Untraceable / Aya de León.

Title :

Untraceable

Author:

Format:

Books

Summary:

"Fifteen-year-old Amani Kendall's biggest problem is being the only plus-size Black girl at a white private school--until her house burns down and her family is unexpectedly on the run. Suddenly, she's reeling from the news that her formerly boring mom is being pursued by an ex-boyfriend turned stalker, and her scientist dad has gone MIA. At the same time, she has to navigate an underfunded school in the city, suffering the cultural whiplash of being surrounded by other Black students, including the cute boy who's an old family friend. How much danger is their family really in, and how untraceable are they trying to be? Her mom offers only half-answers and roundabout lies, so Amani starts to investigate. But her sleuthing has unexpected consequences, uncovering secret family legacies that will change their lives forever. A revealing prequel to Undercover Latina for existing fans, Untraceable also serves as a thrilling introduction to the world of the Factory for readers encountering this fast-paced spy series for the first time."--Amazon.com

Language:

English

ISBN - ISSN:

1536223751

9781536223750

Physical Description:

326 pages ; 22 cm

General Note:

"A gripping companion novel to Undercover Latina" -- jacket cover.

Subject:

African American teenage girls -- Fiction.

African American high school students -- Fiction.

Minority students -- Fiction.

Overweight teenagers -- Fiction.

Overweight women -- Fiction.

Family secrets -- Fiction.

Missing persons -- Fiction.

African American detectives -- Fiction.

Race awareness in adolescence -- Fiction.

Dwellings -- Fires and fire prevention -- Fiction.

Young adult fiction.

Detective and mystery fiction.

Kendall, Amani (Fictitious character).

Series:

Factory series ;

First Title value, for Searching:

Untraceable / Aya de León.

Holds: Copies:

Available:*

Library	Audience	Home Location	Material Type	Shelf Number	Status
Searching... Floating Collection	Teen/Young Adult	Fiction	Teen Book	DELEO	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Flores	Teen/Young Adult	Fiction	Teen Book	DELEO	Searching... Unknown

Bound With These Titles

On Order

Summary

With gripping results, this companion novel to Undercover Latina returns to the high-stakes world of the Factory--an international organization of spies protecting people of color.

Fifteen-year-old Amani Kendall's biggest problem is being the only plus-size Black girl at a white private school--until her house burns down and her family is unexpectedly on the run. Suddenly, she's reeling from the news that her formerly boring mom is being pursued by an ex-boyfriend turned stalker, and her scientist dad has gone MIA. At the same time, she has to navigate an underfunded school in the city, suffering the cultural whiplash of being surrounded by other Black students, including the cute boy who's an old family friend. How much danger is their family really in, and how untraceable are they trying to be? Her mom offers only half-answers and roundabout lies, so Amani starts to investigate. But her sleuthing has unexpected consequences, uncovering secret family legacies that will change their lives forever. A revealing prequel to Undercover Latina for existing fans, Untraceable also serves as a thrilling introduction to the world of the Factory for readers encountering this fast-paced spy series for the first time.

Author Notes

Aya de León is the AfroLatina author of Undercover Latina , a companion book set in the same world as Untraceable , and several suspense novels for adults, as well as The Mystery Woman in Room Three , a free serialized online novel about two undocumented Dominican teens who uncover a kidnapping plot to stop the Green New Deal. She teaches creative writing at the University of California, Berkeley, and is active in movements for racial, gender, and climate justice. She lives in Northern California.

Reviews (1)

Kirkus Review

In this YA companion to middle-grade thriller Undercover Latina (2022), a Los Angeles teen's family tries to escape her mother's dangerous ex. Fifteen-year-old Amani Kendall goes from practicing roller skating for an upcoming birthday party one day to starting over in a different school with a cover story and a fake name the next. Amani never fit in at elite, STEM-focused Penfield Academy as a "plus-size Black girl who wore African braids…because her mother wouldn't let her flat-iron her hair." But after Amani encounters a creepy man in her backyard and makes a police report (to her mother's great displeasure), everything changes. Her mom picks her up early from school, informing her that their house was burned down, possibly by a stalker ex-boyfriend. Amani's dad, a climate-change researcher, has been away working in the field for months. Amani and her mom take shelter with Sister Niema, who ran the Afrocentric weekend school for girls Amani once attended. Now going by Imani Kennedy, she starts over--with some negative preconceptions about her new classmates--at a public school that's dramatically different from her old one. But she can't help feeling like her mom is hiding something. This body-positive story has an exciting premise and addresses many relevant social issues. Unfortunately, the slow pace makes it difficult to sustain readers' interest, and the book juggles a number of plotlines that don't deliver on their promise. Underwhelming. (Fiction. 12-16) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.