(3.8 STARS) Can we talk about how beautiful yet creepy the cover art is? 
 What are three words to describe Tara Altebrando's 'The Leaving'? 
 Gripping, bizarre and tense 
 I was sent this book from Bloomsbury in exchange for an honest review. I received this book in the mail last week on a Friday and keeping in mind that I also have school, it took me less than a week to finish this book. To say that the blurb at the back of the book left me in a "I NEED TO READ THIS" mode, would be an utter understatement. The premise for this novel both captivated and intrigued me, and I was sold immediately. 
 The Leaving is a YA mystery novel with a touch of contemporary and tells the haunting story of the strange disappearance of 6 kindergarten children and their return, eleven years later 
 Tara Altebrando cunningly delivers this story through the perspectives of Scarlett (a victim of the Leaving), Avery (the sister of the boy who never returned) and Lucas (another victim of the Leaving). Each narrator had their own defined voice. The authors decision to present and tell this particular story in multiple perspectives was/is a clever move as it intensified my interest and kept me quickly turning the pages. Scarlett was by far the most captivating narrator for me personally. Each Scarlett chapter followed a prose poetry structure, her narration was often told in short sentences and contained great onomatopoeia and visual images to encapsulate the story further. I found Avery's narration rather whiny and annoying at times, - I found her overly self-centered which did make her chapters every now and then challenging to read through, though I do suppose if I were in her position I'd be a bit demanding too. Lucas was a rather bewildering character for me, from the very beginning of the novel I had trouble placing where I stood with him, I was constantly questioning whether I could trust him or not... The author's ability to create tension and suspense is very well done and most definitely will keep you turning the page to find out what happened. The journey you take with the characters as they try to adapt back into society and find out what happened to them will keep you invested. 
 Despite my hold and captivation for the novel, I don't think that I'll be re-reading this book anytime soon. Without the mystery element and the constant questioning to find out what happened, the more I started to realise how dull and unsatisfying this novel was. Despite the plot twist being believable and not predictable, I felt rather disappointed. The author did a great job (as I mentioned before) to build great suspense and mystery, and the premise had great potential to be something mind-blowing but I just personally did not experience this. The romance in this novel lacked, there was no connection between the characters and so unfortunately I did not feel any emotionally destroying "feels" in this book. The conclusion of the book ended nicely, I thoroughly enjoyed the last few sentences: 
 "We are all dust, all dying, all losing, all forgetting, we are all leaving, all the time" 
 Overall, this book was good, I enjoyed it - it was interesting and kept me interested right up to the very end - so I suppose if you want a simple answer as to whether you should read this book or not... I say yes, read it... AND PREPARE YOURSELF FOR THE LEAVING FOR IT IS GOING TO BE AN INTENSE ROLLER COASTER RIDE MY FRIENDS. 
 **HUGE THANKS TO BLOOMSBURY FOR SENDING ME A REVIEW COPY**