Title: One Was Lost
Author: Natalie D. Richards
Pages: 320
Genre: YA Mystery/Thriller
Release Date: 04 October 2016

From Goodreads: "Murder, justice, and revenge were so not a part of the plan when Sera set out on her senior camping trip. After all, hiking through the woods is supposed to be safe and uneventful. Then one morning the group wakes up groggy, confused, and with words scrawled on their wrists: Damaged. Deceptive. Dangerous. Darling. Their supplies? Destroyed. Half their group? Gone. Their chaperone? Unconscious. Worst of all, they find four dolls acting out a murder—dolls dressed just like them. Suddenly it's clear; they're being hunted. And with the only positive word on her wrist, Sera falls under suspicion…"

Thank you to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Fire for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for review!

One Was Lost follows a group of high school students on a senior camping trip, also called a "high school senior life experience mission." When a storm separates the group of six students and two teachers, the groups have no choice but to wait out the storm and spend the night on opposite sides of the river. Morning comes, and everyone is groggy and has mysterious words written on their wrists. All of their supplies are destroyed, meaning no cell phones and no way to contact anyone on the outside, and their teacher is completely unconscious. Soon, they realize they're being stalked, and nobody is safe from suspicion.

I highly enjoyed One Was Lost. From start to finish, the book was fast paced and always had some action going on, and kept me on the edge of my seat. It starts off with the group moving through the woods and then suddenly being separated, all within the first 10 or so pages, I believe. From there, the story grabs you by the hand and pulls you along as you read about the insane things that four of the students have to go through to survive. It was great to follow them and see how their interactions changed with each other throughout the story, and how their suspicions fell from each other the more that they learned about each other.

One of my personal dislikes was the romance. I understood why it was included, although the part about Sera's mom kind of felt out of place to me, but I just didn't feel like it fit in with all that was happening. However, I can see why/how it developed as the story went on. It didn't necessarily take away from what was happening as a whole, it just wasn't my favorite part of the book. On the plus side, it didn't get super uber lovey dovey and there was no love triangle, so there were definite bonus points for that!

A high point of the story was getting to read about Sera's journey from start to finish. At the beginning, she didn't come across as a very strong character. She was dealing with issues she had with Lucas, she was out of her element in the woods, and I was really hoping for a change as the book went on. By the end, she was the strongest character, and was really able to work out the issues she had with Lucas and her mother, and came out of the insanity a much stronger person than she was before. With no knowledge of what was going on, and being suspicious of pretty much everyone, Sera held it together and ended up being the hero of the story.

I mentioned before that the book was fast paced, and it really was. There was always something going on, whether it was running or finding clues or more running. Because pretty much everyone ends up being a suspect, especially Sera, tensions were always high and I was constantly on the edge of my seat, flipping the pages as fast as I could. I found myself getting so immersed into the story and invested in the characters. The writing really allowed me to dive into the world and feel like I was right there in the woods running from whatever it was that was hunting the group. It was descriptive, but never gave too much away, and always left you wanting more at the end of every chapter. I was hooked from start to finish, and I enjoyed that the action never dropped off and that there was never a lull in the story. The threat in the woods was a constant one in every single page, and it really gave me the chills!

By the end, I was really satisfied with how everything tied up. No loose ends, just a clean cut story. If you enjoy fast paced thrillers with a plot line you can really get lost in, then definitely pick up One Was Lost by Natalie D. Richards! It comes out in October, just in time for Halloween, so mark it on your calendar and prepare to get lost!