Snatched (Bloodwater Mysteries) [Library Binding]

Pete Hautman (Author), Mary Logue (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 11, 2008 | Series: Bloodwater Mysteries

From award-winning author pete Hautman and Mary logue comes a lively mystery series. when high school student Alicia Camden suddenly disappears, the small town of bloodwater is in shock. And it’s up to roni Delicata, reporter for the school’s Bloodwater Pump, and her brilliant sidekick, brian bain, to figure out what’s going on. with suspects all around them and suspicions high, roni and brian risk their lives—and a few groundings from their parents—to get to the bottom of things. but can they find Alicia and solve the mystery before it’s too late? Full of suspense and humor, readers will love to watch the hilarious relationship between roni and brian as they save the day.

--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 7-11–Eleventh-grader Roni Delicata is the sometimes pushy but always dedicated reporter for the school paper, Bloodwater Pump. She meets science geek Brian Bain, 14, when both are in trouble with the principal. They discover that Alicia Camden, the snooty new kid who lives in a mansion with her cold mother and bland stepfather, has been kidnapped. Through sheer force of personality, Roni involves Brian in her determination to crack the case. Could the culprit be Alicia's stepfather? Driftwood Doug? And what about Alicia's unpleasant ex-boyfriend? There are several mysteries here, and some unusual twists. The mixture of suspense and humor is effective, particularly in the interactions between complete opposites Roni and Brian. The authors are able to manage the rapid unfolding of the plot while still allowing for character development. Ultimately, straight-arrow Brian decides that while Roni can be a bit of a pain, she is also a lot of fun. This mystery will likely appeal to older reluctant readers.–B. Allison Gray, John Jermain Library, Sag Harbor, NY
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

Gr. 7-10. Two award-winning authors team up in this first entry in the Bloodwater Mysteries series. Set in Bloodwater, Minnesota, the story stars another team--two high-school students, a boy science nerd and a girl investigator for the school paper. Together, they have the right skills to question authority and pry into odd events. The spur to their detective work comes from Alicia, a mysterious, talented (she has the lead in The Crucible, a nice touch given what readers learn about her oppressive home environment) new girl in school, who disappears after getting into an SUV with a stranger. The authors skillfully weave two narratives together here: one following Alicia, the other following the amateur sleuths as they prod and joke with one another while trying to find the missing girl. Give this solid marks for plotting and characterization, as well as for suspense, which evolves not only from the disappearance but also from readers' growing realization of Alicia's plight at home. Connie Fletcher
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Library Binding: 212 pages
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1439572291
• ISBN-13: 978-1439572290
• Shipping Information: View shipping rates and policies
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)

More About the Author

Okay, here's some miscellaneous personal info. I'll try to be as brief as possible. I was born in 1952 in Berkeley, California, or so I am told (I don't really remember). At age five I moved to St. Louis Park, Minnesota where I went to Cedar Manor Elementary School (also the alma mater of Al Franken and the Coen brothers, and no, they are not close personal friends of mine) and eventually graduated honor-free from St. Louis Park High School. This is so tedious. Why do you keep reading? For the next seven years I attended the Minneapolis College of Art and Design and the University of Minnesota. Contrary to recent news reports, I did not graduate from either institution. After college I worked various jobs for which I was ill-suited, including sign painter, graphic artist, marketing executive, pineapple slicer, etc. Eventually, having exhausted other options, I decided to write. My first novel, Drawing Dead, was published in 1993. Today, I live with mystery writer and poet Mary Logue in Golden Valley, Minnesota and Stockholm, Wisconsin. We have two small dogs (are you still reading?) named Rene and Jacques. There you have it. Fifty-plus years compressed into a few short paragraphs. Feel free to copy and paste for your book report, but don't tell anybody I suggested it. Need to know more? Check out the FAQs page on my website at http://www.petehautman.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great read for reluctant readers, September 12, 2006

By 

Christina Hare (Raleigh, NC USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Bloodwater Mysteries: Snatched (Hardcover)

Pete Hautman has long been one of my favorite authors. I have since discovered Mary Logue and have become a fan of her exquisite Claire Watkins mysteries. Each author writes compelling fiction filled with sympathetic and sometimes off-beat characters. I was pleased to hear they had teamed up to write a new mystery series for younger readers.

As a former middle/high school teacher, I have consumed a great deal of juvenile and YA fiction. Frequently works written for a younger audience are dumbed down or "cuted up" which turns off already reluctant readers. In this case, however, Hautman and Logue write with respect for their audience and provide characters we can relate to, a fun adventure, and lots of laughs as Roni and Brian sort through clues while navigating relations with teachers and parents.

This work will certainly delight younger readers, but I also recommended it for adults. It would make an entertaining read-aloud selection for any Language Arts or Reading teacher as well as for any parent who wants to laugh and puzzle along with their child.

Bloodwater #1: Snatched provides us with a full-blooded male and female protagonist and with enough twists to satisfy the seasoned fan of the mystery genre. Despite a satisfying conclusion, this first installment leaves readers awaiting the next with anticipation.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars great read for mystery lovers, December 16, 2008

By 

M. Tanenbaum (Claremont, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Snatched (Bloodwater Mysteries) (Paperback)

Set in a small town in Minnesota, this mystery series features a girl detective/school newspaper reporter, Roni Delicata, who teams up with science geek Brian Bain, to solve crimes in their small town. In this book, their classmate Alicia, who lives in the fancy part of town and seems to have it all, has been beaten and then kidnapped--or so it seems. Roni can't resist sticking her nose in where it isn't wanted to solve a mystery, and manages to outsmart the police, with Brian at her side. Some violence in the story gives this mystery an edgier feel, suitable for slightly older tweens. A quick read, but with both humor and a darker side (child abuse enters into the story). Lots of action and a complicated plot will keep readers engaged with the story. There is a surprise, gender-bending twist in the story when the abuser turns out to be the mother rather than the stepfather, as we first think. This book is the first in a series featuring Brian and Roni. One nice aspect of this particular series is that, with a strong girl and boy character, it should appeal equally to both sexes. Pete Hautman has won a National Book award, among other honors, for his young adult novels; he is equally skilled at the mystery genre.

3.0 out of 5 stars Snatched review, Cara, May 24, 2010

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Snatched (Bloodwater Mysteries) (Paperback)

Roni, a nosy school reporter, and Brian, a guy that has a particular interest in science, get tied up in the mystery of finding Alicia Camden. They both got suspended from school, so they both have to break the rules to figure out this case. Alicia mysteriously gets snatched, and when she gets found, she won't tell anyone about what happened. Roni and Brian dig hard to investigate, and have a large group of suspects, while Alicia continually gets found and kidnapped again and again, with a surprising ending.

Snatched is a somewhat suspenseful, interesting book that has a good plot line, with a disappointing ending. Throughout the story, the suspense builds as Alicia keeps giving subtle clues, and Brian and Roni try with huge effort to crack the case. Towards the end of the book, you find out where Alicia might be, which builds suspense even more. The ending was unexpected, which I liked, but nothing changed and nothing interesting happened. It also didn't have a great action scene, but overall it was a pretty good book. I would rate this book three out of five stars because it was well written and had an interesting plot, but an ending that was unsatisfying. What I learned from this book that everything isn't always about you because first, Alicia did something that caused a lot of people in the community stress, and second, Brian and Roni were disappointed that they weren't displayed as heros in the end and were upset about that, but it doesn't matter though because everyone is still alright, including Roni and Brian.