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165th out of 166 books
—
471 voters
They Never Came Home
by
Lois Duncan (Goodreads Author)
Joan’s boyfriend and her brother are missing and assumed dead. Until the voice on the other end of the phone hints at something more terrible.
Paperback, 192 pages
Published
October 1st 1990
by Laurel Leaf
(first published June 1st 1979)
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Joan’s brother, Larry, and boyfriend, Dan, mysteriously disappear while on a camping trip. No bodies are found. After the search is called off and newspapers release news of their assumed death by drowning, Joan receives a phone call from a stranger who claims her brother owes over two thousand dollars. She believes his story when she examines an IOU with her brother’s signature. The man tells her about the business her brother was involved in and gives her the opportunity to fill in for him in...more
Two boys are gone on a camping trip, never found or returned home. Somewhere out in the world, 2 boys are living together some place else. One has forgotten his memory and one seems to know it all. Could these two boys be the missing boys from the camping trip? This book has a lot of plot twists which makes it very interesting and intense. Who knew that one of those boys who felt so mistreated and seemed kind could have been the one to cause many problems to two families. There are some confusin...more
This story begins with the disappearance of two teenage boys who spend a weekend camping in the mountains and never come home. As weeks turn into months their families agonize over the sketchy details surrounding their disappearance. Local authorities call off search parties and peg the two youths as dead. However, Joanie, the sister to one missing boy and girlfriend to the other is trying to stay strong and keep her family from falling apart. Her mother, in shock, now lives within herself, and...more
I started reading this and realized I read it when I was in High school. I enjoyed it though, it has a nice twist to it, although it is pretty predictable throughout the book.
I just read it and it was great. It was copy written in 1969 but though the lack of technology, it reads as timeless. It was a wonderful read that kept me riveted throughout. I didn't even think that I was going to like it. I didn't like it. I loved it.
Joan Drayfus' boyfriend and brother went for a hike. They never came back. Her mother is in a fragile state and everyone is mourning their death. It's easier to put the tragedy behind her. But there is a call and a man wants something that was owe...more
Joan Drayfus' boyfriend and brother went for a hike. They never came back. Her mother is in a fragile state and everyone is mourning their death. It's easier to put the tragedy behind her. But there is a call and a man wants something that was owe...more
i really liked this book! it really kept me on my toes to find out wat happened next! i highly recomend this book!
Well, I’m continuing my Lois Duncan bent by reading through the books that I don’t remember very well first. All I could remember from this one was basically what it says on the front cover… two boys go camping and they never come home.
To be honest, I can see why (comparatively speaking) this book didn’t stick in my memory as much as the others. It’s not as…. what’s the word I’m looking for… relatable? No, that’s not it. I think maybe the word is just interesting. It’s not as interesting as all...more
To be honest, I can see why (comparatively speaking) this book didn’t stick in my memory as much as the others. It’s not as…. what’s the word I’m looking for… relatable? No, that’s not it. I think maybe the word is just interesting. It’s not as interesting as all...more
This book was slow and felt dated. (About twenty pages in, I couldn't understand how this book had gotten published--it feels stale. Then I checked the publication date, and it made more sense. There are plenty of books published fifty years ago that DON'T feel dated, though, so maybe read one of those instead.) I didn't find the "suspense" very suspenseful, nor did I feel any real emotional connection to the flatish characters.
Nov 17, 2010
Sarah Tilatitsky
added it
I am on page 14, and although I have read this already, things are not going well. What I like (LOVE) about Lois Duncan is that her beginning isn't that boring, and it's shorter, mostly to identify waht's wrong. After taht, building up the suspense until ..................................................... ending taht's half scary, half relief/happiness, mostly.
This book is AWESOME!
This book is AWESOME!
I thought that this book was very confusing. If you did not have any imagination in this book, you would never know what was going on. It was a good book to read once you found out the main details on who all the characters were and what was going on with all of the people. If you like books that you have to think and figure out things, this is the book for you!
This book was great. This is one of the books I would recommend to young adult readers, not kids because it talks about a lot of things that kids will not really understand. It is very descriptive and shows how some people never show who they really are. This also shows not to trust everyone. Some will be trustworthy, but others will not.
Jun 12, 2008
Relyn
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
someone who likes the feel of shivers up their spine
I discovered Lois Duncan when I was a teenager. We lived in places with tiny libraries so I never got to read all her books. (Thank God for modern libraries and interlibrary loans.) This summer I was reading The Longstockings Blog (http://thelongstockings.blogspot.com/) and one of the writer's mentioned that this was her favorite of all Duncan's books. I still enjoy young adult literature, so I thought it would be fun to read a book I missed as a teenager.
