Summary of the lost by gillian Cross?

In Gillian Cross's *The Lost*, the story centers around a young girl named Alice who, along with her classmates, is abducted from her school bus. She's held captive in a secluded, hidden location along with other children. The adults in her life—her parents, the police—initially struggle to find them, creating a terrifying sense of isolation and helplessness for the children.

Alice, however, demonstrates remarkable resilience and resourcefulness. She observes her captors, learning their routines and weaknesses. She forms close bonds with some of the other children, finding strength and comfort in their shared ordeal. The narrative alternates between Alice's present experience of captivity and flashbacks that gradually reveal her troubled family life and hints at a possible reason for the abduction.

While the exact motives of the kidnappers remain somewhat ambiguous, Alice's story is less about solving a crime and more about surviving the trauma and the psychological impact of being lost, separated from her family, and forced into a brutal existence. The novel explores themes of resilience, friendship under pressure, the fragility of childhood innocence, and the lasting effects of trauma. Ultimately, Alice's journey is one of survival and the slow, painful process of healing and re-building her life after the ordeal.