Publication Date: May 18, 2021
Once there were two sisters who did everything together. But only one of them disappeared.
New York Times–bestselling author Jacqueline West’s Long Lost is an atmospheric, eerie mystery brimming with suspense. Fans of Katherine Arden’s Small Spaces and Victoria Schwab’s City of Ghosts series will lose themselves in this mesmerizing and century-spanning tale.
Eleven-year-old Fiona has just read a book that doesn’t exist.
When Fiona’s family moves to a new town to be closer to her older sister’s figure skating club—and far from Fiona’s close-knit group of friends—nobody seems to notice Fiona’s unhappiness. Alone and out of place, Fiona ventures to the town’s library, a rambling mansion donated by a long-dead heiress. And there she finds a gripping mystery novel about a small town, family secrets, and a tragic disappearance.
Soon Fiona begins to notice strange similarities that blur the lines between the novel and her new town. With a little help from a few odd Lost Lake locals, Fiona uncovers the book’s strange history. Lost Lake is a town of restless spirits, and Fiona will learn that both help and danger come from unexpected places—maybe even from the sister she thinks doesn’t care about her anymore.
New York Times–bestselling and acclaimed author Jacqueline West weaves a heart-pounding, intense, and imaginative mystery that builds anticipation on every page, while centering on the strong and often tumultuous bond between sisters. Laced with suspense, Long Lost will fascinate readers of Trenton Lee Stewart’s The Secret Keepers and fans of ghost stories.
“A spine-tingling brew of ghosts and half-forgotten mysteries, but just as much, a warm and real story of sibling bonds and small-town adventures. This has all the makings of a classic, and readers will be clamoring for just one more chapter. Perfect to be read late into the night.” ~ Stefan Bachmann, internationally bestselling author of The Peculiar
“A mysterious book leads a girl into a century-old supernatural mystery. . . . Reading this book within a book, Fiona learns about characters Hazel and Pearl . . . Although the two sets of sisters have different relationships and dynamics, the complexity of sisterhood links both storylines, resulting in nuanced relationships. . . . Grab a flashlight and stay up late with this one.” ~ Kirkus Reviews
“In a spooky middle grade love letter to libraries and the mystery genre, West crafts a spellbinding exploration of sisterhood. . . . Alternating a contemporary third-person narrative with the found book’s parallel telling, West draws readers into a supernaturally tinged dual story, simultaneously offering an authentic portrait of sibling angst.” ~ Publishers Weekly
“A mysterious uncatalogued book at the local library proves a welcome distraction from new-town blues, and Fiona becomes absorbed in the book’s story of two sisters, Hazel and Pearl, only to find that the pages go blank after one of them disappears. . . . A series of increasingly eerie incidents occur as she investigates. . . . [Long Lost] will please mystery lovers, while chills and thrills satisfyingly intertwine with the focus on sisterly relationships. ~ Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
Jacqueline West is the author of the New York Times bestselling middle-grade series The Books of Elsewhere, the Schneider Family Book Award Honor Book The Collectors, and several other novels for young readers and teens. An award-winning poet and occasional actress, she lives with her family in Red Wing, Minnesota.
