Chase

by Jessie Haas

When Phin Chase witnesses a violent murder, he knows he must leave town. But no matter how fast he runs and where he hides, there is always someone close behind. Who is it? And what does he want? Set in the aftermath of the Civil War, this adrenaline-laced novel features a horse with the ability to track like a bloodhound, a resilient hero, a mystery that will keep readers hooked, and a relentless chase across a wide swath of the American Midwest.

Ages: 10 -14

Genres: Historical Fiction, Horses, Young Adult, Mystery, Fiction, Historical, Adventure

256 pages, ebook

First published April 1, 2007

About the author

Jessie Haas has written over 35 books for children and adults, many about horses--a lifelong passion. She currently owns a Morgan mare, Robin, who is being clicker-trained to be a trail and pasture-dressage horse. She lives in a small, off-grid house in the woods with husband Michael J. Daley, two cats and a dog. When not writing or riding or reading she likes to knit, cook, and write, or ride, or read.

Reviews

[Emily Eastman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really I give this a 3.5. This book was enjoyable. There was some suspense, drama, and mystery but not enough for my taste. I really wish Phin wouldn't have seen the face of the man who murdered Engelbreit that way this book would've had even more action and mystery. Maybe, just a thought here, Phin could've been running from the man on the horse thinking that was the person who murdered Engelbreit. That would've been way more suspenseful. I also wish we would've had more time to get to know the family Phin and Fraser ended up staying with. I thought the section they were in was to brief and I didn't get to know or love the family like a reader should. I admired Phin's spirit and way of thinking, though it did lead him to trouble when he knocked Fraser off his horse, it also brought him to the help he needed. I thought the ending of this story fell flat. What was with the mercy. Whatever. "But when I catch him now, kid or no kid-I'll cut his throat." - Plume
Now is it just me or does that sound pretty cut and dry?Well when Plume did catch Phin he just let him go. Seriously? A battle would be nice or some action because after the legnths Phin went to to get away that ending was pretty wimpy. I did really enjoy this book it just needed more. It needed more action, suspense, and more thought through ending. Also why have only 27 people read this book? There needs to be some advertizing done. Maybe a free book giveaway on goodreads but my main suggestion would be to submit your work to scholastic. Get it in the catolog. That's your best bet because a lot of the age group this book appeals to order from scholastic. This book was good but it needs a little work and to get known and get out there.

[Mason Draper]

This book was a great book it had a few things I didn't like and a few things I very much enjoyed.

The story really starts with a bang. (no pun intended) The next 10-20 pages are pretty boring, but soon after gets very engaging. The main character is a boy, but out smarts a few adults in it. I really liked him too. I would recommend it if you need a historical fiction and like adventures.

I'm glad I read this. All in all it was a good book.

[Yvonne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Suspensful and dramatic escape tale, set in post-civil war mining town, with a sympathetic teenage hero accused of murder and on the run almost from page one until the very end.

[Pebbles Brooke · Rating 2 out of 5]

Chase is based around Historical Fiction.
Phin witnesses a murder, but the whole town accuses him of doing it, so he flees into the unknown country, and struggles to find where he belongs with a paper in his possession that costs the lives of 6 men. A man sets off riding on a horse with tracking skills of a bloodhound, goes after Phin until his plan goes awry trying to shake off the tracker making Phin choose between fight or flight. How will their ends meet?

I give it a 2 star because it was okay, but I felt like it was too descriptive which made the story slow. It was hard to follow along on what was happening in some parts. I don’t really like the cover of the book because of the colors in the background. However, I did like the suspense and mystery of the storyline and how Phin's plans were clever.

Fans of Darkness Rising trilogy, Moonlight Bridgade, Gib Rides Home would probably like this.

Other books by Jessica Haas: Unbroken, Bramble and Maggie, Saige-American Girl Doll, Rescue
Difficulty level to read: easy- no words I had to look up
Quote from the book: “My life is for itself, and not for a spectacle."

