Sudden Moves: A Young Adult Mystery

by Kelli Sue Landon

When Katie Brashers announces to her friends that shes headed to Orlando, Florida, for spring break, no one thinks twice. But when school resumes and Katie is nowhere to be found, her sixteen-year-old classmate and friend, Michelle Martin, grows suspicious.

The school staff claims that the family moved to Florida, but Michelle doesnt buy it. First, Katie never said goodbye to her devoted boyfriend, Brad; and second, Katie still has a treasured family book Michelle gave her to reada book Katie promised to return. Something doesnt make sense.

Michelle and her best friend, Tami, team up with Brad to investigate the familys disappearance, but its not easy. Not only do they have to dodge Michelles demanding, nosey mother, but they also have to sneak around the neighborhood while avoiding arrest for trespassing. After talking to neighbors and looking inside the house, they still have nothing but circumstantial evidence.

Michelle is about ready to give upuntil she takes her dog for their daily walk and uncovers a concrete clue. The clue leads her closer to the truth, but also thrusts her into dangerous circumstances beyond her control. If she isnt careful, Michelle could end up like Katiegone without a trace.

Genres: Young Adult

216 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 27, 2010

About the author

Kelli Sue Landon is from Peoria IL. Her published short stories include The Diary, Pizza Night, Campfire Dreams, and The Assignment. She has been writing short stories since the age of sixteen. Her collection of short stories entitled Short Tales is available through Amazon. She has published five novels: Stranded in Time, Sudden Moves, Nightmare At Camp Forrestwood, Summer Shack and The Henderson Harbor Killings (Summer Shack Prequel). Christmas Past and Stranded in Time (her first time travel novel taking place in the 70's) is a favorite among fans. Her novels all center around a trip of some sort and are written for the New Adult genre, with characters in late high school/early college.

Reviews

[Gmr · Rating 2 out of 5]

Katie Brashers and her family leave on a vacation for Spring Break...never to return. No notice. No postcard. Just an empty house, a missing book (don't ask…I’ll get to that later), and questions with no answers. Is there more here than meets the eye? The adults around don’t seem to think so; after all, Katie’s mother was a bit of a flirt so it is quite possible she simply extended their stay with a new love interest taking Katie and her sister along for the ride. Despite the rumors and plausible explanations given, Michelle can’t help but think there’s something more at work here and she intends to find out just what happened once and for all. Will her investigation uncover the truth before it’s too late? Or will both she and Katie end up as just another statistic among the lost?

I’m sorry to say but the way it jumps right into the mystery from page one seemed unnatural; we were missing the reason we should care. People move sometimes without giving notice to their friends (or close acquaintances as I really didn’t feel a bestie connection between Michelle and Katie) all the time, but it’s no reason to call out the National Guard (so to speak). The characters and scenes just didn’t connect with each other (or with this reader) either. I mean, one moment Michelle is all "my friend is missing" and the next "oh, I’ll never get my book back from her now". Now about that book, I can only liken to a running gag. It would appear out of nowhere in conversation or thought. Grant it, the book plays a potentially important role at one point…but by the time its importance is discovered, it only shines as a minor detail, an after thought. Second, when the character shows that much of a lack of commitment to the plot line...it’s hard to make readers care about it.

Too many plotlines are running amuck. It seems to me that the author had several interesting ideas running around for a story but perhaps they would have worked better if they each had their own time in the sun (as in multiple books). Once the action picked up at around page 120, I was driven to reach the end. Despite whatever feelings I had towards the work at that time, I had to know how it all turned out so that certainly speaks to the potential it has (or at least to me it does).

To summarize, the author had many threads started in this particular creation that would have made a grand picture…if only they could have been pulled together. Now don’t get me wrong, the story is not without merit after all anything that is worth the time it takes to get it from inspiration to creation has some sparkle to it....it just needs to reach the right set of eyes to make it shine. Unfortunately for me, it didn’t quite work...but I certainly do not regret the read and would encourage you to try it for yourself. You never know…it may fit you like the proverbial glass slipper; a match made in heaven. Happy reading...

