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Disappeared #2
Illegal
What does it mean to be illegal in the United States?
Life in Mexico is a death sentence for Emiliano and his sister Sara.
To escape the violent cartel that is after them, they flee across the border, seeking a better life in the United States and hoping that they can find a way to bring their pursuers to justice.
Sara turns herself over to the authorities to apply for asylum.
Emiliano enters the country illegally, planning to live with their father.
But now Sara is being held indefinitely in a detention facility, awaiting an asylum hearing that may never come, finding it harder every day to hold on to her faith and hope. Life for Emiliano is not easy either. Everywhere he goes, it's clear that he doesn't belong. And all the while, the cartel is closing in on them...
Emiliano sets off on a tense and dangerous race to find justice, but can he expose the web of crimes from his place in the shadows?
Award-winning author Francisco X. Stork's powerful follow-up to Disappeared delves into the corruption and racism that hides under the guise of the law in the United States. With an unsparing look at the asylum process and the journey to find a new life in the US, this is a timely and moving story
Life in Mexico is a death sentence for Emiliano and his sister Sara.
To escape the violent cartel that is after them, they flee across the border, seeking a better life in the United States and hoping that they can find a way to bring their pursuers to justice.
Sara turns herself over to the authorities to apply for asylum.
Emiliano enters the country illegally, planning to live with their father.
But now Sara is being held indefinitely in a detention facility, awaiting an asylum hearing that may never come, finding it harder every day to hold on to her faith and hope. Life for Emiliano is not easy either. Everywhere he goes, it's clear that he doesn't belong. And all the while, the cartel is closing in on them...
Emiliano sets off on a tense and dangerous race to find justice, but can he expose the web of crimes from his place in the shadows?
Award-winning author Francisco X. Stork's powerful follow-up to Disappeared delves into the corruption and racism that hides under the guise of the law in the United States. With an unsparing look at the asylum process and the journey to find a new life in the US, this is a timely and moving story
304 pages, Hardcover
First published August 4, 2020
34 people are currently reading
681 people want to read
About the author
Francisco X. Stork
20 books55.5k followersFrancisco X. Stork was born in Mexico. He moved to El Paso Texas with his adoptive father and mother when he was nine. He attended Spring Hill College, Harvard University and Columbia Law School. He worked as an attorney for thirty-three years before retiring in 2015. He is married and has two grown children and four beautiful grandkids. He loves to discover new books and authors. His favorite books are those where the author's soul touches his. He does not read reviews to his books so you should feel free to write whatever you want. Also, he is genuinely interested in learning about books and life from his friends on this site. He would love it if you find his books worthy to be read, but that's not why he wants to be your friend.
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April 11, 2020I think it's a huge mistake to title this book Illegal, both because I don't like promoting pejoratives and also because Undocumented would speak to the importance of documentation in this story--documentation of all kinds, not just immigration status but paper, records, recordings, memories, human lives.
I'll save the rest of my opinions for later.
I'll save the rest of my opinions for later.
August 2, 2020
Richie’s Picks: ILLEGAL by Francisco X. Stork, Scholastic Press, August 2020, 304p., ISBN: 978-1-338-31055-9
“The Smithsonian National Museum of American History is considering adding pictures drawn by immigrant children in detention centers...The children who had been recently released from Texas detention centers made drawings done in black and dark green...Each drawing depicts bars...”
-- Michelle Cruz Gonzales, from “The Smithsonian is Preserving A Part of Our Most Shameful History by Exhibiting Drawings From Children in Cages” July 2019
“The United States has undermined its credibility in the global drive to end human trafficking by giving itself top marks in its annual report on the crime despite dwindling prosecutions and protection for foreign victims, advocates said on Monday…
Several anti-trafficking organizations questioned how the United States could maintain the top ranking despite having acknowledged a decline in prosecutions and victim protection--two of three key factors upon which countries are assessed.
‘When the United States upgrades undeserving countries and fails to honestly assess its own shortcomings, it loses credibility and the ability to persuade other countries to do better,’ the foundation Humanity United said in a statement.”
-- Christine Murray, Reuters (6/29/20)
SARA
“‘Maybe the whole image I had of the asylum process was wrong, naive somehow.’
‘How so?’
‘I imagined that all I had to do was show the authorities the evidence of actual persecution, of actual threats, as in people machine-gunning our house in Juárez. I had all that hard evidence I had collected in that flash drive I gave to your father. They would see my articles in El Sol about the Desparecidas, the e-mails threatening my life, the work I did to rescue my friend Linda and the other girls being held by Hinojosa. I imagined I could bring lots of witnesses to testify on my behalf--Special Agent Durand, the FBI agent who helped me, the neighbors who witnessed the shooting of my house. I saw my case as fitting within the legal reasons for asylum under the laws of the United States. Was I wrong about the United States?’”
EMILIANO
“I knew by the bulk of the envelope that it contained money. Could it be that I had judged Abe Gropper wrong, that underneath the orneriness, there was generosity? I searched the man’s face for kindness, but there was none.
‘Go on. Open it.’
The envelope was not sealed. I opened it and saw the hundred-dollar bills.
‘Five thousand dollars. All yours. There’ll be another five thousand when you do what I ask.’
‘Do what?’
Abe grinned, like he knew I would bite and ask that very question. I tried to swallow, but my mouth was dry. My heart beat uncontrollably and there was nothing I could do to slow it down.
‘It’s very simple,’ Abe continued. ‘Bring me the phone.’”
ILLEGAL is the sequel to Francisco X. Stork’s DISAPPEARED, which was published in 2017. The two books are eye-opening, edge-of-your-seat reads. I advise reading DISAPPEARED before starting ILLEGAL.