[Siosifa · Rating 3 out of 5]

In the beginning of the book the main character, Phin, was looking over a book. In the book a person named, Engelbreit, was murdered. Also, Phin got trapped in a dog hole and had to be rescued by Jimmy. Towards the end of the book Brinkley thinks that Phin is the murderer. They don’t know who the murderer is and they make “conclusions” to whom they think it is.
The author uses Phin as a main character to make the story seem more real. The setting that the author put in the book made it feel like a gothic literature. The author also thought to put in some women in distress. The author makes the rider who tracks down Phin a very scary part of the book.
In my opinion the book was very good and I would recommend people to read it if they like gothic literature. I think that the author did really good to come up with the characters in the book. They made it seem like the book happened in real life. If I were you I would really read it.

[Emma O · Rating 3 out of 5]

This novel by Jessie Haas was a very, very, very favorable read. The beginning was kinda confusing and you had to pay good attention to keep up with what was happening. It was a very splendid book though once you get to the part in the dog hole. The book is full of action and very descriptive. If you can picture things in your head this is a good book for you. It is a longer read if you don't read really read in your free time. Chase is also one of those books that has a really big climax that may be scary to some but isn't that scary. You also have to follow along with the book and what is happening or you will not understand any of it. I would say that you should waste your time to read it because it is one of those books you will never forget about.

[John Yi · Rating 5 out of 5]

In my opinion, this book was really interesting, because it had deep thoughts and meanings in it. I was excited to read this book, because my favorite genre is historical fiction. This was about a boy named Phin who was trying to escape from a group called the Sleepers. Phin witnesses a murder and now he has to escape from them. While on his journey, there is a guy with a horse who is following him wherever he goes. Phin does not know who this mysterious man is nor does he know if he's working with the Sleepers. Phin now has two problems to deal with in his hands. The setting was after the Civil War where it was harsh, and it was also when mining was a big deal. I recommend this book to anyone who likes mystery and historical fiction books.

[Some Nerd · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one was a case of the right book at the right time. I'm not usually into historical fiction, but this was a pretty brisk, fast-paced read. The ending could've used some more closure if you ask me, but if you like them ambiguous, then by all means you could certainly do a lot worse than Chase. Then again, maybe I'm just a little slow. I'm glad Phin didn't seem to fall in love with Abby, either. I might have added a star just because Haas managed to introduce a girl and not make her an instant love interest, unless I missed that too.

Seriously though, I was really close to putting the book down and sticking it back in the Little Free Library when I spotted the Leaves of Ass reference. I'm glad I stuck with it. I still get nightmares from reading Whitman.

[Jordan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I haven't finished reading it but so far it isn't bad. The main character, Phin, is being accused of murder and is being hunted. He's hiding and trying to escape from the town. He didn't murder the man, he was just a witness. There's a mob in the town that is full of dangerous people. The people in the mob are the ones that killed the man. Phin is being tracked by the people in the mob. Currently Phin is hiding in a barn in a horse stall.

I don't really relate to the setting of the book, I've never been to Ireland. I have never really wanted to go to Ireland either. This book reminds me of Riverdale. I love Riverdale but I don't know how interested I am in this book. I know that there is a lot of mafia and that stuff in the world so that's how I connect this story to the world.

[Shanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

When Phin witnesses a murder, his life is threatened. Phin goes on the run, trying to stay alive. He is hunted by two nefarious types, each with his own motive for catching Phin. Edge-of-your-seat action combined with interesting characters provides for a quick read. In this story, Haas has written characters that are not one-dimensional: the bad guys sometimes do good, and the good guys sometimes do bad. Life is not all-or-nothing, and neither are people. The ending is a little open-ended, but it works.

[Heidi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just reread this again after several years -- I used to take this book out of the library at least once a month until my mom found me a copy of my own. Might be the cover always was alluring to me, but also the story is so short and sweet that it was an extremely compelling book to eleven year old me. Still love it, will probably read again soon. Such a comfort food read.

