The New Bad Thing

Teagan, a reporter from Seattle, is desperate to have a child, but she and her husband Todd have been unable to conceive. The emotional turmoil has left her distraught and depressed. She soon decides a project to take her mind off her troubles is what she needs. The recent kidnapping of numerous girls on the other side of the world by a notorious terrorist group known as K.I.L. has left her wanting to help in some way.

So, she has decides to create a project known as Rebound that will attempt to raise money to rescue the girls. She enlists the help of Roman, a shadowy figure who claims he can help her get all the tactical help to mount a rescue operation. But who is this shadowy figure? And has Teagan walked into something much bigger than a humanitarian rescue project? Only time will tell.

The New Bad Thing is a riveting story that I enjoyed. However, I thought that the second part was much stronger than the first part of the story. The first section that dealt with Teagan’s life should have been more descriptive. Even as far into the story as the hotel attack, I felt there could have been more character descriptions. For example, the two terrorists Teagan encountered in the hotel could have been more developed by telling the reader their hair color, skin color, or any other distinguishing features such as beards or unique clothing. This would have made them seem more vivid and authentic to the reader.

Overall, I liked the idea behind the story. Teagan is undoubtedly not alone in wondering why the world can’t do something for kidnapped girls. But I kept wondering why the author didn’t address the moral issue Teagan must have felt about cheating on the crowdfunding site. She’s a person who wants to do something for others, yet she’s willing to almost scam people to get what she wants. The fact that the character didn’t deal with this bothered me for a while.

However, the more I read, the more I liked the story. It seemed to become richer with details and action the further I read. I also loved the fact that it had a lot of twists and turns. I thought the book’s second half was much better at making the reader feel they were on the edge of their seat waiting to see what would happen next. The New Bad Thing is a story readers will enjoy if they are looking for intrigue, mystery, and international scenery.