[Lynnette Phillips · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sudden Moves by Kelli Sue Landon (A Young Adult Mystery)
Short story writer and first-rate storyteller Kelli Sue Landon has chosen to give us a young adult mystery as her debut novel. Sudden Moves presents us with a tightly woven plot and a cast of believable characters who are more than puzzled by the sudden disappearance of their friend and classmate, Katie.

Michelle, Brad and Tami have just returned to Giles High after Spring Break but Katie hasn’t returned from her Florida vacation. They’re told she has moved. At first they’re annoyed that she didn’t even bother to say good-bye; then Michelle realizes Katie didn’t return the book she loaned her--the one she wasn’t supposed to lend out. Her mother’s going to kill her! Michelle’s mother is worse than demanding and overbearing and now Tami, Michelle’s best friend, just doesn’t seem to care about the book or Katie. Well, alright she’ll just start her own investigation…she’s got to get the book back.

Michelle’s unsure of how to begin so tries confiding in Tami again. Tami agrees to help by posing as a prospective renter for Katie’s house. They meet Sean the landlord and when Brad, who thought he and Katie had something special, gets involved in the fact-finding mission they realize Katie could be in trouble but how can they help?

Kelli Sue Landon’s published short stories include The Diary, Pizza Night, and Campfire Dreams. She is employed by the United States Postal Service and lives in Peoria, Illinois with her husband, spontaneously writing (“My characters run the show in my stories”) and craving Dynamint candies (unfortunately, you can‘t find them anymore). Visit Kelli Sue at The Plot Thickens or OutskitsPress

Reviewed by Lynnette Phillips, Avid Book Reviews

[Julia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review by Andrew at RexRobotReviews.com

Katie Brashers went on a trip to Florida with her family to celebrate Spring Break. When school resumes, Michelle Martin notices that Katie hasn’t returned to class. Michelle worries and she starts asking questions about where Katie is and why she isn’t back in school. Katie has a boyfriend named Brad Wilkes and he doesn’t even know why Katie didn’t return from her trip. Michelle begins thinking something terrible might have happened to Katie. Michelle also let Katie borrow her grandmother’s book and she hasn’t returned it yet. It is not like Katie to not tell anyone where she is or at least call them. No one can seem to answer and explain why Katie hasn’t returned from her trip. Michelle starts digging around and trying to find out information about why Katie hasn’t return. Tami, Michelle’s best friend and Brad start on a journey to help Michelle try and uncover the mystery about where Katie might be.

This novel was suspenseful and it kept me on the edge of my seat. “Sudden Moves” is a great youth adult mystery novel but I would recommend it to everyone not just young people. I was trying to uncover the mystery, as I was reading along, about where Katie might be located. But I never saw the ending coming and I couldn’t even guess what was going to happen next. I would rate “Sudden Moves” 5 robots! I enjoyed reading the mystery novel. If you love a wonderful mystery and action packed novel and want to test your detective skills this is the book you need to try and solve. Help find Katie! I can’t wait to read more books by this author!

[Melanie Coombes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sudden Moves is a young adult mystery. The story begins with the disappearance of Katie Brashers. After she does not return from a family trip to Orlando, her friend Michelle, becomes extremely suspicious. Teachers and parents don't seem very concerned, they believe the family moved. However, Michelle along with her friend Tami and Katie's boyfriend, Brad, team up to investigate.

On a walk with her dog, Michelle discovers crucial evidence that suddenly turns this mystery into something much more dangerous and sinister. Michelle now needs her friends more than ever before she too faces the same fate as Katie.

I really loved reading this book. It is written for younger readers and therefore the writing style is simple and easy going. But the characters were all believable. I felt like I was back in high school, sitting on the school bus with my friends, trying to avoid the bullies in the cafeteria, having my first crush, etc.

The story is only about 207 pages long, a perfect length for young adult novels. I was immediately sucked into the story and wanted to keep reading to find out the mystery of what happened to Katie and her family. It was fun because I had all these guesses in my mind, but the ending is not one I expected. This seems like a great book for ages 13 and up, girls, as well as boys. Adults will like it too, if they enjoy YA fiction, as I do. Thank you so much for the good reads giveaway.