[Nate Hall · Rating 3 out of 5]

it was a decent book it started off interesting but by the middle you were trying to remember who's who and the end was a little underwhelming the big bad guy just let's him go ect no big fight or nothing
three star books, in my opinion, not bad but not the best either felt like the story needed to flush out more on the different factions and maybe a better ending, but otherwise, it was enjoyable

[Kimberly · Rating 3 out of 5]

It has a great grabbing beginning and some parts have the great action but it gets slow at times. My students would call it "boring" and might dnf before getting to a better part. The ending was also very abrupt and made me wish for just a few more pages to wrap up the story line.

[Sarah · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF

[Shari · Rating 3 out of 5]

Olivia read on her own and rates it 3 stars.

[Brent Jackson · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book starts out with Phin at a man named Engelbreit's house, reading a book, as he always does. As Engelbreit wakes up and heads to eat breakfast, two men burst into the house with little warning and murder Engelbreit via gunshot to the chest. Phin manages to make a narrow escape from being murdered as well, but has to continue to run. The men are going to blame the murder on Phin, and in order to escape them and their accusations, he must run, and keep running. The book then follows Phin through his crazy adventure running from a man on a horse who seems to always know where he is, claiming the horse tracks like a bloodhound. Phin doesn't remember the man, but assumes he is a part of the group that killed Engelbreit, considering he is chasing him. The chase goes on for a long while, but the inevitable eventually happens. Phin collides with Ned Plume, Engelbreit's murderer. Despite claims of cutting Phin's throat when finding him, Plum simply lets him go.

This book was overall very good. It had a great storyline, great characters, great action, great everything. Almost. The ending seemed a little weak to me. The entire book is filled with high-paced action and suspense and mystery. Then you get to the end, and Phin and Plume collide. What does Plume do? He lets him go. To be honest, a sad, more logical ending would have been better. But no, Plume just, lets him go. That's it. Other than the end, I loved the book. I would recommend to anyone who enjoys historical fiction, high-paced action novels, or both.

[Tmedina64 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read the book "Chase" by Jessie haas. This book was really good it makes you feel like you are there watching whats going on and hearing everything as well. By hearing my mean the people talking and the tone of how they are saying what they say and the sounds of the horse running. If you like mysteries you will like this book. In this book the main character is Phin. Phin is on the run from the law. During his journey he gets involved in many obstacles some easy and some really difficult. During this it's had for him to do things like eat and use the restroom. As the story goes on he runs into other characters like Ned Plume, Dennis, Jimmy and animals like horses, cows, and chickens. Some of them help Phin on his journey from the law. Some of them are after him but everyone is mainly trying to find him! He runs into families he doesn’t know that end up helping. But as he tries to survive he takes any food or water no matter what. In some cases he has to steal. As he tries not to get caught he hides all day long and sneaks around at night. Sometimes in the story you might get excited by what happens. In some spots I thought he might get caught but he didn’t and some other times I thought he was going to die but Phin knows how to survive for now while on the run from the law. Also in this book the there are times where you think something bad is going to happen like the people hiding Phin getting caught by the law. To find out the rest you will have to read the book yourself.

[Emily B · Rating 4 out of 5]

I gave Chase a four star because overall it was suspenseful and exciting! Most of the time while I was reading this book, I just wanted to jump up and scream! This mystery book is very interesting and surprising at the end! You think you know exactly what will happen, but when you really find out it blows your mind! I would suggest reading this book to people who love mystery, suspense, and action! This book is where the enemy unites with the hero to fight off the real enemy! Chase is a unique book and is good for people who enjoy reading more challenging books! This book was more difficult for me to read but I was extremely glad I read it! I will always remember this book because it had a great story in it! When you read this it will always have you predicting what will happen, and usually your predictions are wrong! That is one of the reasons I liked this book! Overall I would say that Chase is a awesome book to read!

