They Never Came BackMP3 CD, 11 October 2016

At summer school, nothing much happens -- usually. But this day is different. In a busy school cafeteria, a teenage girl is confronted by a classmate who questions her very identity. He ex-plains to the students who have crowded around that the girl has an uncanny resemblance to his cousin, who was taken away by social services five years ago. Her parents abandoned her, fleeing the country after being accused of embezzling millions of dollars. The students are intrigued, but the girl -- convincingly to most -- shrugs off the attention as a case of mistaken identity.

As the days pass, however, the boy refuses to relent and even brings his parents in to back him up. They too are stunned by the resemblance. But they are not the only adults involved. An FBI agent who has been working on the embezzlement case from the start appears as well. He believes that whoever this girl is, she can serve as bait to help the FBI capture the fugitives.

In They Never Came Back, which explores the evils of greed and the obligations of loyalty, Caroline B. Cooney has once again crafted a suspenseful novel that will resonate powerfully with listeners.