Finding Lubchenko

Lubchenko #1

by Michael Simmons

Since his millionaire father never gives him any money, slacker genius Evan Macalister "liberates" equipment from Dad's business and sells it on line. But then a man is murdered and Mr. Macalister is accused. Evan alone can clear his father's name—but only by revealing his own theft operation. And then he'll be grounded forever. There's just one thing to do—find the real murderer. Armed only with a cryptic e-mail from someone named Lubchenko, Evan sets off on a quest that catapults him and his two best friends into a world of danger and international intrigue.

Genres: Mystery, Young Adult, Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Teen, Adventure, Crime

304 pages, ebook

First published June 16, 2005

About the author

Librarian note: there are several authors on Goodreads with this name. This is Michael^^^Simmons.

~~~

Reviews

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not too shabby. It definitely was a welcome diversion from all of the supernatural/romance/football books that currently glut the young adult genre. Evan MacAlister is rich, but not spoiled--at least from his point of view--and this is his main complaint. As a way of retaliating against his father's strict discipline and aversion to giving Evan everything he wants, Evan begins to swipe high tech gadgetry from his dad's office and sells it online to earn an income worthy of a respectable rich kid. However, when his dad is framed for murder and the laptop Evan recently stole contains evidence that may free him, the choice to Evan seems clear--crack the security codes, retrieve the information, and go after the murderer himself. After all, he doesn't want to risk getting caught, then there's the fact that his dad once made him spend the night in jail for a relatively minor offense.

Evan is a character much like Ferris Bueller: entitled, yet entertaining so we're willing to forgive him his faults. The book is amusing and despite the fact that Evan and his friends don't really exert much influence over the events in the story as they unfold, it's an entertaining enough way to kill an afternoon.

Cross posted at This Insignificant Cinder

[Kim · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wow. This is the first time that I'm not blown away by a Green Mountain Book Award. Huh. I'm kinda um... yeah.

They tout this book as "an uproariously fast-paced, James Bond-like spy chase through upscale Paris. All seen through the eyes of a quick-thinking, smart-mouthed ne'er-do-well who shoot for the ridiculously impossible and completely succeeds-well, almost."


Hmphf.


1. Maybe James Bond like in that one guy that played him waaay back. But he's no Daniel Craig.

2. Uproariously fast-paced? Really? It read fast, thank god. Um... clever? Hardly. Predictable and making we want to slap the kid and put him to bed early? I can see that. Likeable? Eh. Tolerable

3. 'Quick-thinking, smart-mouthed ne'er-do-well'? Did we have fun with Thesaurus.com? Hmmm??? Maybe I'm just showing my age. (shut up)

4. I'm going to have to actually read the backs of GMBA selected books now, huh? That blows.


Thing is, he's making a sequel. I want to sit this overpriviledged kid down and tell him that he'd have faired better in the days of The Scarecrow and Mrs. King.

But, I'm not that mean... right?

[Jason Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book by Micheal Simmons is amazing. The book itself takes you on to the adventure the characters experience in the book. I think this is one of the top ten must-read books.

The story is about a teenager named Evan Mcalister. He is a teenager who gets into trouble alot. His mother died when he was 11. So he lived with his 60-almost going to his 70's father. His father is a owner of a really successful company called MRI, but he doesn't give his son, our main character, Evan, a single penny. He also shared the company with a partner, Mr.Richmond, who plays a big role in the story. Instead of giving him allowances, his dad let him work at the company.

This is where it gets interesting. Evan usually takes stuff from the company and sells it to people over the internet for money. But one day, there was a murder that happened at the MRI, and Evan's dad gets arrested. He was accused that he was the murder! Surprisingly, Evan comes across this laptop he stole, which happened to have all the emails that framed his dad. So, with his best friend, Ruben, they crack the computer code and figures out that this person called Lubchenko-who lives in paris-had all the info they need to bust his dad out of jail.

So, with that information figured out, Evan decides to go on a trip to paris with his best friend Ruben, and his secret little crush, Erika (Erika had excellent french speaking abilities). During the trip, they search for Lubchenko, and ends up in a completely weird situation.