As we learn in DISAPPEARED, Sara is a young Mexican investigative reporter who has been writing about hundreds of girls disappearing from the streets of Ciudad Juárez. Sara’s best friend Linda Fuentes was among the missing. A threatening email is sent to Sara’s editor. designed to stop Sara from any further digging. But an expert successfully follows the electronic trail back to the sender leading to the rescue of Linda and some other young victims.
Before she is freed, Linda succeeds in sending Sara the cell phone of her enslaver, a Mexican crime boss. The phone presumably contains information about many other young Mexican women who have been kidnapped and spirited into the U.S. to be sold as sex slaves.
Sara, Emilano, and their mom are fortunate to escape their ramshackle house before it is machine-gunned by the bad guys. But Sara and Emiliano are as good as dead if they remain in Mexico. The resulting plan: head north.
DISAPPEARED concludes with the siblings barely surviving their escape across the U.S. border and through the desert. Sara intends to seek asylum and is incarcerated in a Trump-era school-turned-detention center. Meanwhile, Emiliano takes possession of the cell phone and nearly dies in the desert. Recovering, thanks to kind strangers (and an ornery horse) who find him, Emiliano desperately needs to make contact with trustworthy authorities who can retrieve and act upon the contents of the phone. But who can he trust? It turns out that there are people with US governmental ties who are part of the kidnapping web.
Both DISAPPEARED and ILLEGAL are narrated, in alternating chapters, by the two siblings. They are exciting and nail-biting tales that tie into current issues.
What moved me most about the two books is the conscious decision making in which Emiliano repeatedly engages.
Emiliano had been an angry adolescent. The siblings' father had previously left the family to sneak across the U.S. border, and was supposed to earn enough money to send a bunch back and make the family’s life more bearable. Instead, their father abandoned the family, initiated a long-distance divorce, married an American woman in the Midwest, and started another family.
Angry at his father, and having been engaged in a series of self-destructive acts, Emiliano was saved from himself by Brother Patricio. He and Emiliano subsequently founded the Jiparis, a Scout-like organization designed to help other at-risk teens.
Learning by teaching is a powerful tool. Throughout the saga, we see Emiliano being guided by moral principles he’d learned during his time with Brother Patricio. Emiliano had, in turn, been teaching these ethical pillars to the Jiparis. We see him thinking about the right thing to do, and pondering how it might feel if his young charges back in Juarez learned he was acting in a way contrary to what he’d taught them.
Dare I ask for another sequel? There is a satisfying conclusion to ILLEGAL, but plenty of loose ends to continue exploring.
Richie Partington, MLIS
Richie's Picks http://richiespicks.pbworks.com
https://www.facebook.com/richiespicks/
richiepartington@gmail.com
“The Smithsonian National Museum of American History is considering adding pictures drawn by immigrant children in detention centers...The children who had been recently released from Texas detention centers made drawings done in black and dark green...Each drawing depicts bars...”
-- Michelle Cruz Gonzales, from “The Smithsonian is Preserving A Part of Our Most Shameful History by Exhibiting Drawings From Children in Cages” July 2019
“The United States has undermined its credibility in the global drive to end human trafficking by giving itself top marks in its annual report on the crime despite dwindling prosecutions and protection for foreign victims, advocates said on Monday…
Several anti-trafficking organizations questioned how the United States could maintain the top ranking despite having acknowledged a decline in prosecutions and victim protection--two of three key factors upon which countries are assessed.
‘When the United States upgrades undeserving countries and fails to honestly assess its own shortcomings, it loses credibility and the ability to persuade other countries to do better,’ the foundation Humanity United said in a statement.”
-- Christine Murray, Reuters (6/29/20)
SARA
“‘Maybe the whole image I had of the asylum process was wrong, naive somehow.’
‘How so?’
‘I imagined that all I had to do was show the authorities the evidence of actual persecution, of actual threats, as in people machine-gunning our house in Juárez. I had all that hard evidence I had collected in that flash drive I gave to your father. They would see my articles in El Sol about the Desparecidas, the e-mails threatening my life, the work I did to rescue my friend Linda and the other girls being held by Hinojosa. I imagined I could bring lots of witnesses to testify on my behalf--Special Agent Durand, the FBI agent who helped me, the neighbors who witnessed the shooting of my house. I saw my case as fitting within the legal reasons for asylum under the laws of the United States. Was I wrong about the United States?’”
EMILIANO
“I knew by the bulk of the envelope that it contained money. Could it be that I had judged Abe Gropper wrong, that underneath the orneriness, there was generosity? I searched the man’s face for kindness, but there was none.
‘Go on. Open it.’
The envelope was not sealed. I opened it and saw the hundred-dollar bills.
‘Five thousand dollars. All yours. There’ll be another five thousand when you do what I ask.’
‘Do what?’
Abe grinned, like he knew I would bite and ask that very question. I tried to swallow, but my mouth was dry. My heart beat uncontrollably and there was nothing I could do to slow it down.
‘It’s very simple,’ Abe continued. ‘Bring me the phone.’”
ILLEGAL is the sequel to Francisco X. Stork’s DISAPPEARED, which was published in 2017. The two books are eye-opening, edge-of-your-seat reads. I advise reading DISAPPEARED before starting ILLEGAL.
As we learn in DISAPPEARED, Sara is a young Mexican investigative reporter who has been writing about hundreds of girls disappearing from the streets of Ciudad Juárez. Sara’s best friend Linda Fuentes was among the missing. A threatening email is sent to Sara’s editor. designed to stop Sara from any further digging. But an expert successfully follows the electronic trail back to the sender leading to the rescue of Linda and some other young victims.
Before she is freed, Linda succeeds in sending Sara the cell phone of her enslaver, a Mexican crime boss. The phone presumably contains information about many other young Mexican women who have been kidnapped and spirited into the U.S. to be sold as sex slaves.
Sara, Emilano, and their mom are fortunate to escape their ramshackle house before it is machine-gunned by the bad guys. But Sara and Emiliano are as good as dead if they remain in Mexico. The resulting plan: head north.
