Disappeared

Alias Prequel #3

by Lynn Mason

A crumbling Gothic mansion on a craggy Scottish isle.

A secret meeting among the world’s most powerful underground organizations. And lots of bad blood. Sydney’s sent by SD-6 to pose as the heiress of a former ruling family of Romania now mixed up in the black market. Except instead of collecting intelligence, something goes very wrong. One by one people end up disappearing. Gone. Vanished. When someone is found, they’re dead. Will Sydney be the prime suspect . . . or the newest victim?

Genres: Fiction, Young Adult, Adventure, Espionage, Mystery, Tv, Thriller

203 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published March 11, 2003

Reviews

[Glen]

An Alias prequel.

A meeting of the world's most powerful intelligence agencies in a gothic mansion. I think we all know what happens next. Agatha Christie, this ain't.

If you like the show, read it. Otherwise, read something better.

[Ivy]

5 stars

Glad that Sydney did well. Hope Prince Frederique will do well as the ruler.

Can't wait to read Alias: Sister Spy!!!!!

[Amy]

This book was a fun throw-back to one of my favorite TV shows from the early 2000’s, Alias.
It definitely brought back some nostalgia that I felt and my affection for the bad-ass character Sydney Bristow. This book was short and sweet, an easy read and a nice distraction from the rainy PNW in January. Nothing earth shattering but definitely not terrible.

[Lavonne]

This is the third in the prequel novel leading to the first season of the tv show Alias. Quick and fun read, enjoyable to get a little insight into what made Sidney Bristow the spy she becomes in the tv series.

[mads]

3.75

[Shannon McGee]

I don't expect Austen from these but this one was messy in comparison to the others in the series. That said... the way like... every other character dies in the matter of a chapter was so absurd it was fun, so I added back on a star.

[Christopher]

Alias goes Clue! Okay, not really, but this novel did remind me very much of the popular board game and '80s film of the same name. There is even an attempted murder with a candlestick as the weapon! In Disappeared, the third installment in the Alias prequel novel series, SD-6 sends Sydney undercover to gather information at a summit between underground (and illegal) organizations, and the summit is being held at a decrepit gothic mansion where, shortly after the summit begins, people are mysteriously being murdered one by one. Like I said, it reminded me a lot of Clue. Even the members of the summit have distinct personalities and traits like the Clue characters do, and the character Carmina seems like a deliberate attempt at recreating Miss Scarlet. Some of the pacing is somewhat slow, which is why the novel gets four stars rather than the full five stars from me, but I really enjoyed the novel. Even though I do believe that it deviates a bit from the DNA of Alias (seeming more like a Sherlock Holmes story than an Alias episode or film), Lynn Mason's writing has drastically improved since her first Alias novel, Recruited, which is also the first novel of the series; there is a lot of really vivid and rich description of Sydney's surroundings, which I absorbed and appreciated as a reader. I also do really love the murder-mystery nature of Disappeared as I read and tried to determine who the murderer was. There is definitely a lot of foreshadowing, and there are a lot of clues regarding who the murderer is, but I had to go back and re-read certain "scenes" to catch them because they aren't glaringly obvious until you know. For that reason, it is a novel that probably warrants an entire re-read if you have the time and/or the desire, but seeing as how I feel satisfied with my experience, I will be moving on to the fourth installment, Sister Spy.

[A.L.]

If you're a fan of the series read this book - you'll probably like it. It's one of 4 prequals to season 1. Sydney in this series is not yet confident in her skills as an agent, nor is she particularly adept at handling every situation yet. It was nice to read her this way, because if you've seen the series, she eventually becomes basically, unflappable in the face of danger.

I give it only 3 stars because I wanted more vivid description of the events, and the plot was fairly simple.

That being said, if you're a fan of the series, don't hesitate to pick it up. It's a short, entertaining read.

[Garrett]

Like a fix of the show without the show, by way of Agatha Christie, and without the space to develop either the plotline fully, the characters with any depth, or Sydney's pre-show personality. Perhaps this worked better with the other prequels, but standalone, it was a little weak. Also: none of your favorite supporting characters are in this.

[Kimberly]

I would actually give this book 2 1/2 stars. I didn't find it as good as the previous Alias books, it was a little slow in the middle. But overall it is still a quick read and worth reading if you are reading the whole series.

[Amanda]

My brain hurts, and this book is all I can handle. It's not very Alias-like. More Mousetrap-like. What a waste of some good Sydney Bristow time...

[Chalise]

Quick read but I am on a spy kick after my obsession with the undead....it is sort of fun.

[April James]

An addicting series you just cannot put down.

[The Third Place A Teen Library]

F ALI

Based on J.J. Abrams' television series, Alias.

[Darinda]

The 3rd book in the Alias Prequel series. Fun, fast-paced, and enjoyable.

[Jamie]

The book was a really quick read. Since it was a prequel, rather than a story that took place during the events of the show, there weren't too many screw-ups (like some of the other Alias novels).

[Elisa Morse]

this was definitely a great book but i didn't expect a lot of the events that occurred.

[Cws]

A#4Mas

[N.N. Heaven]

A great spy novel featuring Sydney from Alias. Kept me on the edge of my seat.