The 2008 Gateway novel, What Happened to Cass McBride, rightly deserves its spot on the list of best books for teens. The story follows a high school girl, Cass, who is kidnapped from her home and burried alive by a boy whose brother recently committed suicide.

Throughout the book, (which takes place in the course of three days) Cass is communicating with her kidnapper, Kyle, through a walkie-talkie where she learns about him, his brother, and why he kidnapped Cass.

This fast-paced book shifts between three different character’s points of view and had me hurrying to get to the next page. It takes you into the minds of these main characters and gets the reader thinking hard about their own life situations.

I can’t think of anything that I personally didn’t like about the story. It’s short, (it only took me about two days to read) yet detailed. I would really recommend this book to anyone that wants a quick read and enjoys the dramatic, life-or-death situations.