The Fixer by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Published: July 2015

Publisher: Bloomsbury USA

Pages: 372

Copy Provided by: Borrowed

Summary: Goodreads

Summary:

Sixteen-year-old Tess Kendrick has spent her entire life on her grandfather's ranch. But when her estranged sister Ivy uproots her to D.C., Tess is thrown into a world that revolves around politics and power. She also starts at Hardwicke Academy, the D.C. school for the children of the rich and powerful, where she unwittingly becomes a fixer for the high school set, fixing teens’ problems the way her sister fixes their parents’ problems.

And when a conspiracy surfaces that involves the family member of one of Tess's classmates, love triangles and unbelievable family secrets come to light and life gets even more interesting—and complicated—for Tess.

Review:

First of all, Happy Valentine's day! I'm going to gift you with a review about a killer! 💘

This novel starts of quickly as Miss Barnes socks you in the stomach with Tess's tragic life.  She is struggling to look after her grandfather and his ranch while finishing up high school.  Unfortunately, her grandfather has entered an age of dementia and Alzheimer's.  That's quite a chore for a 16 year old.  Older sister Ivy enters the picture and takes them away from their home, ultimately changing Tess' life forever.

At first I felt that Tess and Ivy's relationship was tense.  Ivy has been away and out of Tess's life for so long that it is hard for them to re-connect.  Ivy shares the occasional memory with readers of heartfelt moments with Ivy but still harbors resentment over her leaving so many years previously.  Tess doesn't even know what Ivy does for work!  Because of this lack of trust, as events unfold at her new school, Tess doesn't share information with her sister and the plot thickens.  

3/4 of the way through the book, Tess and newfound frenemy Henry begin to meddle in the secrets of politicians.  Each has a different motive.  And as you continue reading, the real players begin to make their stance.

Overall, I REALLY enjoyed this title.  So much so that I jumped into Book #2 right away and finished it all while I was on vacation.  The ending of this book spun me for a loop.  I was shocked by what I wasn't able to predict and I LOVE those kinds of endings.  I would like to see if you jump right into Book #2 as well.  Let me know what you think of this one in the comments.  It was a winner for me. 

- Christinabean

Killer Instincts by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Published: November 14, 2014

Publisher: Disney, Hyperion

Pages: 386

Copy: Library

Summary: Goodreads

Seventeen-year-old Cassie Hobbes has a gift for profiling people. Her talent has landed her a spot in an elite FBI program for teens with innate crime-solving abilities, and into some harrowing situations. After barely escaping a confrontation with an unbalanced killer obsessed with her mother’s murder, Cassie hopes she and the rest of the team can stick to solving cold cases from a distance.

But when victims of a brutal new serial killer start turning up, the Naturals are pulled into an active case that strikes too close to home: the killer is a perfect copycat of Dean’s incarcerated father—a man he’d do anything to forget. Forced deeper into a murderer’s psyche than ever before, will the Naturals be able to outsmart the enigmatic killer’s brutal mind games before this copycat twists them into his web for good?

With her trademark wit, brilliant plotting, and twists that no one will see coming, Jennifer Lynn Barnes will keep readers on the edge of their seats (and looking over their shoulders) as they race through the pages of this thrilling novel.

Curlypow's thoughts:

I loved the first book in this series, 'Naturals', and am glad to say that 'Killer Instinct' did not disappoint.  Ms Barnes has managed to pen another satisfying thriller with a fascinating cast of characters.

One of the best things about this one was re-acquainting myself with Cassie and the gang and watching those characters develop into generally likable people.  These kids have all had problems growing up and are managing to get past their issues and genuinely meld as a family.  They all do certain things that made me throw up my hands, but at the same time are furiously defensive of each other to varying degrees and generally think before they act.

The story starts with a bang, has some major twists and turns and  ends with an even bigger bang, and I for one was not able to anticipate most of the events.  For those of you that enjoyed Barry Lyga's 'I Hunt Killers' trilogy, this series would be perfect for you

Same Book, Second Look - The Naturals - Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Published: Nov 2013

Published by: Disney-Hyperion

Pages: 304

Copy Provided by: Borrowed

Summary: Goodreads

Summary:

Seventeen-year-old Cassie is a natural at reading people. Piecing together the tiniest details, she can tell you who you are and what you want. But it’s not a skill that she’s ever taken seriously. That is, until the FBI come knocking: they’ve begun a classified program that uses exceptional teenagers to crack infamous cold cases, and they need Cassie.

