The Rules for Disappearing Ashley Elston Book Review

Title: The Rules for Disappearing

Author: Ashley Elston

Series: The Rules for Disappearing #1

Publish date: May 14th 2013 by Disney-Hyperion

Source: Received for review via Netgalley

Buy it from: Amazon|Book Depository | IndieBound | Books & Books

Goodreads summary:

She’s been six different people in six different places: Madeline in Ohio, Isabelle in Missouri, Olivia in Kentucky . . . But now that she’s been transplanted to rural Louisiana, she has decided that this fake identity will be her last.

Witness Protection has taken nearly everything from her. But for now, they’ve given her a new name, Megan Rose Jones, and a horrible hair color. For the past eight months, Meg has begged her father to answer one question: What on earth did he do – or see – that landed them in this god-awful mess? Meg has just about had it with all the Suits’ rules — and her dad’s silence. If he won’t help, it’s time she got some answers for herself.

But Meg isn’t counting on Ethan Landry, an adorable Louisiana farm boy who’s too smart for his own good. He knows Meg is hiding something big. And it just might get both of them killed. As they embark on a perilous journey to free her family once and for all, Meg discovers that there’s only one rule that really matters — survival.

Review:

The Rules for Disappearing by Ashley Elston took me a long while to read. It’s easy for me to pinpoint why. The opening chapter was great and very engaging, but I was virtually lost as a reader pretty shortly after that.

For a book that I’ve heard described as a “thriller,” it was remarkably free of thrills for roughly the first 60%. A character that we know steadily as “Sissy” struggles to fit into a new school. It felt very… typical. Disregarding the fact that we know Sissy (oh lord, I honestly cringed over that nickname– and her sister “Teeny’s” nickname too) is in Witness Protection, it just felt bland. She could have been any girl at a new school, warring with herself to either fit in or keep her distance.

Her character felt extremely one-dimensional to me to the point where, when the love interest confesses how cool he finds her, this disbelieving voice in my head went “why?” (To be fair, I didn’t really get the appeal of him either) Beyond her circumstances, I couldn’t think of any characteristics of Sissy’s that stood out.

After the first 60%, I was drawn in a little more with some revelations about why the family was in the Witness Protection Program. Though I had already guessed a lot of it, and found it a little predictable, the circumstances were interesting and I got a few scenes that made me sit up and pay attention.  But, amidst the action, there were some scenes that I felt didn’t actually further the plot and took away from what should have been a fast pace.

The ending was left with a bit unresolved which was frustrating. I felt like things were just a little too easy and convenient which, upon investigation, is because The Rules for Disappearing kicks off a series.

Need a second opinion?

“Overall, The Rules for Disappearing was nothing like I’d expected it to be, in a good, very good way.” – Paper Riot

“The story kept me entertained even though the romance and characters weren’t my favorite.” –The Quiet Concert

“I was immediately sucked into this novel, and read it within a day!” – A Book and a Latte