Book Review: The Rules for Disappearing by Ashley Elston

Title:  The Rules of Disappearing
Author:  Ashley Elston
Publisher:  Disney-Hyperion
Release date:  May 14th, 2013
Genre:  YA, contemporary. mystery

She’s been six different people in six different places: Madeline in Ohio, Isabelle in Missouri, Olivia in Kentucky . . . But now that she’s been transplanted to rural Louisiana, she has decided that this fake identity will be her last.

Witness Protection has taken nearly everything from her. But for now, they’ve given her a new name, Megan Rose Jones, and a horrible hair color. For the past eight months, Meg has begged her father to answer one question: What on earth did he do – or see – that landed them in this god-awful mess? Meg has just about had it with all the Suits’ rules — and her dad’s silence. If he won’t help, it’s time she got some answers for herself.

But Meg isn’t counting on Ethan Landry, an adorable Louisiana farm boy who’s too smart for his own good. He knows Meg is hiding something big. And it just might get both of them killed. As they embark on a perilous journey to free her family once and for all, Meg discovers that there’s only one rule that really matters — survival.

This is a story about a girl in protective service who had to move a bunch of times so she is not up for meeting new people when she is forced to move to a small town in Louisiana. Her family was upper-middle class (I think) before they had to change their identities. Meg (or Sissy) is determined to find out the truth from her parents but they aren't really the sharing types. Dad is always working while mum is constantly drunk so she mostly takes care of her sister, Mary (or Teeny) who is afraid of being left behind. She finds a job in a local pizzeria on her first day of actually looking (#jealous) where the hot guy from school. Ethan Landry comes to eat swamp pizza. 

The first part of the story was centered around Meg's paranoia. She fears that her family is going to be sent somewhere else any minute now so she carries her go-to bag with her all the time. She tries to stay away from all new people but it's not working because Ethan cracks her armor and starts seeing there's something weird about the way she's acting. The first half of the book was actually the part I enjoyed till they went hunting wild hogs, with guns. Having minors near guns or even letting them use them is a huge no-no for me. Meg even fainted. From there the book started to show flaws and I couldn't see anything good. 

The second half of the book is ridiculous. I don't want to reveal too much but Meg finally finds out the truth about what happened and with Ethan's help she sets out to find the evidence without letting anyone know. They go to place where Meg grew up while there are a bunch of mobsters after them. For some reason, they thought it was the right thing to do. Who would actually do that I know I wouldn't. I would let the Feds know where the evidence is and just stay safe and let professionals to do their job. I prefer to live another day. Such stupidity.  The whole reveal was unsatisfying and unrealistic SPOILER Mobster killing 2 people and letting Meg live without torturing her to find where the evidence is. He just walked away. As for the ending, who knows. Maybe there'll be a sequel, it's never over. 

RULES FOR DISAPPEARING BY WITNESS PROTECTION PRISONER #18A7R04M:

Don’t ever think it’s over. Even when you’re sure it’s over, it’s not over.