Title: A List of Cages
Author: Robin Roe
Published: 2017/01/10
Version: Hardcover
Started: 2017/05/20
Finished: 2017/05/21
Rating: 5/5

Goodread Synopsis: When Adam Blake lands the best elective ever in his senior year, serving as an aide to the school psychologist, he thinks he’s got it made. Sure, it means a lot of sitting around, which isn’t easy for a guy with ADHD, but he can’t complain, since he gets to spend the period texting all his friends. Then the doctor asks him to track down the troubled freshman who keeps dodging her, and Adam discovers that the boy is Julian—the foster brother he hasn’t seen in five years.

Adam is ecstatic to be reunited. At first, Julian seems like the boy he once knew. He’s still kindhearted. He still writes stories and loves picture books meant for little kids. But as they spend more time together, Adam realizes that Julian is keeping secrets, like where he hides during the middle of the day, and what’s really going on inside his house. Adam is determined to help him, but his involvement could cost both boys their lives… 

My Thoughts: This was a devastatingly good book.  It’s books like this that remind me why I want to volunteer with the CASA program.  I loved how this story was written. Robin did a wonderful job of giving all of the characters a multi-dimensional personality, good people have flaws too.  I loved Adams mom, I think Robin did a good job showing what we all think of when we think of the mama bear mom.

I thought the past relationship with Jullian was wonderful, sad, but wonderful.  It’s a great show of how terrible the system can be at times.  I found myself extremely invested in the outcome of this book and had I gotten further into the book by the end of day one I probably would have stayed up through the night to finish it.  Thank goodness for small favors.

The jump between perspectives was a great way to delve further into the story but I gotta admit, knowing certain things and not having the other person (Adam/Jullian) was extremely frustrating.  I kept wanting things to happen before they did.

I will also admit I totally cried.   I can’t wait to see what else Robin comes up with.