I went in to this book expecting it to be a fast paced read like his book pen pal, I was wrong. This is a super slow read, no cliffhangers at the end of the chapters to make you want to pick the book up again. I pushed my way through it anyway because the story was good, it just dragged. It wasn’t until chapter 40 or 42 that I actually was excited to keep reading- finally something was really happening and it wasn’t just

the everyday life of Ben.

 
There are SO many unanswered points in the book that I am now frustrated after finishing it. 
I understand who the Bad Man is and woooahhhhh

Beverly really brainwashed those kids! But what EXACTLY happened to her? Was Ben ever found? What was the significance of the symbol? Was it just something that the stutter boy saw one day and latched on to? Did Palmer know Beverly was living in the store and that’s why she got fired? He did tell Ben there was a reason she was getting fired that he didn’t know about. Why wouldn’t Palmer SAY anything?

too many unknowns in this book. 
There’s also a lot of times that I had to go back snd reread parts to understand them, which is something that has never happened for me, which further increased the slowness of this read.

It’s a good story but it didn’t make me feel satisfied while reading or when I finished. It’s definitely not a must read like his first book.