REVIEW: Stolen by Lucy Christopher

Release Date: 4 May 2009

Publisher: Chicken House

Pages: 320

Buy the book: Amazon

‘It happened like this.

I was stolen from an airport.

Taken from everything I knew,

Everything I was used to.

Taken to sand and heat, dirt and danger. And he expected

me to love him. This is my story.

A letter from nowhere’

Stolen is probably one of my favourite books of all time. The book is about Gemma, an inner city inhabitant British teenager who is captured while on holiday with her parents. Her kidnapper, a young man called Ty takes her to the sandy, desolate Australian outback where there is no sign of life from miles around. As Gemma comes to terms with her awful predicament, she must learn to accept it or die trying to fight it. This book is written by Lucy Christopher and it is her first novel.

Of all the many books that I have read, I found this book to be unique, unusual and nothing like I’d ever read before. At times, the book was scary, challenging and controversial but still a, ground-breaking novel that exceeded my expectations.

The book starts off with Gemma being captured by her kidnapper, Ty. Initially, Gemma despises him and is desperate to get away.

‘I screamed and struggled all the way back. I bit you again. Several times. I spat too.’

However as the story progresses, and you learn more about him, you actually develop a liking for the kidnapper which is odd as the captor is usually portrayed as the ‘bad guy’. Nevertheless, Christopher successful managed to persuade the reader and make you feel sympathetic towards him despite his misdoings.

One of the best things felt that I liked about the book was the way she described the characters. Ty, the kidnapper, is a, misunderstood, complex character. He isn’t the usual kind of kidnapper who is violent or aggressive. Instead he was unusually kind and normal. With regards to Gemma, she begins as a plain, normal and moody teenager but by the end of the book, you feel a special connection or bond with her.


One of the unusual features of the book was the style of narrative that the author used. It was written in the second tense. Although it took some time getting used to, it liked the quirkiness of it and how it was different to other books.

I also think that the author (Lucy Christopher) did a superb job of describing the Australian Outback. Her description provided a vivid and clear picture of what the scene would look like. It really adds to the whole experience of the book. The Australian outback was like a character in itself!

To conclude, I think this book was brilliant! It was ‘unputdownable’! I strongly recommend this book to anyone that wants a good summer read!

Plot: 5/5
Characters: 5/5
Ending: 4/5
Writing: 5/5
Cover: 5/5