Book Review: Finding Jennifer Jonas by Anne Cassidy

Can we lose her again?

Kate Rickman seems just like any other nineteen-year-old girl. She goes to university, she dates nice, normal boys and she works in her local tourist office at the weekend. But Kate's not really normal at all. 'Kate' is in fact a carefully constructed facade for a girl called Jennifer Jones - and it's a facade that's crumbling fast. 

Jennifer has spent the last nine years frantically trying to escape from her horrifying past. Increasingly desperate, Jennifer decides to do something drastic. She contacts the only other girl who might understand what she's dealing with, breaking every rule of her parole along the way. Lucy Bussell is the last person Jennifer expects any sympathy from, but she's also the last person she has left.

This is one the best example of pointless sequels. This sequel really adds nothing to the story and the fact it came as part of the first book's 10 year adversay just make me think that Anne Cassidy didn't have a story about JJ in her and forced one out instead. There are things resolved from the first book, perhaps because readers kept pointing out. For the point of ease I'm just gonna call our protagonist JJ in this review. I have a review of the first book if you're interested in that rather than the sequel.

Even though JJ has sworn off relationships, of course there's a romance. He treats her better than last one, so obviously she not that invested in him. I know Frankie was her first love, but she was a 16 year old who thought about breaking up with him often (and should have), then the did the deed because virginity is always made out to be a big deal in all media. I mean  this attitude isn't really about Frankie and more JJ has decided to be a loner and just let depression take her. 

This book's lesson is that depression makes people do incredible dumb stuff. JJ unhappy so decides to put her way of life in danger for no real reason and no play off. In this book, the journalist that found her in the last book has comes back with a book which would have been, the meta interesting thing to have released for the 10th anniversary and it would have been a lot more interesting. The idiot that JJ is, she never reads this book which could have contain all the answers she was wondering about. The fact she didn't, makes me think it does fact contains the answers to the universe.

A lot of stuff happens in this book and then is immediately dropped.There is a random murder in this book and JJ shows she somehow doesn't know how the police work, despite all her encounters.

Overall, I give this 2/5 stars for sandy cliffs. The ending is really stupid to match what an idiot she is. Feelings of lack of identity is an interesting thing to explored but its not a decent length. I just don't think book add anything to JJ's journey.

Book Review: Looking for JJ by Anne Cassidy

I was never caught for my childhood murders and I never will be. *Evil Laughter*

Three children walked away from the cottages on the edge of the town towards Berwick Waters. Later that day only two of them came back. Alice Tully knows exactly what happened that spring day six years ago - though it's still hard for her to believe it's real. The images, the sounds and the aftermath are imprinted on her memory. She'll never be able to forget, even though she's trying to lead a normal life. She's making a go of things, putting her past behind her at last. But Alice's past is dangerous, and violent, and sad - and it's about to rip her new life apart.

This book big selling point is its about a child killer, as someone who killed someone when they were a child. I forget when it actually discoursed in the book that what Alice has done but it not spoiler as this standout feature of this book.

The plot is mostly made up with her new daily life and constant threat she will be discovered. Her murder was big news event meaning now she been released they are people looking for her for a cash grab. Ar...the horror of 00s newspaper, slowly becoming aware of their dying. 


The book is made up of the present with flashbacks to the past to explain what lead to the murder. This works well and the past is mixed well though out the present narrative.


Alice is a our main character who starts her life anew at the age of 16. She a sympathetic character and I wanted things to turn out well for her. The characters were realistic, except for the victim. She a emotional manipulating bully and a spoilt brat. There's never any more depth to her, therefore it doesn't feel like she actually killed a person. Alice is a flawed character and justifying her murder by having the person she kill be so detestable takes away from the horror JJ feels after her crime and the realism. 

Alice does become unlikable as she never chooses to tell anyone her reason for going to the lake that day which I get at the start but at certain point I don't get why she continues to kept it a secret. She loses her reason pretty quickly and it could effect more people than just her.

