Review: Then You Were Gone by Lauren Strasnick

Title: Then You Were Gone
Author: Lauren Strasnick
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Age Group: Young Adult
Category: Contemporary, Mystery
Release date: January 8th, 2013
Pages: 224 (ebook)
Rating: 3 out of 5
Source: Pulse It
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Two years ago, Adrienne’s best friend walked out of her life. One week ago, she left Adrienne a desperate, muffled voicemail. Adrienne never called back. 

Now Dakota is missing. She left behind a string of broken hearts, a flurry of rumors, and a suicide note. 

Adrienne can’t stop obsessing over what might have happened if she’d answered Dakota’s call. And she’s increasingly convinced that Dakota must still be alive. 

Maybe finding and saving Dakota is the only way Adrienne can save herself. 

Or maybe it’s too late for them both.

Sometimes when you grow apart from your best friend, you never really lose them. When Dakota goes missing, Adrienne takes her disappearance into her own hands.  She can't stop obsessing, and she feels as though it is partially her fault.  Maybe if she answered her last call.  Maybe if she'd been a better friend.  Maybe.  During this search for the truth behind it all, she begins to lose her friends, her boyfriend and herself.  Teaming up with Dakota's unofficial boy toy proves to be te type of change she needs, and suddenly, it's not all about finding Dakota anymore.

The story was enjoyable, but what I liked the most about it was the mystery.  Was Dakota dead or alive?  Was it suicide or homicide?  Did she just runaway or is she tied up in someone's basement?  With everything that was going on in our main character's life, it was difficult to predict what the outcome would be.  I didn't connect with any of the characters, but I didn't dislike the fact that they were completely different from me.  Adrienne was caught between two worlds and there seemed to be a lot of confusion on her part.  Julian stood out more to me, because he was a sensitive and caring punk-rocker who wanted nothing more than to have his old life back, even if Dakota was unworthy of his love.

As a whole, Then You Were Gone kept me entertained for a few hours, but I didn't take much from it.  It won't be one of the more memorable contemporaries for me, and I surely don't think it's reminiscent of 13 Reasons Why, as that comparison was one of the reasons I wanted to read it most.  I love heart-wrenching reads, but this one didn't make me emotional at all, which was ultimately a disappointment.  Beside the mystery being decent, the romance was just okay.  If I don't care for much in a story, there's almost always a romance for me to look forward to, but this one didn't satisfy.

Overall, the story is worth a read.  It was short, quick and entertaining with an end that doesn't leave you wanting more...in a good way.  Every question you have about Dakota's disappearance is answered in time, and for that, I'm thankful.