[Leah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really didn't know what to expect when I started reading this book. I was pleasently surprised though. I liked Michelle, the main character, well enough. She had her issues, but otherwise she was a great character, and made pretty level-headed decisions. One thing that really bugged me about her character, is near the end, she decided she was in love with Brad (the male lead) a little too quick. I liked her best friend Tami a lot, even though she didn't always make the best of decisions, but this made her very enjoyable, and she was definitely my favorite character in the book.

My favorite part of this book was the mystery of it. I couldn't guess who the bad guy was, and I was intensely surprised at every twist and turn of the story. It was a creative storyline, and I enjoyed finding out everything along with Michelle. Usually with books I can figure out a little bit what is going to happen, and with this book I really couldn't. Everything was a surprise. The ending was pretty good, and by the time I got to the epilogue I was worried some things wouldn't get answered, but it was cleared up in the epilogue with that last sentence, so that was a pleasent surprise.

Overall a great, suspenseful read, that really kept me on my toes. I will definitely be checking out any other books by Kelli Sue Landon in the near future.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story focuses on the disappearance of sixteen-year-old Katie Brasher and her friends’ quest to find her. It begins with Katie informing her friends about her plans for spring break, which is a trip to Orlando, Florida. Everyone is excited for her, but something unexpected happens. Katie and her family never return home. Michelle Martin, who is Katie’s close friend and classmate, begins to worry and question where she and her family are. School officials say Katie and her family decided to move to Florida, but Michelle finds this news worthy of raising an eyebrow and saying “Hmm”. She does not believe for one second that Katie would suddenly move without saying goodbye to her or Katie’s boyfriend, Brad. Plus, Michelle let Katie borrow a book her family treasures very much, which she promises to return. Michelle, her best friend Tami, and Brad decide to get together and see if they can find any clues for their unanswered questions, but they must be discreet. Unexpectedly, Michelle stumbles upon a clue, which places her in danger. Honestly, I am not a fan of mystery books, and being a hopeless romantic does not mix well with mysterious disappearances and chilling outcomes.

[Sandra Stiles · Rating 5 out of 5]

When Michelle's best friend Katie doesn't return from her Spring Break, the rumors start to fly. Michelle is upset because she had loaned her best friend a valuable family book. The problem is she didn't get her mother's permission. Brad is upset as well. Why would Katie not tell him if she was moving. He was her boyfriend after all. Michelle's mom. a hairdresser hears all kinds of gossip and so the rumors about Katie and her mother continue to grow. Then strange things begin to happen, a body is found and Michelle feels like she is being watched. She and Brad and her friend Tami must go it alone to find the truth.

I really enjoyed this book because it had all kinds of twists and turns. About the time I thought I had it figured out the story would take another turn. It had a very authentic voice and is a mystery I think my students and even the teachers will enjoy.

[Robin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Won this on Goodreads 2/22/11! Can't wait to get my hands on it...
Stared reading this book on March 4th. This is a young Adult Mystery. Guess I could have really liked it, but it is written for the younger generation.
The premise is that a sixteen-year-old does not return from spring break. Her friends did not know that she was not returning, so go looking for her. They find out more than they bargained for. Needless to say, it was full of dialogue, but that got rather tedious in places. All in all "a good read." Thank you, Kelli Sue Landon.

[Chrissy]

Ahhh, I'm so excited to have won Sudden Moves by Kelli Sue Landon! The plot sounds like something that would totally draw me in, and I can't wait to get it in the mail! Of course, review upcoming! :)

***Update*** About to start reading this one!

[Dorie Nash]

Great book! I couldn't stop reading until the end!

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won this book from first reads. The plot was engaging and clever. The style of the author writing is obviously geared to young adults. It was a quick fun read.

[Read for your future! · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read our review at:
http://www.readforyourfuture.org/MHS-...

[naiyaa ⋆. 𐙚 ˚ · Rating 3 out of 5]

i love the ending.

[Ashley · Rating 2 out of 5]

Originally reviewed on my blog, Books from Bleh to Basically Amazing.

This book is about the sudden disappearance of Michelle's classmate, Katie. When Katie and her family don't return from a spring break trip to Florida, Michelle panics, because she let Katie borrow a treasured family heirloom before leaving, and now she's unsure about whether or not she will get it back. She begins to investigate with the help of her, like, best friend? Tami, and Katie's almost, but not quite boyfriend, Brad, who Michelle has a serious crush on.