DISAPPEARED concludes with the siblings barely surviving their escape across the U.S. border and through the desert. Sara intends to seek asylum and is incarcerated in a Trump-era school-turned-detention center. Meanwhile, Emiliano takes possession of the cell phone and nearly dies in the desert. Recovering, thanks to kind strangers (and an ornery horse) who find him, Emiliano desperately needs to make contact with trustworthy authorities who can retrieve and act upon the contents of the phone. But who can he trust? It turns out that there are people with US governmental ties who are part of the kidnapping web.
Both DISAPPEARED and ILLEGAL are narrated, in alternating chapters, by the two siblings. They are exciting and nail-biting tales that tie into current issues.
What moved me most about the two books is the conscious decision making in which Emiliano repeatedly engages.
Emiliano had been an angry adolescent. The siblings' father had previously left the family to sneak across the U.S. border, and was supposed to earn enough money to send a bunch back and make the family’s life more bearable. Instead, their father abandoned the family, initiated a long-distance divorce, married an American woman in the Midwest, and started another family.
Angry at his father, and having been engaged in a series of self-destructive acts, Emiliano was saved from himself by Brother Patricio. He and Emiliano subsequently founded the Jiparis, a Scout-like organization designed to help other at-risk teens.
Learning by teaching is a powerful tool. Throughout the saga, we see Emiliano being guided by moral principles he’d learned during his time with Brother Patricio. Emiliano had, in turn, been teaching these ethical pillars to the Jiparis. We see him thinking about the right thing to do, and pondering how it might feel if his young charges back in Juarez learned he was acting in a way contrary to what he’d taught them.
Dare I ask for another sequel? There is a satisfying conclusion to ILLEGAL, but plenty of loose ends to continue exploring.
Richie Partington, MLIS
Richie's Picks http://richiespicks.pbworks.com
https://www.facebook.com/richiespicks/
richiepartington@gmail.com
May 19, 2021
3.5 / 5
Was good... and then it just ended. Like it hit the word count and was done. Rather anticlimactic.
Was good... and then it just ended. Like it hit the word count and was done. Rather anticlimactic.
June 8, 2021
This is an excellent follow-up to Disappeared. It's much less of a thriller than book 1, but is nonetheless a page-turner. It's not a relentless action story, but it's compelling and I always regretted having to put it down. Yes, I just love Stork's prose, but the situations the characters are in are compelling, in both plot and theme. There are just as many complicated moral questions for Sara and Emiliano to wrestle with, still without any easy answers.
I really like how Stork writes characters. With this novel, even more than Disappeared, Stork dives straight into modern politics, especially around immigration policy, racism, and xenophobia. But he manages to do this without reducing any perspective down to a caricature. People are multidimensional, including those who hold oppressive views. And those who claim progressive views are often not as progressive in action. These characters are real, and Stork writes in a way that makes me think that real people can come together and understand each other.
I really like how Stork writes characters. With this novel, even more than Disappeared, Stork dives straight into modern politics, especially around immigration policy, racism, and xenophobia. But he manages to do this without reducing any perspective down to a caricature. People are multidimensional, including those who hold oppressive views. And those who claim progressive views are often not as progressive in action. These characters are real, and Stork writes in a way that makes me think that real people can come together and understand each other.
February 11, 2022
The significant quote that best describes the theme of this book is "It was done. I felt a quiet, sad peace"(stork 192). In other words, this book is talking about society and how cruel it is on the wrong path. The changes of life even after getting out of the wrong path is permanent.
There are three reasons why I give this book a three out of five star rating. The first reason is that this book is talking about human trafficking and how it is affecting the lives of innocent people. For example Emiliano, the rescuer, is trying to help the innocent people in human trafficking while he is being hunted down by the gangs that are part of the human trafficking. Next, the second reason is how this book is also including slavery and how cruel they are being to these people. In other words, the criminals involved in illegal activity are making their slaves do all the dirty work. The third reason is how suspenseful reading this book is. For example, at times Emiliano is right at the gate of solving where these innocent people are, but just as he is trying to make his last move there is a turning point. Therefore, Emiliano becomes farther away from the solution.
In addition, there are two reasons why this book is not a five star rating. The first reason is the ending being very straight forward. In other words, Emiliano with the help of his sister find the innocent people the book ends. Therefore, not knowing what happens after. the second reason is that Emiliano and his sister are being portrayed as bad people at first which is a little confusing. For example, they are from Mexico who come to the United States illegally and the sister is in a detention center after getting caught. In addition the resolution of this story is being recued by these two teenagers who are also trying to rescue themselves from their hardships.
In conclusion, this story is about society and how cruel this world is on innocent people who are ending up on the wrong path from force.
There are three reasons why I give this book a three out of five star rating. The first reason is that this book is talking about human trafficking and how it is affecting the lives of innocent people. For example Emiliano, the rescuer, is trying to help the innocent people in human trafficking while he is being hunted down by the gangs that are part of the human trafficking. Next, the second reason is how this book is also including slavery and how cruel they are being to these people. In other words, the criminals involved in illegal activity are making their slaves do all the dirty work. The third reason is how suspenseful reading this book is. For example, at times Emiliano is right at the gate of solving where these innocent people are, but just as he is trying to make his last move there is a turning point. Therefore, Emiliano becomes farther away from the solution.
In addition, there are two reasons why this book is not a five star rating. The first reason is the ending being very straight forward. In other words, Emiliano with the help of his sister find the innocent people the book ends. Therefore, not knowing what happens after. the second reason is that Emiliano and his sister are being portrayed as bad people at first which is a little confusing. For example, they are from Mexico who come to the United States illegally and the sister is in a detention center after getting caught. In addition the resolution of this story is being recued by these two teenagers who are also trying to rescue themselves from their hardships.
