Reviews with content warning for Kidnapping - The Face on the Milk Carton

Reviews tagging 'Kidnapping'

The Face on the Milk Carton by Caroline B. Cooney

15 reviews

avaree's review against another edition

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dark mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

It’s pretty fast. The ending was a cliff hanger. I feel like a lot of the chapters were just repeating the same stuff.

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rebelbelle13's review against another edition

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emotional reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.75

I really wish this was better. The Face on the Milk Carton was one of those I kept meaning to get to as a kid, but never got around to it. That's probably a good thing. This novel drags on what feels like forever, and on every other page Janie is flipping like a pancake about how to proceed with the knowledge that she was kidnapped. She wants to call the number, she doesn't. She wants to tell someone, she doesn't. She wants to meet them, no quick, drive away before they see me! Better go to the library and look for the old newspapers, and not read the entire article! The novel was an exercise in frustration. Pick a lane and stick with it, Janie, or at least tell someone and let them handle it. The only bearable character in the entire book is Reeve, who has the patience of a saint.
I will probably continue with the series, if only to find out what actually happened the day Janie was kidnapped, and how her old family reacts to her returning to them. Let's hope the writing is better as well going forward.

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grclnntt's review against another edition

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fast-paced

3.75

The boyfriend so annoyinggg and cliff hanger?? 3.75-4✨ because whyy cliff hanger (to get us to read the sequels, ok u got me) and there was a good plot twist I didn’t anticipate but I wish that there was more clarity at the end ;c

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breemk133's review against another edition

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dark mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.5

This book was short and kept my attention. I read this for the first time as an adult, not realizing it was a children’s book right away. I can understand why it was banned. The themes are a little too adult for small children (kidnapping, sex, cults). Why I really downgraded this was that the story went slow for a short book that should’ve been fast paced. The main character was whiny and annoying and seemed to envy and hate her friends at the same time. I can give her a little grace for being emotionally stunted as a kidnapping victim, but being that she didn’t know that her entire life, it’s a little inconsistent, the transphobic joke and the comment about anorexia rubbed me the wrong way, as did the sex-pushy boyfriend who never said I love you back. Anyway, could’ve been better could’ve been worse but I finished it anyway. I will probably not continue the series even though it would be nice to know how her bio parents reacted and what the truth really was.

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c_dmckinney's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

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qcupquake's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

The Fave on the Milk Carton
3/5

- wasn't the best but wasn't the worst either
- i liked the idea but i feel like the execution could've been better. i mean it was written in the 90s so idk
- booooo cliffhanger endings👎
- why are all these high schoolers so immature. especially sarah-charlotte and janie
- the age gap between reeve and janie is weird but it was the 90s maybe a senior and a sophomore being together was normal

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jenn_reads's review against another edition

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fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I was on a road trip with my husband when I learned that the Face on the Milk Carton series was apparently not a Thing for middle school boys in the early 90s the way it was for girls, so we immediately listened to it on the drive. I had remembered things from other books that I had thought happened in the first, but it's much shorter than I anticipated it being. I had also forgotten what a gross little shit Reeve is. Every year that I age, I'm more and more thankful that I went to an all girls' high school.

Much like Murder at Vassar, it's very strange reading books set in the past in a time period you lived through that are so far removed from today's reality. Like finding a dime and a pay phone to call home, grabbing the last map at a gas station to figure out where you're going, not being able to call Dad because he's at the soccer field and of course doesn't have a phone in his pocket. So surreal to be fully immersed in the story that way.

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dreamofbookspines's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

This holds up over the years. It's a horrifying story and the way Cooney writes keeps the pages turning.

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classicpseudonym's review against another edition

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dark fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

mmm, not bad! the concept of this book was definitely unique, as i'd never thought about what it'd be like if you saw yourself on a missing poster. cooney does an amazing job building and using suspense throughout the novel. the plot was thrilling, as everything was so fast paced. i actually felt jaine's fear, anxiety, and confusion through the writing and her daymares, so much so that i wasn't able to put the book down (and finished it in one sitting B)).i will say that i wasn't big on the whole high school romance thing between jaine reeve or the stereotypical characters (the focus on suburban middle class, boy obsessed best friend, the main character who has a crush on the boy next door, the overprotective parents, etc). i do acknowledge that this book was first published in 1990, and there may not have been a push for unique and diverse characters and plots at the time, so i tried not to focus too much on this, but it did take away from the book a bit for me personally. i do still recommend this book overall, as it is a thrilling and (in my opinion) very classic mystery novel.

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juliaathomsonnn's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

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