What Cassie doesn’t realize is that there’s more at risk than a few unsolved homicides— especially when she’s sent to live with a group of teens whose gifts are as unusual as her own.

Sarcastic, privileged Michael has a knack for reading emotions, which he uses to get inside Cassie’s head—and under her skin. Brooding Dean shares Cassie’s gift for profiling, but keeps her at arm’s length.

Soon, it becomes clear that no one in the Naturals program is what they seem. And when a new killer strikes, danger looms closer than Cassie could ever have imagined. Caught in a lethal game of cat and mouse with a killer, the Naturals are going to have to use all of their gifts just to survive.

Review:

I loved loved loved this title.  It had all the elements I was looking for at that moment - suspense, a gripping story, a little bit of romance and a plotline that kept me reading.  Plus, there was even a little smartass humor sprinkled in.

Cassie seems a bit like a lost soul when we first meet her and she is waitressing.  Ok, so she seems like a lost soul who reads people a little TOO well.  When she first moves into her new pad, it reminds me of a foster home for the insanely gifted and incredibly dangerous.  I started to have flashbacks of Kelley Armstrong's - Darkest Power's series.  However, instead of having supernatural talents, these teens seem to be able to use their intuition and powers of reason to read and predict the actions of others.  

The Naturals was highly entertaining and I couldn't pick out if there was a particular character I liked the most.  Of course I did like Cassie but Sloane's penchant for bits of factual information at random (often inappropriate) moments made me laugh out loud.  It took me about 2/3rds of the book to figure out the ending but I was happily enjoying the story nonetheless. 

I was lucky enough to meet Ms. Barnes a few years ago at a book signing and she was brilliant.  All of the other authors bragged about how brilliant this woman was and how she would finish her PhD and be the smartiest pants around.  (Kind of a pun since Curlypow and I met her on the Smart Chicks kick it tour....).  They really weren't kidding...just recently Jennifer finished her PhD and is now teaching at (Yale?).  She even brings her love for Psychology and YA writing together in an essay analyzing Divergent by Veronica Roth called Divergent Psychology.  You can find a copy of it in Divergent Thinking.  Pretty cool if you ask me.  You can visit her website here...

I am super pumped about The Naturals book #2 - Killer Instinct.  I'm a little bummed that it doesn't come out until November but I guess it is something to look forward to in the fall!

If you enjoyed The Body Finder series, you will enjoy this one as well.  It has a great mystery element to it but does lack the supernatural...which in some ways, makes it appealing because it can be so plausible!

The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

 

Published: November 5th, 2013

Publisher: Disney Hyperion

Pages: 304

Copy: Netgalley

Summary: Goodreads

Seventeen-year-old Cassie is a natural at reading people. Piecing together the tiniest details, she can tell you who you are and what you want. But it’s not a skill that she’s ever taken seriously. That is, until the FBI come knocking: they’ve begun a classified program that uses exceptional teenagers to crack infamous cold cases, and they need Cassie.

What Cassie doesn’t realize is that there’s more at risk than a few unsolved homicides— especially when she’s sent to live with a group of teens whose gifts are as unusual as her own.

Sarcastic, privileged Michael has a knack for reading emotions, which he uses to get inside Cassie’s head—and under her skin. Brooding Dean shares Cassie’s gift for profiling, but keeps her at arm’s length.

Soon, it becomes clear that no one in the Naturals program is what they seem. And when a new killer strikes, danger looms closer than Cassie could ever have imagined. Caught in a lethal game of cat and mouse with a killer, the Naturals are going to have to use all of their gifts just to survive.


The Naturals was an exciting and thrilling murder mystery that kept the tension at a very high level.  It was a little reminiscent of Criminal Minds in its execution, with a touch of Barry Lyga's ' I Hunt Killers' and a dose of Kimberley Derting's 'Body Finder' series thrown  in for good measure. 

In any book like this there has to be a certain suspension of belief.  Let's face it - the FBI are not going to be using 17 yr olds as profilers, but if you accept that fact as written, then the story itself was surprisingly believable and easy to fall into.  The kids in the story act like any normal bunch of kids in a group situation.  There's petty bickering,  taking sides and a degree of sexual tension that of course amps up the action a little. 

Ms Barnes uses a similar technique to that of Kimberley Derting, where she gives the reader a glimpse into the mind of the killer by the use of short italicised  chapters from the killers POV. These are both disturbing and enlightening, and I admit that on hindsight, I should have worked out who the killer was sooner than I did.