In conclusion, this story is about society and how cruel this world is on innocent people who are ending up on the wrong path from force.
October 18, 2021
Very fast read - that actually made this quite enjoyable. I think that I liked this better than the first book - while I was disappointed at first that the story moved more to Emiliano, that makes sense with the plot, and it clipped along at a good pace.
December 1, 2021
The story: On the run from a drug cartel that wants them dead, Sara and Emiliano have made the dangerous crossing into the US. But Sara ends up in a detention center, while Emiliano is able to connect with his long-absent dad, now living in Chicago. But there are seriously bad people after them, and after the cell phone they stole from the leader of a human-trafficking ring, and the teens don't realize just how easy it will be for the criminals to track them down. Separated by thousands of miles and by a huge criminal network that goes right up into the highest levels of the US government, can Sara and Emiliano somehow use what they know to free those being held in slavery, while at the same time avoiding death themselves?
June Cleaver's ratings: Language PG-13; Violence PG-13; Sexual content G; Nudity G; Substance abuse PG; Magic & the occult G; GLBT content G; adult themes (human trafficking, drugs, criminal activity) PG-13; overall rating PG-13. Best for good readers grades 8-up.
Liz's comments: Although this is a sequel to Stork's previous novel "Disappeared", it also works as a stand-alone. Stork excels at telling an exciting story while at the same time pointing out serious issues in society. Here he examines reasons why people cross illegally, as well as things that can happen in a supposedly "safe" government installation. The unfairness will upset some; the social issues will be of more interest to older readers.
June Cleaver's ratings: Language PG-13; Violence PG-13; Sexual content G; Nudity G; Substance abuse PG; Magic & the occult G; GLBT content G; adult themes (human trafficking, drugs, criminal activity) PG-13; overall rating PG-13. Best for good readers grades 8-up.
Liz's comments: Although this is a sequel to Stork's previous novel "Disappeared", it also works as a stand-alone. Stork excels at telling an exciting story while at the same time pointing out serious issues in society. Here he examines reasons why people cross illegally, as well as things that can happen in a supposedly "safe" government installation. The unfairness will upset some; the social issues will be of more interest to older readers.
July 5, 2021
I really thought this was going to be a trilogy. I wasn't sure how it was going to wrap up but glad it did so I could be spared the legal aftermath :)
I don't know if Stork did his research or just has a great mind but everything that happened could 100% happen. Or maybe it already has or, God help us, is currently? I would hate to think there would be that much corruption stateside but I wouldn't put it past anyone. Like Sarah says - greed, weakness, etc. there's lots of reasons why people would make choices that would lead to this kind of pain for others.
The writing was so good and kept me interested in both novels, a rarity for me since I tend to lose interest after one book. I had to know what happened!! I also think Stork does an excellent job of portraying the difficulties of immigration from multiple points of view.
Highly recommend both books for a gripping story of modern good vs. evil.
I don't know if Stork did his research or just has a great mind but everything that happened could 100% happen. Or maybe it already has or, God help us, is currently? I would hate to think there would be that much corruption stateside but I wouldn't put it past anyone. Like Sarah says - greed, weakness, etc. there's lots of reasons why people would make choices that would lead to this kind of pain for others.
The writing was so good and kept me interested in both novels, a rarity for me since I tend to lose interest after one book. I had to know what happened!! I also think Stork does an excellent job of portraying the difficulties of immigration from multiple points of view.
Highly recommend both books for a gripping story of modern good vs. evil.
September 17, 2020
Thanks to Scholastic Press for an ARC! I like how the author switched to first person for this novel, rather than the third person he used in the first book. It felt more personal. It’s a timely subject to write a book about and the fast-paced plot will pull readers along. It’s not necessary to read the first book to understand this one, but I highly recommend it! By reading the first book this one seemed like Season 2 of my favorite tv show.
Read
January 17, 2021A fine follow-up to his page-turner DISAPPEARED. Francisco writes with compassion and knowledge. His books are well-researched and accurate and full of heart. Teens will devour this one, and teachers can use this book to educate student about the complications and life-and-death struggles thousands endure at the border between Mexico and the United States.
October 12, 2022
I truly believe that this book is one of the best books that I have read in a while. I love how each chapter switches between Sara and her brother Emiliano, so I am engaged in both characters and settings to get the best understanding of the story. I also enjoyed the sequence of events. There were a lot of close calls and parts that put me on the edge of my seat. It was a thriller to read and I would defiantly recommend it to anyone who is hunting for an action-filled and risk-taking book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 21, 2022
This is an excellent book. Very hard hitting. Well written, riveting. A very good thriller with an excellent plot. I like the way it ties in some of the story from "Disappeared" as a way to refresh the reader with what happened in the first book.
There are ways to run a successful immigration and seasonal work program and this book clearly points out that ours is not successfully run with way too much room for fraud and abuse flamed by big money.
There are ways to run a successful immigration and seasonal work program and this book clearly points out that ours is not successfully run with way too much room for fraud and abuse flamed by big money.
November 22, 2020
Stork is good at killing his readers softly, but there is none of that in this book. Well, maybe some of that. But there are also high speed journeys down the dark alleys of the human heart and few punches that land hard. I was expecting a smart, well-crafted story. I'm not sure I was expecting a thriller that grabbed me by the heart strings. The characters are complex and authentic, but that doesn't mean they are safe. No one is safe in a world where the rules are arbitrary and barbed with the worst elements of human nature. This is not an anti-anything book however. It shows that there are many sides of this conflict. There are good and terrible people in every corner of the world. I guess the only precaution I would give with this book is to take the day off when you pick it up. You're going to be busy.
May 3, 2021
I liked this one better than the first book, which seemed to go slower. This book deals with some of the immigration laws that need to be revisited and changed in this country. It takes a look at our broken system - a system that many in power take advantage of for their own gain - and it makes you sick that this is America.
Immigration has always sought to limit who gets in this country and when, and it needs sweeping changes in order to treat people like decent human beings deserve to be treated.
Notable quotes:
“Sometimes it takes being in a strange place to find out what is home.”
“It seems to be the only way to be happy is by deliberately ignoring the unhappiness of so many.”
Immigration has always sought to limit who gets in this country and when, and it needs sweeping changes in order to treat people like decent human beings deserve to be treated.
Notable quotes:
“Sometimes it takes being in a strange place to find out what is home.”
“It seems to be the only way to be happy is by deliberately ignoring the unhappiness of so many.”
July 7, 2020
It’s not often that you find a sequel as good as (or even better in some ways) the first book in a series, but Francisco X. Stork has done it! Here is a new genre, the YA political thriller. Stork infuses immigration issues and corruption, the crime and horror of human trafficking, a budding love story, with a touching meditation on the definition of family and the kindness of strangers. This is one of the most important YA books I’ve read in a long time. I can’t say enough good things about this book.
October 14, 2020
Like a great TV series, this book made me sad to finish it. I came to care so much about these characters. Stork said that this is the only sequel he will write, but I wish that he would take the story of Sara and Emiliano another step into another book.
Where do I start with my praise? The complexity of the characters, the complexity of institutions (like law enforcement), the scene creation/authentic dialogue, the moral musings that never sound preachy, the insight into what happens to vulnerable people.
Thank you, Francisco, for yet another gift to the YA canon.
Where do I start with my praise? The complexity of the characters, the complexity of institutions (like law enforcement), the scene creation/authentic dialogue, the moral musings that never sound preachy, the insight into what happens to vulnerable people.
Thank you, Francisco, for yet another gift to the YA canon.
November 14, 2022
I enjoyed the book, but the ending was abrupt and surprising. It felt like the book was cut off, but it wasn't necessary the author could have continued, but other books end like that as well so I'm not going to hold that against this novel. I would say that overall I enjoyed it.
May 12, 2021
Book talk:
A couple of weeks ago I sent out information about how to access free audiobooks through a program called AudioFile Sync which allows you to have access to two new audiobooks each week from April through August. The best part of this program is that you get to keep these audiobooks on your device FREE forever! I will include the links for directions on how to sign up for Sync both at the end of this video and in the description of it so you can just click on the link and have access to the steps.
As a way to highlight the Sync audiobook program, I decided to choose one of the titles for my #FHSReads book this week. The book I chose this week is titled Illegal by Francisco Stork. The interesting thing about including this book in the Sync program is that it is book #2 in a series of books and I, along with many of you I’m guessing, haven’t read book #1 which is titled Disappeared. The good news is that I can say definitively that this book is also a stand alone title which means that you can read book #2 in the series and understand it without having read the first book. What is important is that the book tells you some background information from the first book, kind of a recap, to help you understand what’s happening in this book.
In this series of books, there are two main characters who are siblings. Their names are Sara and Emiliano and they used to live in Juarez, Mexico. Sara was a reporter and she had written a series of stories about girls and young women who were disappearing around the city. One day, her best friend Rachel disappears and Sara is busy researching who is behind these kidnappings until somehow, Rachel is able to secretly get a phone sent to Sara. On this phone, there is super important information about who is doing the kidnapping of these women and why but the group who is behind all of this finds out that Sara has the phone and because of this Sara and Emiliano’s lives are in danger. They decide to flee to the United States, where their dad lives for safety.
The trek to cross the border is extremely dangerous and something happens to make Sara turn herself in to the authorities and ask for asylum. She is sent to a detention center and in the process, she is separated from Emiliano who is rescued by a nearby rancher. Emiliano has the phone and throughout the book Illegal, he is trying to find someone who will be able to help him get the info off of the phone and use it to arrest and charge the men who are responsible for kidnapping these women. In the meantime, Sara has been found out by the people who are running the detention center and she is in great danger. It is her only hope that Emiliano can get the info they need off the phone before someone kills her.
There is great suspense in this book and I loved how the audiobook version included different people’s voices for the characters of Sara and Emiliano. Their authentic accents really helped to understand the story better. Since this book is no longer available to download through the Audiofile Sync program, I checked and the DCL system has both the ebook and audiobook versions of this book to check out and read so use your Student Card to do so!
A couple of weeks ago I sent out information about how to access free audiobooks through a program called AudioFile Sync which allows you to have access to two new audiobooks each week from April through August. The best part of this program is that you get to keep these audiobooks on your device FREE forever! I will include the links for directions on how to sign up for Sync both at the end of this video and in the description of it so you can just click on the link and have access to the steps.
As a way to highlight the Sync audiobook program, I decided to choose one of the titles for my #FHSReads book this week. The book I chose this week is titled Illegal by Francisco Stork. The interesting thing about including this book in the Sync program is that it is book #2 in a series of books and I, along with many of you I’m guessing, haven’t read book #1 which is titled Disappeared. The good news is that I can say definitively that this book is also a stand alone title which means that you can read book #2 in the series and understand it without having read the first book. What is important is that the book tells you some background information from the first book, kind of a recap, to help you understand what’s happening in this book.
In this series of books, there are two main characters who are siblings. Their names are Sara and Emiliano and they used to live in Juarez, Mexico. Sara was a reporter and she had written a series of stories about girls and young women who were disappearing around the city. One day, her best friend Rachel disappears and Sara is busy researching who is behind these kidnappings until somehow, Rachel is able to secretly get a phone sent to Sara. On this phone, there is super important information about who is doing the kidnapping of these women and why but the group who is behind all of this finds out that Sara has the phone and because of this Sara and Emiliano’s lives are in danger. They decide to flee to the United States, where their dad lives for safety.
The trek to cross the border is extremely dangerous and something happens to make Sara turn herself in to the authorities and ask for asylum. She is sent to a detention center and in the process, she is separated from Emiliano who is rescued by a nearby rancher. Emiliano has the phone and throughout the book Illegal, he is trying to find someone who will be able to help him get the info off of the phone and use it to arrest and charge the men who are responsible for kidnapping these women. In the meantime, Sara has been found out by the people who are running the detention center and she is in great danger. It is her only hope that Emiliano can get the info they need off the phone before someone kills her.
There is great suspense in this book and I loved how the audiobook version included different people’s voices for the characters of Sara and Emiliano. Their authentic accents really helped to understand the story better. Since this book is no longer available to download through the Audiofile Sync program, I checked and the DCL system has both the ebook and audiobook versions of this book to check out and read so use your Student Card to do so!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 18, 2020
Francisco Stork's 2017 novel Disappeared takes place in Juarez, Mexico, and depicts sex trafficking, the cartel, murder, poverty, betrayal, abandonment.
Sara Zapata, a young reporter for a local paper, is committed to finding and saving the young women she learns are being kidnapped, including her best friend Linda, despite the warnings of her boss and the threats to herself and her family.
Sara’s younger brother Emiliano, whose life has been affected by his father’s abandonment—of the family and his native Mexico—is looking for a better life, for ways to make money to pay the family bills and win the love of his wealthy girlfriend.
The siblings find in following their consciences, helping others, and making moral choices, they need to do what is right—not what is easy or even safe, and must sacrifice, or revise, their personal goals. To save their lives, Sara and Emiliano escape to the United States to find a better life and to bring the cartel who is trafficking the women to justice. They cross the border and are attacked in the dessert. And that is where this 2020 sequel begins.
Sara turns herself over to the authorities, certain that she meets the requirements for asylum but, as her time in the detention facility grows longer and she observes women being mistreated and deported for no reason, she questions her assumptions. “I imagined that all I had to do was show the authorities the evidence of actual persecution, of actual threats, such as people machine-gunning our house in Juarez.… I saw my case as fitting within the legal reasons for asylum under the law of the United States. Was I wrong about the United States?” (31) As her stay lengthens, she observes, “The whole process of who gets asylum and who gets detained, who gets a bond and who gets released, who gets a visa and who gets deported. I mean, it’s not as rational as I imagined it would be.” (34)
Meanwhile Emiliano has entered the country illegally and goes to Chicago with his father, planning to turn Linda’s evidence against the cartel over to the proper authorities. He also finds America to be less than welcoming. As he tells his new friend Aniela, “I think that in Mexico I feel like I belong all the time. I never feel not wanted like I do here sometimes. Here I’m always looking over my shoulder even when no one is there.…knowing that you belong and are wanted is major.” (251)
When Sara’s attorney is killed and she is placed in solitary confinement and Emiliano finds he can not trust his father, tensions escalate. A study of government corruption and the asylum process, Illegal is a thriller that will hook the most reluctant adolescent reader. Enough background is given that it may not be completely necessary to read Disappeared first, but it would surely enhance the reading.
Sara Zapata, a young reporter for a local paper, is committed to finding and saving the young women she learns are being kidnapped, including her best friend Linda, despite the warnings of her boss and the threats to herself and her family.
Sara’s younger brother Emiliano, whose life has been affected by his father’s abandonment—of the family and his native Mexico—is looking for a better life, for ways to make money to pay the family bills and win the love of his wealthy girlfriend.
The siblings find in following their consciences, helping others, and making moral choices, they need to do what is right—not what is easy or even safe, and must sacrifice, or revise, their personal goals. To save their lives, Sara and Emiliano escape to the United States to find a better life and to bring the cartel who is trafficking the women to justice. They cross the border and are attacked in the dessert. And that is where this 2020 sequel begins.
Sara turns herself over to the authorities, certain that she meets the requirements for asylum but, as her time in the detention facility grows longer and she observes women being mistreated and deported for no reason, she questions her assumptions. “I imagined that all I had to do was show the authorities the evidence of actual persecution, of actual threats, such as people machine-gunning our house in Juarez.… I saw my case as fitting within the legal reasons for asylum under the law of the United States. Was I wrong about the United States?” (31) As her stay lengthens, she observes, “The whole process of who gets asylum and who gets detained, who gets a bond and who gets released, who gets a visa and who gets deported. I mean, it’s not as rational as I imagined it would be.” (34)
Meanwhile Emiliano has entered the country illegally and goes to Chicago with his father, planning to turn Linda’s evidence against the cartel over to the proper authorities. He also finds America to be less than welcoming. As he tells his new friend Aniela, “I think that in Mexico I feel like I belong all the time. I never feel not wanted like I do here sometimes. Here I’m always looking over my shoulder even when no one is there.…knowing that you belong and are wanted is major.” (251)
When Sara’s attorney is killed and she is placed in solitary confinement and Emiliano finds he can not trust his father, tensions escalate. A study of government corruption and the asylum process, Illegal is a thriller that will hook the most reluctant adolescent reader. Enough background is given that it may not be completely necessary to read Disappeared first, but it would surely enhance the reading.
June 16, 2021
In to its 12th year, the summer reading program, SYNC sponsored by the Audiofile magazine, in collaboration with SORA Reading App, was kicked off on April 29. Targeted at teens aged 13 and older, the program provides two thematically paired audiobooks for checkout each week, for free, to every registered listener, for 14 weeks. That equals out to 28 free books over the course of the program — a great way to keep students reading and learning, even if they might not be in class.
Though not technically meant for 40 somethings, I have been eagerly participating in the Program since last year. Last year, the theme was based on primarily immigrant, race and gender issues and I came across some gems like ‘Monday’s not coming’, ‘Picture us in the light’, ‘Like no other’, ‘The 57 Bus’, ‘The Music of what happens’ and ‘Kindred’. This year, the selection of books appears to be more on the lines of action, adventure, dystopia, fantasy, historical fiction, plays etc.