This part is where the climax comes in, a completely thrilling 40 pages worth of adventure. I think you should read to find out what happens.

[Sharon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this book entertaining, through never quite interesting or suspenseful. Evan as a main character was a little too smart-alecky for me, though I could see how his dialog would appeal to teenage boys. The fact that the central mystery was solved without any real cleverness or motivation on the part of the characters irked me somewhat, and I didn't really care very much for any of them. I found the book most entertaining in the missteps these teens made while cracking the case and the luxury they lived in, and I imagine many readers would feel the same way.

[Snail in Danger (Sid) Nicolaides]

This caught my eye at the library. However, it uncaught it almost immediately when I read the claim that the narrator's father's pharmaceutical company had a stock of live smallpox virus. Um, sorry, but no, it doesn't. On the books, there are only two facilities in the world that have smallpox stocks, and both of them are government facilities. I know, only a specific kind of dork would know that ... but I do and it messed with my suspension of disbelief too much.

[Sarah Key · Rating 1 out of 5]

Rambling and poor portrayal of teenage males.

[Krystal Flores]

I am finishing the book, Finding Lubchenko by Micheal Simmons, and as I am reading I am enjoying the mysteries of the life of Evan, and the crime of the murder. Right in the beguinning of the book a powerful line I read was, “It was the beginning of the strangest time of my life.” This is a powerful quote, since the narrator had been through tragedies but this murder affect him more. And the murder wasn’t family or friends. This can also foreshadow continues tragedies throughout the book. Later on in the book Evan expresses him thoughts and ego. To show this Evan used an again and again moment, In the book Evan kept repeating, “I’m very stupid.” Evan said this line at least 5 times. He believes that he is worthless and thinks less of himself. I also believe Evan must be hiding a significant piece of evidence, for the crime. He might be choking because he is hiding something from humanity, especially the cops. To add to his thinking of himself, I found an aha moment, when Evan stated that other believe he was worthless. This helped me develop the character’s actions and thoughts more. Maybe the fact that others have negative opinions about him, can influence that thoughts that he has about himself. But as I kept reading, I saw some development in characters. A passage that I saw a character begins to change is when Evans dad begins to ask softly towards Evan, and it makes the father seem more caring and thoughtful. “Then he said (in a ton much softer that I was used to), ‘Evan, there’s nothing for you to worry about…”. This really showed me how my character has been developing.

-Krystal Flores

[Lynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

At the beginning of Finding Lubchenko we find out that the main character, Evan, is a wise-cracking teenager who is generally in trouble for doing something he shouldn't have. His father, who is usually his biggest critic, has been arrested for murder and accused of bioterrorism. Evan seeks to clear his father because his illegal business venture of stealing equipment from his father's business and selling it online has led him to taking a laptop that contains evidence that would probably clear his father's name. Evan can't just turn over the laptop because it would expose him to his father's anger and possibly get him arrested for theft. Evan talks his friends Ruben and Erika to taking a trip with him to Paris to find Lubchenko, who is the only clue that Evan has.

Evan is an interesting character who seems to have a some sense of right and wrong, but rarely follows the most logical course of action to achieve his goal. The mystery was pretty easy to figure out, but the obvious attraction to the story is the character of Evan with his quirks, flaws, and sarcastic nature.

[Brett Bonebrake · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Finding Lubchenko" is a novel about a teenage boy, Evan, who steals items from his rich father's business and sells them illegally. When Evan's actions result in the death of a man, Evan has to do something, involving a trip to Paris, which results in his dad finding out and flipping on Evan. I enjoyed reading this novel and following Evan McCallister throughout his conflicts and problems. I thought Michael Simmons did a very good job of keeping me on the edge of my seat throughout the book. I recommend this book greatly.

