Escape From Fire Lake

As he tied down the canvas flaps, he took one last look in at Mike and said, “By the way, bright boy, leaving that trail of money was just a waste of your time and my good cash. If anybody does find one of those bills, I’m willing to bet that they don’t tell anyone and just keep it for themselves.” He paused for a moment and then added, “But just in case a Good Samaritan does come along…well, I think we’d best get off the main road for a while and have ourselves a little off-road adventure!

They had not traveled over ten miles before the truck pulled off onto a lonely dirt road. The only thing that marked the road was a sign:
FIRE LAKE WILDERNESS AREA: ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK.

Book: Escape from Fire Lake (Last Chance Detectives) by Robert Vernon, Focus On The Family, 1998

Genre: Mystery, Adventure

Target Audience: Boys 10-14

Subjects: Crime, Faith, Fear

Summary: Bank Robbers! Right here in the small town of Ambrosia! Not exactly what the Last Chance Detectives would have imagined when they went looking for a mystery to solve, but that’s what they found. Or at least, what Mike found. When he discovers what a truck is doing at the old abandoned hotel in town, he realizes he’s in danger and quickly hops in the back of their truck to hide when they come outside. Unfortunately for Mike, they are coming out to leave town, and now Mike is leaving town with them! When the bank robbers find Mike hiding in their truck, they decide to abandon him in a desert. Now Mike is in a fight for survival against the burning desert sun. With no water, no food and no shelter in sight, his chances aren’t looking too good!

Notes: Escape From Fire Lake is part of the Last Chance Detectives series, books based off of a movie series. The idea is that a young boy’s father supposedly went down in a plane crash, but neither he nor his plane were ever found. Mike is convinced his dad is still alive and is determined to find him someday. To practice, he and his friends form a detective club. In Escape From Fire Lake, Mike has to recall and rely on lessons his father has taught him – both about survival and about faith. Most of the book is just focused on adventure but there are a couple of scenes where Mike prays and relies on God to take care of him. When he is afraid, he reads a verse reminding him that God will never leave him, nor forsake him.

Spiritual Content Recommendation Scale: 4/5

Reviewer: J:-)mi

Hebrews 13:5-6 – Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you." So we say with confidence, "The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?"