One of the books released in the first week of the program was ‘Illegal’, a sequel to last year’s ‘Disappeared’. Just like its prequel, Illegal is also a thrilling story, juxtaposing the issues of asylum seekers with the experiences of “illegal” immigrants. Socially relevant and politically poignant, Stork’s propulsive thriller explores how the U.S. justice system treats immigrants.
A fascinating read for even 40 somethings.
Though not technically meant for 40 somethings, I have been eagerly participating in the Program since last year. Last year, the theme was based on primarily immigrant, race and gender issues and I came across some gems like ‘Monday’s not coming’, ‘Picture us in the light’, ‘Like no other’, ‘The 57 Bus’, ‘The Music of what happens’ and ‘Kindred’. This year, the selection of books appears to be more on the lines of action, adventure, dystopia, fantasy, historical fiction, plays etc.
One of the books released in the first week of the program was ‘Illegal’, a sequel to last year’s ‘Disappeared’. Just like its prequel, Illegal is also a thrilling story, juxtaposing the issues of asylum seekers with the experiences of “illegal” immigrants. Socially relevant and politically poignant, Stork’s propulsive thriller explores how the U.S. justice system treats immigrants.
A fascinating read for even 40 somethings.
June 27, 2020
Set to release in August, Francisco X. Stork’s follow-up to Disappeared does not disappoint.
Brother and sister Emiliano and Sara are in the United States after crossing the border, desperately fleeing for their lives. With them is a cell phone carrying valuable evidence to bring down a dangerous cartel. To give her brother a chance and turning the phone over to the right people, Sara turns herself in to a border detention center to apply for asylum. One there, she realizes she shouldn’t have trusted the U.S. government as much as she thought. Does her life even matter in the border camp? Emiliano, rescued by a horse after crossing, has found a local he trusts and has been doing work for him, but now it’s time to get the cell phone in the right hands, and the only way to do that is to go to Chicago with his father with whom he has no relationship or trust.
Chapters alternate between Sara and Emiliano which fuels the fast-paced dual narratives as readers hold their breaths for Sara and Emiliano’s safety. Checkpoints and intimidating guards leave readers tense and hopefully give them a sense of what migrants feel as they enter the United States for a better, safer life.
Illegal is perfect for teens who love action as the book almost leaves you breathless and turning the pages for more!
Brother and sister Emiliano and Sara are in the United States after crossing the border, desperately fleeing for their lives. With them is a cell phone carrying valuable evidence to bring down a dangerous cartel. To give her brother a chance and turning the phone over to the right people, Sara turns herself in to a border detention center to apply for asylum. One there, she realizes she shouldn’t have trusted the U.S. government as much as she thought. Does her life even matter in the border camp? Emiliano, rescued by a horse after crossing, has found a local he trusts and has been doing work for him, but now it’s time to get the cell phone in the right hands, and the only way to do that is to go to Chicago with his father with whom he has no relationship or trust.
Chapters alternate between Sara and Emiliano which fuels the fast-paced dual narratives as readers hold their breaths for Sara and Emiliano’s safety. Checkpoints and intimidating guards leave readers tense and hopefully give them a sense of what migrants feel as they enter the United States for a better, safer life.
Illegal is perfect for teens who love action as the book almost leaves you breathless and turning the pages for more!
June 9, 2022
This was my first experience with a Francisco Stork book, and I mistakenly (!!!) picked book #2 off the shelf at my local library. The title was attention-grabbing. Even though it was the second book, it summarized the events of the previous book in the first couple of pages, and there were details throughout.
The characters (but especially Emiliano) were really full and fleshed out. Even the side characters were described well, with great details about their personalities.
Illegal was an action-packed thriller, with great pacing. I loved the switched between Sara and Emiliano's points of view, and the brother and sister's sense of love, loyalty and protective devotion to one another was clearly palpable throughout. The events of the story unfold because of both characters' dedication to doing the right thing for the greater good, even when it's personally difficult and their lives are at risk.
There were great details about the experience of being in the detention facility, and the experiences of the other women inside.
I loved the questioning of immigration policy and American attitudes toward immigration and immigrants. I thought it was woven into the story very naturally, and made very good points, easy to understand for younger readers as well.
Stork is an excellent writer. I enjoyed this book and look forward to reading more of his work.
The characters (but especially Emiliano) were really full and fleshed out. Even the side characters were described well, with great details about their personalities.
Illegal was an action-packed thriller, with great pacing. I loved the switched between Sara and Emiliano's points of view, and the brother and sister's sense of love, loyalty and protective devotion to one another was clearly palpable throughout. The events of the story unfold because of both characters' dedication to doing the right thing for the greater good, even when it's personally difficult and their lives are at risk.
There were great details about the experience of being in the detention facility, and the experiences of the other women inside.
I loved the questioning of immigration policy and American attitudes toward immigration and immigrants. I thought it was woven into the story very naturally, and made very good points, easy to understand for younger readers as well.
Stork is an excellent writer. I enjoyed this book and look forward to reading more of his work.