[Josie S · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the book Finding Lubchenko by Michael Simmons, Evan Mcalister is a troubled teen with bad grades. To make matters worse, his father is very strict about his grades and behaviors. This leads to his relationship with his father to have quite a bit of rough patches. In addition, Evan’s dad is rich but is determined to let his child turn into a spoiled rich kid. So, he doesn't give Evan luxuries that you would expect out of a company owner worth 40 million dollars. The company Evans dad owns is called MRI, they make medicines and even are one of few corporations that are allowed to contain smallpox. Then out of the blue one day, someone is murdered on the premises of MRI, and the prime suspect is Evan’s dad. They don’t have much key evidence but they know what will unravel the whole thing Mr, Belachecks (victim of murder) laptop. But Evan has it. This is a good time to mention that Evan has a business with his friend (Ruben) where he steals electronics laying around MRI and sells them. He makes good money too, but his bad actions have finally caught up to him, he stole the key evidence to get his father out. Does Evan turn the laptop in to free his laptop but get in trouble, or keep the laptop, jeopardize his trouble even more by trying to crack the computer himself.










SPOILERS AHEAD!!!!






While this book was a gripper, it took a while to get going. And even when it did, it could be a bit slow. But stay patient, this book has a lot in store. One of my favorite parts was the very end. After Evan and Ruben flew back to Seattle from France Ruben planned to go over to Evan's house and camp out. But on the way their Ruben was intercepted by Mr. Coulbourn, (murder) Ruben tries to use their code word for danger (A-OK) but Evan is so tired he forgets. Mr. Coulbourn attempts to kill both of them. In the last moment before his finger hits the trigger, there is a different gunshot. It was Evan’s dad's business partner. They all were safe at last. This was a great mystery that kept me on the edge of my seat. Finding Lubchenko was a great mix of mystery, suspense, emotion, tied with a bit of romance.

[Wisterious Woman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved it! The dad is horrible—a man that should never have had a kid. He is stingy and mean and verbally abusive and wants Evan to 'pull himself up by his bootstraps'. He refuses to gives him money or help. Evan is extremely entrepreneurial and finds a way to make money by 'borrowing' equipment from his Dad's business and selling it. The reader never feels squeamish about this illegal activity because he is only stealing from his father who should have been helping Evan or at least showing him some kind of fatherly love—which he doesn't. Evan is really a decent kid and devises a plot to get his Dad off the hook for a murder he is being falsely accused of. Of course, he is also trying to save his own ass by keeping his illegal activities from being discovered by the authorities. It is a great adventure story but told through the thoughts of kid who makes wrong decisions all the time.

What I like most is the writer's style. There are often short sentences. "And then I started to feel guilt. First, I felt surprise. Next, pity. I had bought the tickets to Paris. We were leaving the next day. Everything was set. But as I saw my dad sitting there looking depressed and talking about my mother, I felt like the worst guy in the world for not just turning over the laptop and letting way more qualified people pursue all this. I mean, what kind of bastard was I? It was one thing to steal computers from my dad's company. But letting him stay in this situation any longer than he had to was just so rotten of me. Rotten. Terrible. Unforgivable. I didn't know what to do. Not at all.'

The other thing I liked about the book was the two friends he dragged into his criminal activity and took on his great adventure to Paris. They made an interesting trio and showed great friendship even under duress.

[Georgina Lacayo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a fun book! The writing is so casual and funny and I like how Evan talks. He's just so funny, trying to act cool around people, and even to himself, by pretending he doesn't care. He chooses to have a complicated relationship with his dad, actually believing that it is best that way. I can relate to that. There are so many things I don't tell my parents because reasons.
Evan Macalister and his two best friends, Ruben and Erika (whom he's had a crush on for a while), embark on a heroic adventure to possibly save his father from a lifetime of jail. It's funny now that I think about it but Evan really did say something along the lines of what I jut wrote. He was that blunt. He told you what was gonna happen just so you knew it and yet the story wasn't spoiled.
I loved the writing, the plot and the characters. Mr. Evan Macalister, Sr., seems hilarious when Evan describes him yelling at him. I imagine him as a cartoon, turning red with anger and spitting as he screamed. And the last scene! Oh gosh, so hilarious!! I mean, stupid Evan with his mischief.

Quotes:
You always have to go home eventually. Sad, but true.

I deny everything-especially emotions-this is what I was always taught. It's the principal truth of my forebears.

Hang with me, you've got to help me with my crimes. A rule.

