The Vanished Ones

The Vanished Ones, Chad Lucas's newest novel is at once an adventure, a fantasy, and an exploration of the very powerful and relevant themes of belief, belonging, and the vagaries of truth. As he has done in his previous novels, Lucas creates characters with great tenderness, yet he never hesitates......more

3.5 stars A children’s book which deals with many adult issues to do with identity and religion. It was an interesting read although I found it a little slow. Plenty of adventure for the intended audience and nicely written. Thank you to NetGalley for the ebook.......more

By turns enthralling and moving, The Vanished Ones tells the story of Darian who has grown up in a cloistered religious mission on an island, surrounded by piety and fear, among other orphans and abandoned children. Twice a year, students from the mission go missing, and when Darian finally starts q......more

I am continually floored by Lucas's range, as he's pivoted effortlessly between genres with his growing list of books. In The Vanished Ones, his first fantasy adventure, I was immediately drawn into the austere setting of the colony on the island at the edge of the world, where main character Darian......more

I enjoyed that this book has children learning to question religion and breaking down some of the barriers that I find personally hindering when dealing with religion. This is not a book that I would probably recommend to a younger reader, but one that an older reader questioning the some of the bel......more