Read
February 18, 2020This is a page-turner for teens. Brother and sister, Emiliano and Sara, have crossed the border from Mexico into the US because they are being hunted. They are carrying a cell phone that their friend stole when she escaped from a human trafficking 'bad guy'. The information in the phone could bring down a widespread trafficking ring engineered by people on both sides of the border - including some highly placed government officials. Sara has turned herself in at the border in order to give Emiliano a chance at disappearing inside the US and getting the phone into the right hands.The story covers Sara's experiences in a detention facility and Emiliano's as an undocumented teen. Great story with some nuance in points of view. I had not read Disappeared, #1 and it didn't matter. I predict there will be a third book in the series
November 3, 2020
Sequel to Disappeared
I listened to the audiobook and appreciated the aunticity added by the Spanish accents of the voices and that there was a male and female narrator
Sara is a journalist who has been investigating the disappearances of girls from her hometown in Mexico. She and her family have been threatened, forcing her and her brother Emiliano to flee to the US. While crossing the border, things go horribly wrong and Sara turns herself in and requests asylum. Emiliano, however, flees and tries to seek protection with his father. However, the people pursuing them are determined and do not give up easily. Emiliano must figure out a way to protect himself, his family, help his sister, and get the information they smuggled out to the right people.
Lots of action and adventure. Kept me on the edge of my seat (figuratively). Such important issues; a great discussion book.
CW: violence, drugs, sex/human trafficking. (I can't remember if there was swearing) Grades 8 and up
I listened to the audiobook and appreciated the aunticity added by the Spanish accents of the voices and that there was a male and female narrator
Sara is a journalist who has been investigating the disappearances of girls from her hometown in Mexico. She and her family have been threatened, forcing her and her brother Emiliano to flee to the US. While crossing the border, things go horribly wrong and Sara turns herself in and requests asylum. Emiliano, however, flees and tries to seek protection with his father. However, the people pursuing them are determined and do not give up easily. Emiliano must figure out a way to protect himself, his family, help his sister, and get the information they smuggled out to the right people.
Lots of action and adventure. Kept me on the edge of my seat (figuratively). Such important issues; a great discussion book.
CW: violence, drugs, sex/human trafficking. (I can't remember if there was swearing) Grades 8 and up
May 7, 2021
This was a good continuation of the previous book, dealing with the same overall theme (coming into the US without documentation), but very different specific ideas.
What makes this two-book series better than some other immigration stories (and detention center stories) that I have read is it centers around a larger purpose. Sometimes it feels like the ONLY reason a book exists is to show a generalized experience in immigration or detention, but this has a compelling mystery/crime-type overarching story that I appreciated. It let the complex issues of home and identity and family and all of the rest feel natural instead of forced.
I still wouldn't say that this is a book that everyone would love or that it's the best book ever, but it's a better example than most in this topic.
What makes this two-book series better than some other immigration stories (and detention center stories) that I have read is it centers around a larger purpose. Sometimes it feels like the ONLY reason a book exists is to show a generalized experience in immigration or detention, but this has a compelling mystery/crime-type overarching story that I appreciated. It let the complex issues of home and identity and family and all of the rest feel natural instead of forced.
I still wouldn't say that this is a book that everyone would love or that it's the best book ever, but it's a better example than most in this topic.
September 13, 2022
IDK how this ended up on my reading list and I certainly don't know how I started with book 2. It was ok, it was a high drama, low believability read similar to a James Patterson book. So if that's your thing, have at it.
A brother and sister smuggle a cell phone full of data re: a human trafficking ring and are then hunted by the cartel. (She has such a heart of gold that she saves a man that tried to kill her. IDK that I can believe that.) She's thrown in a detention center and is abused by corrupt guards and warden. The brother successfully crosses and [spoilers] ensue. Murders of those around them abound.
I finished planting the front garden while reading this, only 3yrs in the making, so that was cool.
A brother and sister smuggle a cell phone full of data re: a human trafficking ring and are then hunted by the cartel. (She has such a heart of gold that she saves a man that tried to kill her. IDK that I can believe that.) She's thrown in a detention center and is abused by corrupt guards and warden. The brother successfully crosses and [spoilers] ensue. Murders of those around them abound.
I finished planting the front garden while reading this, only 3yrs in the making, so that was cool.
November 27, 2020
Second book in the series follows the brother, Emiliano, and sister, Sara, into the United States after escaping Mexican persecution when Sara discovered the human trafficing system in her small town. The story goes back and forth between a detention center and living in a large city where the siblings are dealing with their new lives while also trying not to be found with the evidence one of them still retains. Nice exploration of values, being brave but would have liked more depth in the fear they must have both felt and there was a quicker-than-expected wrap up. I was anticipating the story not ending with this book about 3/4 of the way through. Would recommend for JH and up.
July 14, 2021
I listened to the audio book through Sync. So well done. Roxana Ortega and Christine Barillas bring the characters to life. You could see this story taking place now, with border crossings, detention centers, and what it means to be called illegal. It's a story of doing what is right, especially when it is difficult or dangerous. A story of family, of origin, and the family we make. Finding strength you didn't know you had, making it all the more heartbreaking when it isn't enough. Fighting corruption and seeing who will stand with you. I would recommend this to anyone who likes suspense, reading about family dynamics, and realistic fiction.
June 18, 2022
"It is nice to be important, but it is more important to be nice."
"The one thing that is becoming clear to me is that I need to believe that my life has meaning regardless of how long it lasts. It has to have a purpose now and not only when I get out of here...If I were cut off from the suffering and hopelessness of the other women, my soul would shrink and die."
“The people his politics want to keep out are just images in their heads or from a
television screen or monsters created to scare other people. You are flesh and
blood. And . . . you’re the kind of person he likes”
"The one thing that is becoming clear to me is that I need to believe that my life has meaning regardless of how long it lasts. It has to have a purpose now and not only when I get out of here...If I were cut off from the suffering and hopelessness of the other women, my soul would shrink and die."
“The people his politics want to keep out are just images in their heads or from a
television screen or monsters created to scare other people. You are flesh and
blood. And . . . you’re the kind of person he likes”
April 30, 2021
I read this book as part of the Audio File Sync program. I really enjoyed this story even though it was the second in a series and I haven't read the first. About halfway through I decided I have to go back and look for the first book, because this is written so well and tells such a compelling story. I love the own voices account of something rather similar to what I read in American Dirt. Many people need to read this book/series.
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