Alice's boyfriend, Frankie is a fail that kept distracting to me. In this book for some reason, uni is called college despite being set in England. He is in his third year, meaning he's like 21 year old. At least 20 to Alice's 16. That's four years difference during major development years. I know Alice has got a her A levels and is ready for uni when she 17. This is more noticeable since he controlling arse. The thing is we are meant to feel for this relationship as though it would be sad if Alice was separated from him, where I'm thinking she should break up with him. Was this seen as acceptable 10 years?

I did not like this voice actor at all. I think it might have just been personal taste, but I did not appreciated her character choices. I hoping for a better actor in the next book as I know they are different actors for that one.

Overall, I gave this book 3/5 stars for nude dolls. The novel has a good idea, but they were some hiccups in the execution of it. I'm aware of the time period it was written, but still I rated as someone who would have been just ageing into target market upon its release. I probably would have liked at the time as it does feature a ten old killing someone, but that probably why I don't the get the shock or Tune in next week for the Review of the sequel.

Book Review: Pawn by Aimée Carter

I would totally be an VIII.

Are you more than the number on the back of your neck?

For Kitty Doe, it seems like an easy choice. She can either spend her life as a III in misery, looked down upon by the higher ranks and forced to leave the people she loves, or she can become a VII and join the most powerful family in the country.

If she says yes, Kitty will be Masked—surgically transformed into Lila Hart, the Prime Minister’s niece, who died under mysterious circumstances. As a member of the Hart family, she will be famous. She will be adored. And for the first time, she will matter.
There’s only one catch. She must also stop the rebellion that Lila secretly fostered. The same one that got her killed…and one Kitty believes in. Faced with threats, conspiracies and a life that’s not her own, she must decide which path to choose—and learn how to become more than a pawn in a twisted game she’s only beginning to understand.

 Basically, Kitty agrees to something without knowing what she was getting herself into (not that she had much choice in the matter) and the real plot takes off from there. Kitty gets chosen to be masked because she has the same eye colour as Lila which is apparently rare. The government is corrupt (but what dystopia is not). When you seventeen, you take a ability test and results indicate where you work for the rest of life. Its I to VI, Kitty is gets a III which means she get manual labour and because she has no family she meant to be get sent to different city far away. It very dark world Carter has made. Nothing about Kitty life is fair. She finds herself in a family that just scheming against each other which might involve murder.

Kitty is actually quite smart but she can't read. It never actually stated in the book but she obviously Dyslexic which made me realise that I think this is the first book that I've read that has a dyslexic character as the Protagonist. I know the frustration of failing a test/not doing as well as hoped due my dyslexic nature. Running out of time before you're finished always sucks. Obviously, I could retake the test but also marked down for failing in the first place. I like her, she has spunk. I also likes the fact that Kitty might do something stupid but knows it stupid so you don't to shake her till she get sense. She backed into a lot of corner in this book so some of them can't be helped.

The characters that Kitty comes in contract after becoming Masked are complex bunch. She never really sure if she can trust any of them because their motivation ain't always that straight forward. There are some gems there and of course because this YA so there is three teenage boys involved that I know from the other reviews that they is shipping going on. Though, if you don't like sort thing much (like me) you can ignore it and focus on the plot (which is really good by the way). There is some romance but it not overbearing and actually goes with the plot and its friendship romance so it nice.

There's is one thing I don't get. Why is it a Prime Minister if there no King/Queen? The Harts are basically old fashion Royal family in that the oldest rules the country and has done for the past three generations. They do have a vote but it only ever one name on the ballot. It small thing, just why did American swapped from a president in the first place?

Overall, I gave this book 4 out of 5 stars for stolen oranges. This the first of a series and I'm looking forward to the next one which is meant to be out sometime this year but Pawn just came out so going to be good few months. I think it promising series and I'm very intrigued with what happens down the line. If you like dystopia or people swapping life with each other I recommend this book to you as it good on both fronts.

I got this book off Netgalley for Review. Published by Mira Ink.