[Jennifer Lavoie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this story. There was a lot of adventure and history which made it interesting. Every time I thought Phin was caught for sure, he would get away. But what made the story realistic for me was Phin's flaws. He was not a perfect character. He made mistakes and he had to struggle with his conscience a few times. Even more realistic was how he lost important items. Phin did not have ready access to food, water, clothing, fire and shelter, which made his struggle the more thrilling. And when he finally had the chance to run and be free, he didn't.

The only thing that bothered me a bit was the writing style. At times the writing was smooth and seamless, and at others it was choppy. I suppose it matched Phin's thoughts, or even his breathing, but it threw me off quite a few times.

[Ciara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Chase is about a boy called Phineas Chase. Phin has just witnessed a murder of a close friend, and the murderers are out to get him because of a paper that contains unknown things which was inside Ned Plume’s wallet that he was supposed to be returning but had taken it with him out of fear that he wouldn’t have to come in contact with a murderer.

Along the way Phin is chased through forests, rivers, falls into a dog hole that is meant to catch wild dogs, and ends up being tracked by a horse and rider. The horse follows the boys scent. Phin and the rider Fraser eventually come to kind terms when Phin has to take Fraser to get help from a life threatening injury. I gave this rating a 8 out of 10 because it was a really good read and I liked how it was a nice mystery.

[Jensen Gomez · Rating 3 out of 5]

Chase by Jesse Haas is kinda fast and adventurous. It is for people who like mystery of action. I give it a 3 only because it was kind of boring in parts of the book. My favorite part of the book was the ending when plume let him go and didn't even care, as long as he was going to "Canada".
Chase is about a boy named Phin who was watching when Plume murdered Engelbrit. Now he's on the run because the sleepers have it pinned on him. Thing is this won't be and easy ride to justice, for he has two different people on his trail and one of them has a horse that can track him. But while hiding beside a beaver dam the man isn't a sleeper and isn't out to get him he's out to help him out of his mess. Soon Phin gets his name cleared but not without a heck of a ride!

[Dlora · Rating 3 out of 5]

A youth novel about a boy in a coal mining town who witnessed the murder of a mining boss and was on the run from both the killer and a Pinkerton agent. It was actually pretty good, and the history was quite interesting—-set right after the civil war when unions and Molly Maguires were facing off against owners. I picked the book up at a library sale because of the picture of the horse on the front. And in fact it did feature a magnificent horse that could actually act like a bloodhound to track a target by smell. Good coming of age story, constant action, good characters, and the afterward telling more about the historical setting was fascinating too.

[Kendra · Rating 4 out of 5]

CHASE starts off with a bang, and then fizzles towards the end. There's a great deal of suspense and action and then in the last 30 pages or so it all seems to come together in a neat little package. That said, I do think readers will enjoy this story, especially the horse that can track like a bloodhound.

[Jennie]

A high action thriller that takes place in a coal mining town in eastern Pennsylvania during the mid 1900’s. Phin witnesses a murder, is accused of that murder, and runs for his life. He is pursued by men
one of which rides a horse that can “smell” him. Phin must use his wits to stay hidden until he has a plan to save himself. Grades 3-6.

[Lillian Nemmers · Rating 1 out of 5]

It's about a boy who was accused of murdering people. So he got on a train because he thought this guy was trying to hurt him. Then the guy turned out to be someone trying to help the boy. They find shelter this these nice people and get help. I didn't like it because I don't like books with a lot of drama.

[Rayda · Rating 2 out of 5]

Set in a post-civil war mining town, Chase is more chasing than character development. Though it was nice to see the Phineas overcome his fears to join a family as he ran from the unknown man on the horse.

[Angelia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kind of an odd little book. The main character was interesting but it was hard to understand the reason behind what happened. It was reviewed as being a little bit more about the horse and the chase but was really mainly about the boy. Not a bad read but not one I would recommend.

[Heloyce · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great boy book. But girls will find it hard to put down as well.

[S.R. Weems · Rating 2 out of 5]

.......all in all, it was a good book.

[Michael Daley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book begins with a gunshot and ends with a gunshot and there's barely time for a reader to take a sustaining breath from the moment Phin begins his desperate run for his life!