I did enjoy this book. It was slightly...more
I did enjoy this book. It was slightly...more
I love Lois Duncans books and she is one of my favorite authors, but seriously I wasn't a big fan of this. I felt like it was slow and boring and the worst of her work and this is a hard thing for me to say.. but it kind of sucked. When I first tried to read it I had to just stop and come back.. and I barely finished it this time. Nonetheless Duncan is the best, even if I disliked this.
Enjoyed this book. Funny the way someone went back in and threw in a cell phone and "online" reference. This was not necessary, it was obvious the setting was decades ago just by the dialogue. I enjoyed this nice, clean, fairly innocent quick read.
I think this was one of Lois Duncan's earliest books. It feels like it, partly because it's very dated--there's a lot about dating and relationships that is very 1960s (steadies, calling around for a date for the dance, running with crowds). It's actually a little slow, and the plot revolves around a kid who's in some very dated trouble.
Honestly, I was going to give it two stars, but that dated trouble is just what dragged it back up to three. Because there are some FABULOUS rants about "dope fi...more
Honestly, I was going to give it two stars, but that dated trouble is just what dragged it back up to three. Because there are some FABULOUS rants about "dope fi...more
They Never Came Home sure took a long time to get going. It seemed like nothing happened in the first 16 chapters of the book. Written in the '60s, the book is clearly dated. But, Lois Duncan is an excellent author with a descriptive writing style. It's unfortunate that the book had so many slow chapters. The last two chapters were fantastic, so if you can make it passed the slow start you'll be treated to a great ending.
So...this was not as good as I Know What You Did Last Summer. Written in the late 1960's, the language is very dated (today's teens would have some trouble with it) and the presentation of women and girls is dated as well.
This appears to be an earlier Duncan (first published 1969) and, although she already showed promise as a writer, the plot is absolutely ludicrous with such late sixties soap opera staples as the demon marijuana and amnesia. Ugh.
Dec 21, 2011
Jeffrey Severson
added it
This is a action/adventure. If you like this kind of book. I would read it i leaves a mystery and there waz anouther couple lost at the same time. I would read this book if i were you it a good book.
ORAL PRESENTATION (2 of 3 to fill requirement)
Two boys go camping in the mountains, but never return. Their families struggle to deal with their loss, but everything is not what it appears . . .
This book was rather more predictable in some ways than most of the other Lois Duncan books I've read, but I still enjoyed it. It rather reminds me of The Talented Mr. Ripley . . .
Two boys go camping in the mountains, but never return. Their families struggle to deal with their loss, but everything is not what it appears . . .
This book was rather more predictable in some ways than most of the other Lois Duncan books I've read, but I still enjoyed it. It rather reminds me of The Talented Mr. Ripley . . .
Wanted more at the ending. Story cut off too quickly, I think that is why I thought I hadn't finished it the first time. Read it to see if it is something my son would enjoy...
And i thought this book would be freakin scary but it's fine for me..And it was funny when you think you got the reasons right but it all confuses you Lol LOVED IT!!
I was pleased to find a paperback of this in a thrift store, because it's one of the few Lois Duncans that hasn't been available in the libraries I've visited. Now I see why: it is HILARIOUSLY old-fashioned, and they probably only reprinted it when the "I Know What You Did Last Summer" movie came out. It was written in 1969 (before she started getting into the occult/ESP stuff with A Gift of Magic) and has very funny ideas about The Dangers of Marijuana. It's genuinely suspenseful for most of th...more
I just read this book and thought it was okay. I got to the end and the book just stopped, like it just ended ! The ending is horrible.
Nov 25, 2010
Morgan
added it
Great book! It kept me reading to the end! But like so many books that I read today it does have some dry spots!
I loved this book. Yet another Lois Duncan success. The twists and turns are so unexpected. It keeps you on your toes.
Nov 17, 2008
Nykeva
added it
do you know someone who went somewhere and never came back?you nshould read this book because......if you how it feels to lose someone you really love and thought that they were dead because they never came back form a store or a camping trip,then you know how the draydfus family feels when their son larwance or larry go on a camping trip with his best friend Dan and they get lost and they were supposed to be commimng back monday moring but the two boys never came back family went out looking fo...more
The whole book made no sence. I just like it how they called marajuana happy grass-I thought it was funny.
Oct 28, 2011
Ashley Barton
added it
A book that I never thought that I would pick up to read but I am glad I did cause it was good.
i loooooooooooooooovvvvvvvvvvveeeeeeeeeeeeeee this book!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Lois Duncan (born Lois Duncan Steinmetz, April 28, 1934) is an American writer and novelist, known primarily for her books for children and young adults, in particular (and some times controversially considering her young readership) crime thrillers. Duncan's parents were the noted magazine photographers Lois Steinmetz and Joseph Janney Steinmetz. She was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, but gr...more
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Apr 23, 2009 02:36pm