Missing Pieces

Though all of the Replica books are fantastic, Replica, 17, has to be up at the top of my list. Marilyn Kaye, as usual, did an outstanding job. I was a bit confused at first, because, as the cover shows, it really is like a puzzle. I was kind of hoping that Ms. Kaye wouldn't proceed to venture into the fantastic world as much as she did, (there is one new character named Jerry Newman who has a powerful bracelet.) I would have like to have this book be more realistic. Though making a perfect human isn't realistic, cloning is. If scientists do get to go that far, I'm not sure why they would make a bracelet like this anyway. (What the bracelet does is amazing.) A real creepy girl known as Michelle has a lot more to do with the book than you think in the beginning and in the middle. Eric seems to be a character that's fading away, I've noticed in the recent books. He should be replaced (if he leaves home or something,) by a mysterious boy that Amy really wants to get to know named Chris. Chris is a person that really has to do with the story, but then again, he doesn't. He will in future books. In this one, don't believe everything the characters say and do. People who look like they're bad can turn out to be good, and someone who could be as innocent as a butterfly (and maybe acts like one, too) might be the real villian. You really need to read this book.

Everything was normal for Amy Candler and the other students in Parkside Middle School. But that was until the most gifted students started to lose their talents -- and the talented people just aren't talented anymore. Something is stealing the special qualities in the students of Parkside, and Amy, together with her friend Tasha, must dig deep into the strange, somewhat haunted mystery. And when Amy , now in the eighth grade, meets Chris -- the new loner at school who's been titled 'Demon' by the students, her world begins to slowly change. Chris is the ultimate suspect of the disappearing talents at Parkside. After all, he's so mysterious -- and haunting. Amy doesn't know if Chris is stealing the talents of everyone at the school. But the burning question is clear in Amy's mind as well as every other student at Parkside: Is there really a demon stalking the grounds of Parkside Middle School? Replica #17: Missing Pieces, although not the best, was a suspenseful and touching addition to this amazing science fiction series by Marilyn Kaye and plays an important role in the series that hints toward the near future.

This is a great book! The ending is nothing like you'd expect it to be. I thought it was an exciting book, a real page-turner. In this book, the students at Parkside Middle School are losing their talents, and nobody can figure out why. One minute, the students are talented... and the next, they completely lose everything that makes them special! And it's all up to Amy to figure out why. I'm not going to tell how the students lose their talents, because that would give away the ending. But all I'm going to say is that once you read the first chapter, you definitely won't want to stop.

In this book, Amy Candler and her friend Tasha decide to talk to people they normally wouldn't talk to--Tasha ends up regretting it, though. A girl named Michelle Brooks begins writing for the Parkside "Snooze" and her stories are totally crazy. She thinks that there is a demon among the students at Parkside Middle School, who is taking the talents away from people. The reason she thinks this is because part of it is true--someone, or something, is taking away the talents of people at school. But Amy doesn't go for the idea of a demon. So she decides to do some investigating. Meanwhile, Tasha and Amy make "friends" with a boy named Jerry Newman (who is obsessed with a comic book character, Megaman), and much to Tasha's dismay, he wants to become a little bit MORE than friends with her. Amy, however, meets someone who she likes a lot more than Jerry Newman and who will undoubtedly be in many books after this--Chris Skinner. It is very likely that he will be the next to be told Amy's secret. Anyway, things are O.K. until everyone starts believing that Chris is the demon, and then Amy starts to be unsure that he is who he says he is. Find out what happens in this wonderful book. Recommended for all fans of sci-fi books, and fans of the past 16 Replicas.

Now that Amy and Tasha are in the eighth grade, Eric - who is Tasha's brother and Amy's boyfriend - is in tenth grade, which means he goes to the high school now, instead of Parkside Middle School. It also means that he never has any time for Amy any more, and has been acting like a real jerk. This year, Amy and Tasha vow to help the outsiders. Tasha tries to befriend Michelle, a quiet, shy girl who has up until now been homeschooled. Amy wants to help Chris, a sullen boy who keeps to himself. Both girls find themselves followed by a pesky, nerdy boy named Jerry. When all the talented students at Parkside - beginning with the athletes - begin to lose what makes them special, Michelle starts a wild rumor that convinces everyone that Chris is responsible, and that he is a demon! Amy knows there must be a logical explanation - but can she solve this mystery in time? Marilyn Kaye has written another great book in the series that I reccomend to all Replica fans.