I feel bad writing this review, because I had hoped to like this book. But, I struggled with it from the very beginning. I didn't feel like the writing was very approachable. It felt very... mechanical, like someone trying to write teenagers who has had very limited contact with them since their own high school days. I felt like the characters were unbelievable, especially the adults. Every adult in the story was easily duped by these kids. The dialogue was wooden and forced, and the character interactions were awkward overall.

While reading it, I felt like Landon couldn't quite make up her mind about how she wanted her characters to be, and what direction to take them. As a result, there were a lot of inconsistencies as well as moments that just didn't fit in with the rest of the story. A lot of it just didn't make sense, and the details didn't add up. There were more than a few scenes I personally felt were unnecessary, and they seemed to have been added in just for the drama, because everyone knows you can't be a teen without the major drama, but none of these dramatic scenes added anything to the story. Like Michelle and Brad going to the under 21, soda only club (on a dateNotDate) and having Michelle getting into a screaming-shoving match with the 'queen bee' because she made a snide comment.

I never felt the drama of the situation, and I never felt a connection with the characters. Landon does have potential as a writer, and her story idea was good. I feel like a little more research and more direction within the writing would have been great additions to the story. Pick your 'angst', don't try to include it all. Having a book with a disappearance, main character trying to solve said disappearance, drama with a demanding, controlling and sometimes drunken mother, absentee dad who is always on the road as a trucker and may or may not be happy to be home with mom when he does stop, best friend drama in all ways, stereotypical high school mean girls with several almost cat-fights and then tossing in a love interest who is actually pining away for the missing girl just gets to be too much. Cutting out about half of the drama would have made the story better.

It wasn't a horrible book, but it wasn't one that really drew me in either. It's not one I'll ever read again, and I doubt I'll remember much about it in the future.

[Jamie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sudden Moves is a young adult fast paced mystery thriller. I was pleasantly surprised while reading this. I haven't read a mystery in a while and this one was hard to put down.

It starts out with the disappearance of Katie during spring break. None of the teachers or parents are to concerned with this, they all believe that she moved to Florida with her family. Michelle is worried and tries to find her. She loaned a book to Katie without her mom's permission and she needs to get it back. Brad, Katie's boyfriend is wondering why she never said goodbye. One day while walking her dog, Michelle comes across some clues about the disappearance. She wants to find out what is going on. She enlists the help of Brad and her best friend Tami. Things start to become more complicated and then Michelle discovers a body in the backyard of the house where Katie lived. Oh I just want to go on and on with all the details but that would ruin it for you all.

This is a quick read but it is filled with so much excitement. I didn't want to put it down. There is some hints of romance, lots of action, mystery, twists and turns. When I thought I had something figured out the author turned it around. I really enjoyed the characters and the story itself. The story focuses mainly on the plot and not a lot on the characters. This was a great story and I look forward to reading more from this author.

This book was provided to me for review. This did not affect my review in any way.

[Brandi Bryant]

Kelli Sue Landon tells a story filled with twists and turns at every corner. This book was fast-paced and an easy read. With all of the plot twists I couldn't put the book down because I wanted to know what happened to Katie! Throughout the entire book I was annoyed with Michelle's mom -- she was completely over-powering and often just plain annoying (which is probably exactly how I was supposed to feel about her...but halfway through I was like if we have to hear about Michelle's mom one more time...). I was also a little confused about the book that Michelle lent to Katie. I have plenty of valuables that have been handed down through my family for generations, but I can't see myself lending them out. Especially to someone I didn't really seem to be that good of friends with. It just didn't seem like Michelle had a whole lot of reason to care what happened to Katie. I know she wanted to get her book back, but I didn't feel like their relationship was very well developed. Overall I thought this was a nice, easy read that kept me engaged until the very last sentence.

[Carley · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was pretty awful. The characters weren’t believable, the style of writing was awkward and the plot was very one-dimensional, as well as rushed. I’m glad it was so short so I didn’t waste too much time on it.

[Naomi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I must say that this was pretty enjoyable being a young adult novel by a debut author. It kept me guessing as to what had happened and was able to keep my interest. I was impressed.

[Kelli Landon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fast paced thriller, hard to put down!