Stolen Boy    by Michael Mehas Order:  USA  Can iUniverse, 2007 (2007) Softcover     Reviewed by Mary Ann Smyth Southern California. Bored teenagers. Looking for the next thrill as drugs and alcohol become not enough. Bad times are surely ahead. Mickey Youngblood has a beef against Ricky Leblanc. Not able to catch up with him, Mickey snatches Ricky's younger brother Bobby off the street to hold him until Ricky coughs up money owed Mickey for pot. Instead of Bobby being treated as a hostage, he is persuaded to join the partying life that these teenagers posing as men live. But things turn around quickly putting Bobby's life in danger. Based on a true story which is now playing out in the criminal court system, Stolen Boy weaves a tale of depravity, physical and mental abuse, alcoholism, psychotic behavior, drug addiction – and that's just the parents. Things go from bad to worse, if that's possible. Too late, several of the young men see the error of their ways. Their introspection would have served everyone better had they taken the time earlier to think through where their hasty actions were taking them. It's horrifying to think that the kind of life depicted in Stolen Boy is truly non-fiction. In this case, the fathers are the ones who suffer from their children's wrongdoing. Which in turn was brought on by the callous nature of the fathers. What a tragedy. Author Michael Mehas has practiced criminal law for twenty years, working to protect 'vulnerable youth from the kind of trouble' of which he has written. He has an interesting background not only in court as a defense attorney but also as a chief witness in a death penalty case. He knows of what he writes. He also was Associate Producer of the film Alpha Dog. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more Mystery books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews