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Janie Face to Face    by Caroline B. Cooney Amazon.com order for
Janie Face to Face
by Caroline B. Cooney
Order:  USA  Can
Delacorte, 2013 (2013)
Hardcover, e-Book
* * *   Reviewed by Lyn Seippel

Janie Johnson is attending college in New York City where no one knows she is the much publicized kidnap victim who found her three-year-old face on a milk carton. She makes new friends and happily, she is no longer questioned about her life before and after her kidnapping. She is no longer the topic of discussion whenever she enters a room. Janie keeps her families and her college life separate. She even has a new boyfriend although she's taking it slow with him. So slow that he often complains that she never confides in him.

When she finds out that someone she trusts is doing research for a book about her life and her two families, Janie feels betrayed. She is surprised that her first reaction is to call Reeve for advice and comfort. Reeve is a former boyfriend who told her story to the world on a college radio show.

Janie and her friends and family are forced to face their feelings about the tragedy of Janie's kidnapping and put into perspective everything that happened after she saw her face on a milk carton. In this fifth and final book of Janie's life, her kidnapper (Hannah) finds a voice. Her memories of what happened and why are different from Janie's and those of her two families. Hannah thinks Janie stole her parents' love and her inheritance. Through social media, Hannah finds a way to keep up with Janie and she plots to get even.

If you're a reader who likes all the ends tied up when the series is over, this is the book you've been waiting for. It is a wonderful conclusion to the Face on the Milk Carton series. The series includes five books and a 2012 eBook called What Janie Saw.

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