All in all, a great start to what I hope will be a series.  Bring on the next one Ms. Barnes.

Nobody by Jennifer Lynn Barnes - Blog Tour - Review and Giveaway

Published: January 22nd, 2013

Publisher: Egmont

Pages: 400

Copy: From Publisher

Summary: Goodreads

There are people in this world who are Nobody. No one sees them. No one notices them. They live their lives under the radar, forgotten as soon as you turn away.

That’s why they make the perfect assassins.

The Institute finds these people when they’re young and takes them away for training. But an untrained Nobody is a threat to their organization. And threats must be eliminated.

Sixteen-year-old Claire has been invisible her whole life, missed by the Institute’s monitoring. But now they’ve ID’ed her and send seventeen-year-old Nix to remove her. Yet the moment he lays eyes on her, he can’t make the hit. It’s as if Claire and Nix are the only people in the world for each other. And they are—because no one else ever notices them.

This book just blew me away.  I LOVED it in every way.  It is a mysterious thriller with a thrilling mystery that starts with a bang and does not let go.   I honestly can't think of anything I didn't enjoy about this book.  Nix and Claire are just so absolutely perfect for each other in every way, it is not so much a romance, more an inevitable collision of forces.  I found myself wondering how lonely it must be to go through life totally unnoticed. I felt so sad for both of them, that it was almost a relief that they find each other.  And the great play on words with Nix's name - he is a nothing, a nobody, a zero, and to nix something is to remove it from existence, to veto it - very cleverly done.

Nobody is hard to describe.  It is not quite a paranormal, not quite a mystery, not quite a thriller, but it is one of the most engrossing books I've read in a while. There is a breathlessness to the narrative that just kept me reading without a break - so much so I was almost late for work! As I was reading I was reminded in a very small way of the movie 'Wanted'.  Not so much because of the characters, but more because of the secret society that trains assassins.  It's not a strong resemblance, but it was there, for me anyway.

What more can I tell you?  Great, believable characters with heart, intriguing situations and a fantastic new world.  Buy it, read it, love it.


As part of the blog tour, we are lucky enough to be able to offer a fantastic giveaway. You will be entering for  one hardcover copy of Nobody and the new paperback release of Every Other Day, which pubs on the same day as Nobody (January 22^nd).  Good luck.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Just in case you're interested, here are a few links for you to check out.

 Jen's blog: http://jenniferlynnbarnes.tumblr.com/

Two videos featuring Jen talking about Every Other Day, which is releasing in paperback on January 22, the same day as Nobody:

 

 

 

Every Other Day by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Published: December 27th, 2011

Publisher: Egmont USA

Pages: 336

E copy: Courtesy of Netgalley and publisher

Summary: Goodreads

Every other day, Kali D'Angelo is a normal sixteen-year-old girl. She goes to public high school. She attends pep rallies. She's human.

And then every day in between . . .She's something else entirely.

Though she still looks like herself, every twenty-four hours predatory instincts take over and Kali becomes a feared demon-hunter with the undeniable urge to hunt, trap, and kill zombies, hellhounds, and other supernatural creatures. Kali has no idea why she is the way she is, but she gives in to instinct anyway. Even though the government considers it environmental terrorism.

When Kali notices a mark on the lower back of a popular girl at school, she knows instantly that the girl is marked for death by one of these creatures. Kali has twenty-four hours to save her and, unfortunately, she'll have to do it as a human. With the help of a few new friends, Kali takes a risk that her human body might not survive. . .and learns the secrets of her mysterious condition in the process.

'Every Other Day' by Jennifer Lynn Barnes is fast paced and incredibly exciting, and had me on a roller coaster practically from page one.  It was a surprisingly complex story line, with wonderful characters and amazing creatures and it took me places I haven't been before. 

Kali was so well written, I felt I was able to get into her skin and feel her needs and desires - at times it was quite creepy actually.  Without giving anything away here, I love the nod to Stargate.  (At least I think it was a nod to stargate, if it wasn't, oops! ) I also love Kali's name - I'm sure it's deliberate that she is named after the Indian Goddess of Death.  You'll have to read the book to get the significance. There's some psychic ability, preternatural creatures all over the place, and a family of hunky boys that I would love to have been a part of.  There are also some very surprising twists and turns in the plot line that had me gasping.

If you're expecting the usual school, friends, supernatural creatures type of story, you'll be disappointed - but if you're looking for a taut, well-written thrill ride, try Every Other Day out for size. Well done Ms Barnes, another exceptional read.