Book Review “The Last Child” by John Hart

by Jillian @ http://blueshelled.com . May 24, 2010 . 4:33AM

In my time, I’ve read a lot of books. Since I was around the age of 8, reading has been my main hobby and it’s not an exaggeration to say that I’ve averaged about 3 books a week since then. There have been many good books, some not so good books, lots and lots of bad books, fluff books, hard to read books, books that I read to learn that left my brain a mush pit and books that left my heart aching and my mind listless for more.

The Last Child, by John Hart, is one of those books that leaves your heart aching and your mind listless for more.

The premise of the book is that a family that was happy becomes broken by an unprecedented act: the abduction of a child and the resulting abandonment of the father of the family that leaves a 13 year old boy and his prescription addicted mother vulnerable to some of the harsher elements of life. Johnny has not been the same since his twin, Alyssa, was abducted a year earlier. His father has abandoned them, they have lost their home and his mother has been a fuzzy shadow of herself while she drinks and takes pills to dull the pain of having lost half of her family. However, Johnny is not willing to give up on finding Alyssa, even though the local police have long since stopped looking for her.

A local policeman is haunted by his inability to find Alyssa. The case has turned personal as he watched the disintegration of the Merrimon family and he has taken an interest in Johnny and his mother. He takes his role as Johnny’s guardian angel seriously and is now in the position of possibly losing his job due to his interest in the case. Johnny’s constant running away to search for Alyssa has put the policeman in the position of knowing that Johnny is in an unfit home, but being tormented by not finding Alyssa he finds himself unable to report Johnny’s home life. Also plaguing him are his feelings for Johnny’s mother that have overtaken him in the year since Alyssa’s disappearance.

Things take a dangerous turn when another girl goes missing and Johnny makes it his personal mission to find her, convinced that she is the key to finding Alyssa.

The Last Child is an amazing display of authorship in that every character has a dynamic feel. Even minor characters show a well-rounded nature and no character is without flaw. There were times that I felt like I needed to put the book down because the intensity of my reaction to the characters, their development and the plot were overwhelming in a way that made me think. Throughout the book, I’d convinced myself that I knew how the story was going to end, but I was wrong in every way. Hart’s ability to weave the story is flawless and the book kept my attention for weeks. He was able to build the characters in a way that I became attached to them and at the end of the book, I longed to know where they went from there.

This is a solid story with dynamic characters that is incredibly well done.

*Disclosure: I received a free copy of this book in order to review it. Thanks for allowing me to read this book and share my thoughts on it with others!