The Lost

I had planned a pan. The attempts at cute humor were killing me, and the story, but I stuck with it, and it was worth it.A young woman, who doesn't seem to have much of a life that doesn't include her terminally ill mother and her job, takes a wrong turn on purpose, in order to escape hearing bad news, something, it seems, she does often. Only this time, she ends up lost in a dust storm, and ends up in Lost, a city of lost things and people. The place where your sock mates and the eighth spoon from your flatware set go to live. There are people living there, some of whom are trying to discover how they got there, and the rest trying to leave.Lauren, the woman's name is, grudgingly settles for life in a dangerous town, waiting for the Missing Man to come, the dapper gentleman who can help you find what you lost and send you back home. Only, for some reason, that I never found out, he runs away from her, angering the residents left behind.She meets a beautiful man, and a tough little girl, who show her how to hide, hunt, and gradually settle in, discovering a little more about herself as time goes by. In spite of her urgency to get back to be by her mother's side, they form a little family, and their personalities are so unique that you have to stick around to see what happens. That Lauren becomes immune to the lack of untouched food, opened bottles of shampoo, cheeseburgers with the bitten part sliced off and served on the clean part of a paper plate she found, is odd and sensitive at the same time.It's really a fun time, and while it's obviously fantasy, we all know how it feels to want to get home, wherever that turns out to be.I can't wait for book 2.

This is the first book of a trilogy that represent her first adult novels. Lauren Chase’s mother had been treated for cancer a few years earlier and it had been in remission, but when she’d gone in for tests occasioned by some new symptoms Lauren has this strong feeling that the news is going to be bad, and instead of making the turn off I-10 in LA to go to her job she just keeps driving. I’ll admit that her car seems to be able to go a lot farther than most of mine have on a tank of gas; she ends up somewhere in the Arizona desert well beyond Tucson when she runs into a dust storm, and in trying to get through it she finds herself entering the village of Lost. And it’s a very strange place indeed—money isn’t used, everything is bartered, the people are odd, and although she keeps trying to leave she always ends up back at the town, until finally she runs out of gas. A very handsome but mysterious man finds her and pushes her car back out of the dust storm into the environs of Lost, and with the help of a young girl Lauren manages to set up housekeeping in a house just outside town, which somehow manages to have electricity and running water even though she can’t figure out how they’re connected. Going much further I’d have to get into spoilers, so I’ll leave it at that. I’ve loved all of Durst’s children/YA books; this one I’m less sure about. I think I want to see how the tril-ogy works out before I’ll be sure. Certainly the writing is good and Lauren is a reasonably engaging character, but I don’t think I yet have my mind around what’s going on, so I’m not sure what my feelings are about the place or the overall story.

First I read "The Queen of Blood" by Mrs. Durst. Next I read Book 2 in that series. Then naturally - because I like her writing and want to read more - I browsed her other books. The Lost sounded so intriguing, the blurb took me up into its dust storm of story and I was sold. I was not disappointed.In the middle of the book and then some I did start to get a little bored because the beginning was so full of content and learning. Then next thing you know we're putzing around Lost for what felt like too long. And then the action/information picked up. I was back at attention. I like all parts of this book, except for the middle. The characters, the setting, the story arc, it took hold of me. Lauren, the main character is believable but not extraordinary. So many books surround an extra-ordinary character - Which works most of the time - so it felt good and unique that Lauren is not. She's likeable. Every step you're wondering where could this be going. I like books I can't easily figure out. It's not thrilling per se and it's not am action packed book by any means, but it's so interesting. Psychologically it's interesting. It's subtle but strange. I think it's everything good books are.I say, read the blurb. If it sounds interesting to you, get the book. Cheers!

Very interesting. Different in a good way

Jee-Zeus! Did I just read a Harlequin romance and like it? What fresh hell is this? Gotta say 'this artfully written book grabbed me by gonads and wouldn't let go. Liked it so much I wasn't even pissed off when I found out it was part one of a series. In fact I'm glad because I loved the characters and want more. This gal can really write.

Actual Rating = 3.5“It’s called gallows humor. Standard coping mechanism. Frankly, I’m suspicious of anyone who doesn’t find humor in death.”Why do people not talk about Sarah Beth Durst more often? Her writing, including The Lost which I love, is so smart and so unique among fantasy/sci-fi novels. Almost literary in nature. I'm all about it and all about this!If she could just increase her pacing by a teeny bit this would be utterly perfect.

I'm not going to rehash the plot. I started this book because of the engaging premise. Loved the slightly creepy factor of being stuck in "Lost." And then I couldn't put it down. So there I sat with my exercise clothes on still reading and hitting the gym several hours later than planned! Loved every character. Totally fleshed out with depth and mystery. Some have said they didn't appreciate that they didn't know the back story but I enjoyed getting it in pieces all the way through the book. Again I loved the mystery to it. This story was unique in that I feel satisfied where it ended but also would love reading more about this unusual town. Thanks for the great work ms durst.