Review: Untraceable by S.R. Johannes

Author: S.R. Johannes
Pages: 315
Publisher: Kindle
Source: Review Copy (thank you!)
Synopsis: 16-year-old Grace has lived in the Smokies all her life, patrolling with her forest ranger father who taught her about wildlife, tracking, and wilderness survival. 

When her dad goes missing on a routine patrol, Grace refuses to believe he’s dead and fights the town authorities, tribal officials, and nature to find him.

One day, while out tracking clues, Grace is rescued from danger by Mo, a hot guy with an intoxicating accent and a secret. As her feelings between him and her ex-boyfriend get muddled, Grace travels deep into the wilderness to escape and find her father. 

Along the way, Grace learns terrible secrets that sever relationships and lives. Soon she’s enmeshed in a web of conspiracy, deception, and murder. And it’s going to take a lot more than a compass and a motorcycle (named Lucifer) for this kick-butting heroine to save everything she loves.

Buy the Book (Amazon/

It took me forever to read Untraceable. That shouldn't say much about the quality of the book though since I was actually very interested in the plot. Untraceable is a very unique book and it's very well done. I enjoyed reading about all the Survival Skills and that part was fun.

I'll start this review with a confession. I somewhat stupidly thought this book would be a paranormal mystery. I didn't read any reviews beforehand and the synopsis gives none of the twists away. I kept expecting something to happen and it took over a hundred pages for me to realize that, no, this was no paranormal. The author wrote a contemporary mystery.

After I realized that, the story flowed much more smoothly. There is an incredible amount of suspense in Untraceable. There are clues and suggestions everywhere that lead to a surprising ending. I honestly had no idea what to expect. Johannes writes a very unique plot twist and revelation that was probably the last thing I was expecting. I love that this story was unexpected. There was so much tension but I felt at times the story was slow. I was so confused- I had no idea what was happening and how to solve the mystery. For someone like me, some more hints would have been welcome. That being said I was impressed with the mystery.

The characters were a diverse group. I liked that a lot. Grace herself was independent and had this very admirable strength. There were many moments that I found I could relate to Grace, especially when she was vulnerable. She wasn't a bland character; she had personality. The side characters were well done too. I ended up being very upset with the actions of one specific character which was surprising because I never knew I cared that much about them.

Overall, Untraceable wasn't my usual type of read. That had its benefits but I would have liked to find the story more gripping. I know that other readers didn't have the same issue so take this with a grain of salt. If you enjoy a suspenseful mystery consider Untraceable. 3 stars,

***