, 2013 E. Anderson rated it 5 of 5 stars

I love friendship stories, especially stories of friendship interrupted. THEN YOU WERE GONE is a fast-paced mystery, thick with emotion, in which Lauren Strasnick has woven a heart-breaking tale of friendship gone wrong.

Dakota is everything every girl wanted -- beautiful, talented, even almost famous. She also used to be Adrienne's best friend. Now they haven't spoken in two years, except for a voice mail that Dakota left on Adrienne's phone the night before she disappears. Suddenly obsessed wit...more

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Jan 30, 2013 Lindy rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: first-reads, young-adult

I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads. Then You Were Gone was an incredibly quick read. In fact, I read it over the course of about 3 hours of noncontinuous reading. Overall, I liked the pace of the story. It was a good YA novel in that the characters seemed (mostly) believable. They acted the way teens might be expected to act (with exceptions). I know I myself had a couple of best friend "breakups" that resulted in petty rivalry and temporary mild hatred. So that aspect s...more

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Jan 27, 2013 Mary rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: first-reads

Adrienne receives a mysterious call from Dakota who she has not been friends with for two years. She is still hurt and angry over the abrupt end to their friendship and does not immediately call her back. She then finds out that Dakota is missing and that she may have committed suicide, only there is a mystery surrounding her disappearance.

The book deals with the grief, the loss and the ways that a teenage girl would act out in these circumstances. It also deals with the teenage views on relatio...more

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Mar 26, 2013 Maria Martin rated it 4 of 5 stars

Then you Were Gone by author Lauren Strasnick was gritty, surprising, realistic, and short. Main character Adrienne's former childhood best friend goes missing in a suspected suicide. And she kind of goes crazy. Regretting the loss of the friendship, the friend, the person. She starts neglecting everything in her life, her friends, family, boyfriend, school. She then starts to embody her missing friend. Dressing like her and acting like her. And people around her love it. And she starts to hate...more

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