Given half a chance, I'll usually say something completely inappropriate.

Always a good idea to have a party.
Escapism?
Evasion of responsability?
Cowardice?
Yes to all of these things.

[John · Rating 2 out of 5]

Okay, so a couple of thoughts about this YA-for-boys title.

First, there's a blurb on the front cover that I think does a real disservice to the book. It seems to promise readers a tale that's "uproariously fast-paced" -- and while the blurb has no doubt helped sell any number of copies, it creates for readers what can only be described as false expectations.

Put simply, the book is anything but "fast-paced."

Secondly, the book is at its worst when its main character and narrator, Evan, is inside his own head, talking about himself -- how funny he is, what a cutup he is, how he can't stand his dad, etc, etc.

The problem here (for me, at least) is that this is largely what the book is. The plot -- though it's interesting enough in its own right -- is slow to develop, and even when it does get going, it seems like Evan's always there to help slow things back down. Sigh.

Maybe my expectations for the book were too high. (See complaint No. 1) But for me, it just never reaches the potential I thought it had when I bought it.

On the plus side, if you happen to like the narrator, Evan, chances are you're gonna really like this book.

[Sherrie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story is being told by Evan McAlister. He's the one who gets in trouble all the time. His dad is the one in jail for murder. Evan figures out he has the computer that belongs to the guy that got killed. He had stolen from his office the night he got killed. So Evan and his best friend, Rubin, who happens to be a computer whiz, break into the computer to see if they can find anything. They come across some emails for a guy named Lubchenko. So Evan, Rubin and Erika, with the help of Evan's dad's credit card, take off for Paris to see if they can find the guy. For a week they are all 3 in Paris alone and having a merry time. Staying at the best hotel, nightclubing, staying up all night. But they do finally find the guy Lubchendo. He gives them lots of info on who the bad guy is so then they can get Evan's dad out of jail. Who is the bad guy and what are they doing? I'll never tell. You'll have to read the book!

[Alec · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought that the book was a bit different from most that I have read that have similar elements such as theft, crime, etc. Mainly because you are seeing it through the eyes of a innocent teenager who is surrounded by wealth, but has trouble to get a hold of that wealth. I'd recommend this book to anyone who likes adventure stories.

For those who have not read the book:

The book is about a teenager who is born into wealth, but is not allowed to use this wealth. He works for his dad's multi-million dollar company as a minor office worker. He may be being paid minimum wage, but he also has a side business. That would be stealing from his dad's company and selling the products online. His side job is close to being known when a worker at his dad's company is murdered. He has to figure out who killed the worker, or go to jail due to withholding evidence. You probably know what he does, right?

[Jan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Evan Macalister, 16, never thinks twice about making wrong decisions, especially when it comes to relieving his overbearing, penny-pinching father of a few minor pieces of computer equipment from his high-tech medical company to hock on eBay. But when his dad is arrested for the murder of a colleague and the evidence to clear him just happens to be on a laptop that Evan lifted from the victim's office just before he was killed, the teen realizes that he's faced with two choices. One, turn the laptop over to the police and face the wrath of his father, or two, solve the mystery himself. Of course ever-impulsive Evan chooses the latter, and, with his dad's credit card in tow, he and two friends travel first class to Paris to find Lubchenko, the missing link who supposedly can clear his dad's name.

[Jada · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was pretty awesome. There's nothing better than three high schoolers running off to Paris in search of a possible spy/murder/terrorist. Really. And the narrator, Evan, was pretty funny, too. It was a great kind of high school spy novel that kept you enthralled until the final pages.

The only thing I didn't really care for was the author's use of choppy sentences. I understand that the narrator is a doofy high school boy, and it really made sense to write the sentences the way he did, but I found myself getting tripped up a lot by them. I don't know. It just bothered me.

Apart from that though, you should totally check this book out. It's totally worth an evening of your time. :)

[Garry · Rating 4 out of 5]

The voice of the narrator is the strongest part of this book. Sarcastic, witty, knowing, insecure...adolescent in a realistic way. Some adults may not appreciate the under-age drinking, club hopping, and allusions to potential sexual activity, but this is not gratuitous or done to excess, but rather adds to the present-day realism of the book. The mystery itself is a little lacking and the resolution is a bit too abruptly tidy,but the book's charm and appeal is the narrator and fantasy adult-less trip to Paris, staying at five star hotels along the way.

