In
the fourth and last book of the Amanda Project series, Unraveled, the mysteries surrounding the disappearance of Endeavor
High School student Amanda Valentino are finally solved. When the series began,
Amanda’s classmates Hal, Callie, and Nia were only concerned with finding their
missing friend--however, as they dug deeper into the mystery they discovered
that the truth was more complex than it may have appeared, and involved many
more people than just Amanda.
Unraveled was written by Cathleen Davitt
Bell, and narrated by Zoe Costas, a character introduced in the third Amanda
Project book, Shattered. Zoe had been
another one of Amanda’s friends in Orion—though she had
also known Amanda before, as they had been childhood friends in Pinkerton,
where they both previously lived. Zoe calls herself the “secret guide,” and has
been shadowing Callie, Hal, and Nia on their escapades during the first three
books, only revealing herself to them in the third.
Zoe seems to
have the power to basically turn herself invisible, and is also very gifted in
picking up on the thoughts and emotions of others. In Shattered, the other three guides began to recognize their powers
as well—Callie is very strong, Hal is able to see the future, and Nia can sense
things about the past—and these powers become very important in Unraveled as they work to discover the
truth and avoid being captured by the evil forces working against them.
From the very
first page of Unraveled, the guides
investigate and begin to solve the large and small mysteries that have surfaced
since Amanda’s disappearance. Some of these mysteries, such as Vice Principal
Thornhill’s mysterious computer database and the secret behind the Orion
Pharmaceutical College, are uncovered early on, and these major developments
give the guides a better understanding of Amanda’s predicament. This comes in
handy when they follow a set of clues she has left for them on a school trip to
Washington, D.C., and are pursued by the same people who are pursuing Amanda. As
the guides navigate their way through national landmarks while completing a
required scavenger hunt, they discover more about the mysterious past of Amanda
and many other people in their town—and come across several very unexpected
characters.
Unraveled is unique when compared to the
rest of the Amanda Project series, as the guides can be slightly more open
about their investigation, and are almost constantly in danger while being
pursued on their school trip. Several characters also make startling
reappearances, reveal surprising truths about their identity, or are discovered
to have played a much larger role in the mystery than previously assumed. Perhaps
most notably, the massive secret behind the whole mystery comes to light, and
readers are finally given answers to many of their questions. As mentioned
before, there is also a more supernatural focus, as the special powers of the
guides and Amanda herself become extremely important to the story.
Overall, Unraveled was a very satisfying end to
the Amanda Project series, and provides a conclusion worthy of the complex
mystery developed in previous books. The book is engaging, fast-paced, and also
educational, as the guides learn about topics including genetic structures and
events in U.S. history while following Amanda’s clues. I would definitely
recommend this book to anyone who has read the previous books in the series, as
it provides a strong sense of closure and resolution to Amanda’s mystery, and
was my favorite book in the series so far. I would suggest that any new readers start with book one, Invisible I, as they would likely be at
least somewhat confused jumping into the story near the end.
