The back of the book says "What happened to Amanda Valentino? Readers can help find out in this interactive, collaborative eight-book series." I guess I didn't totally grasp the "eight-book" part of that quote. The novel starts out innocently enough, describing characters at school and their interactions with Amanda - I had a few issues with the lack of adult intervention in some places (why do I think like such a mom?). My biggest gripe about this book, however, is that basically nothing is solved at the end - now that I have re-read the quote I shared above, I realize it's supposed to go over eight books, and if they solved much in this first one they wouldn't have things left to say. 
 Not all is lost, however. I did visit www.theamandaproject.com, where readers are supposed to go to help find Amanda, and I was pleasantly surprised. It seems like something I would have loved to be involved with when I was younger - clues, mystery, etc. It made the book come more alive, and settled my feelings a bit. I'm not sure if I will seek out the next 7 books, though it is a little intriguing to see how the author will pull it all together - she made some clever connections in the first book so I can only imagine what will be next. 
 My advice is to visit the Amanda Project website to get a feel for what is in store, and then pick up the book if it's something you're interested in. It definitely was not meant to stand alone, and you'll be disappointed if you think so.