[Charles · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was fun, the moral dilemma of a rich kid who is too smart for his own good. The narrator must decide whether to reveal evidence that will free his dad of serious criminal charges, but doing so will also reveal that the kid was ripping off his dad to a huge extent. He ran up against a lot of shadowy underworld figures both in the US and Europe. I could have done without the morality play but it was a good romp! Fast reading!

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hilarious! What a guy book this is! Males love it and it's an easy sale when I book talk it.[return][return]Having secretly sold his father's office equipment on the Internet for quick cash, Evan finds himself in a bad situation when his father is accused of a murder due to one of the sales, thus causing Evan to track down the real culprit via cryptic e-mails in order to clear his father's name while keeping his own thievery a secret to all.

[Erica Alvarez · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book it had a lot of action, international mystery and suspense
The main character evan was a funny guy but he was a slacker and his dad was a very rich man but paid no attention to evan or gave him any money
And then when his dad is framed evan must go on an adventure that takes him to Europe with his two best friends
To prove his dad innocent
It's a very fast paced story filled with danger and mystery.

[Tracie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Evan is a slacker with a rich, tightwad father. His father gives him a minimum wage job at his biotech company, but Evan steals printers, laptops, etc when he can to increase his income. Things turn bad when his father is accused of murdering an employee and the laptop Evan stole holds the key to his father's innocence. But if he turns in the stolen goods, Evan will be in jail instead of his father. What's a confused, angry, and lonely son to do?

[Maria Lopez Larucci · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book! I thought Evan was a great character, a bit arrogant, cocky, but and self-centered, but I liked his friends. The ending was a bit of a shock, I suppose I figured they were safe, but the second that the code word was said, I knew what was about to happen. I also wished that the relationship between Evan and his father ended better, but oh well. I enjoyed this book overall.

[Marya · Rating 2 out of 5]

Rich kid with a serious entitlement attitude gets caught up in a scheme of international intrigue. Kinda like Beverly Hills 90210, but with a main character who is a little more grounded. I guess that's supposed to make it comic, but all it really ends up being is a story that you can easily imagine a teenager telling. Is that a compliment?

[Mrs. Simmonds · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun book-- about a boy who has been doing some underhanded business. His father is accused of murder and the only way he can prove his father's innocence is by giving away his business and getting in major trouble-- or, by taking the investigation of the murder into his own hands and solving it himself!

[Kellie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This will be my third in the YA mystery group I've committed to read this summer. The style could be a little off-putting as it's written in the 2nd person and very conversational with the reader. The author really captured the voice of a teenager though. It's not moving as fast as I would like it but there's been a few interesting twists so far.

[Dotty · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book starts with a great paragraph: “So this is basically a story about a murder. It’s a story about a murder and the fact that the cops said my dad did it. All implausible, but still a lot of trouble for my father. But I’ll get to that. The story actually begins with a smaller crime. It was really just a way for me to earn a little money.”

[Lara · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a good book. I had lots of fun reading it, sometimes I laughed a lot with these very cool, witty, sarcastic ideas.
The characters were very relatable in the sense that they were pretty honest about what they wanted, what they couldn't do, and for that reason felt very real and not perfect people with heroic motives.
Partying away with them in Paris was pretty entertaining too.

[Irvington Public Library Teens · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was a fun action thriller, but a little bit simple-minded. I think the author's use of the main character's teenage voice made the book too simple, and took away some of the complexity of the plot. At first I enjoyed the laid-back style of writing, but it got annoying really fast. Overall, it was a fun book, but not especially amazing. -- Caleb, Teen Reviewer

[Caleb Schwartz · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was a fun action thriller, but a little bit simple-minded. I think the author's use of the main character's teenage voice made the book too simple, and took away some of the complexity of the plot. At first I enjoyed the laid-back style of writing, but it got annoying really fast. Overall, it was a fun book, but not especially amazing.