The Lovely and the Lost may be the start of a new series.

from description: Kira Bennett’s earliest memories are of living alone and wild in the woods. She has no idea how long she was on her own or what she had to do to survive, but she remembers the moment that Cady Bennett and one of her search-and-rescue dogs found her perfectly. Adopted into the Bennett family, Kira still struggles with human interaction years later, but she excels at the family business: search-and-rescue. Along with Cady’s son, Jude, and their neighbor, Free, Kira works alongside Cady to train the world’s most elite search-and-rescue dogs. Someday, all three teenagers hope to put their skills to use, finding the lost and bringing them home.

Both the idea of a child who lived wild before being adopted and the search and rescue dogs intrigued me. I liked all three quirky adolescents as well. Kira's struggle to overcome her past and to blend in to society are aided by Cady Bennett, the woman who found and adopted Kira; Jude, Cady's son and Kira's adoptive brother; and Free, her eccentric friend.

I enjoyed the book, and I'm interested in The Naturals series.

Read in March. Blog review scheduled for April 28, 2019.

NetGalley/Disney Book Group
YA Mystery. May 7, 2019. Print length: 336 pages.

I’ve tried desperately to get into this book, and I just can’t. I’ve loved the author’s previous works, and she has great world building. But, this was too slow to keep me interested. I skipped ahead a little to see if the later section would help, but it was not better at grabbing my attention.

It took a little while for me to get into this book, mostly due to a lack of time on my part. But once I sat down and really committed to reading it I was hooked. I loved the setting, I really liked the characters and the plots twists were nicely done. In short, just about everything I like in a mystery book.

Kira was a fascinating character. She is a hard one to love, she has a lot of issues, but as you get to know her you begin to see why her few friends are so devoted to her. She is more comfortable with her dogs than with people, but as her backstory unfolds throughout the book, you really get to know her well.

I loved her relationship with both Jude and Free. Jude is a great friend and protective brother, with issues of his own. Free, is such a free spirit, but a loyal and trustworthy friend. The three of them together plus their dogs, make an awesome search and rescue team. If I was lost in the wilderness, I certainly would want this team looking for me. They don’t give up by any means, even when the adults all tell them to stop, they don’t. Their relationships with their dogs was also well done. You could tell that they all loved them, and understood how to use them to the best of their abilities to rescue people.

There are many adults in this story that play important roles. Kira and Cady, her adoptive mother, have a very solid and loving relationship, even when they both find it hard to show it. Cady is very protective of all of the kids. Mac, is a person from Cady’s past, who is also part of the search and rescue. He turns out to be more than he appears. Cady’s father is also well fleshed out as a character, as is Ness, a close friend of the family. The difficulties between Cady and her father become an important part of the story. Also, Cady’s past relationship with Mac adds to the twists of the plot.

I can’t say much about the plot without giving things away, but it is pretty intense. You feel the urgency of everyone’s need to find the little girl who is lost. You feel their worry as each part of the search turns up clues that she isn’t just lost but maybe taken. Kira’s memories of what happened to her, plus the story about why Cady and her father have been estranged makes for a complex story line. I pretty much figured out what was really going on about the same time that Kira did which made everything that much more intense.

An excellent story that will keep you interested until the end. I loved the added addition of the rescue dogs and their training as well as the setting of the national park. If you like a well crafted story of how family secrets can shape your life, than this is the story for you.

A captivating novel about the child, Kira, who was rescued and adopted by Cady Bennett. When rescued Kira was just a little girl and was living alone and wild in the woods. Once rescued she didn't talk for about a year. Cady Bennett trains search and rescue dogs and has taught Kira, her natural son Jude, and their friend Free to also train them. This story follows a search and rescue operation; the recovery of some memories Kira has suppressed; and the revealing of some secrets Cady has kept hidden.

This is a quick and intense read. I really enjoyed the story and the dogs especially - their loyalty and protectiveness shines throughout the book. The writing was very well done and I like the way the story unfolded - the the right amount of tenseness.

Thanks to Jennifer Lynn Barnes and Disney Book Group Freeform through Netgalley for an advance copy.

The feral child, a literary trope if I’ve ever seen one, is used in a clever new way in this YA novel from Disney Freeform Press. The Lovely and the Lost follows three children involved in canine search and rescue, all of whom are lost in their own way. Free has lost her family connections and latched onto the family next door. Jude has never known the presence of his father, and Kira was rescued from surviving on her own in the woods at age five. Each teen has a stake in finding something when they accompany Jude’s mother, Cady Bennett, back to her hometown to search a local mountain for a missing 9-year-old.

Author Jennifer Lyn Barnes has created a golden character in Kira. Her tough exterior belies an inner soft spot for her dogs, a protective instinct over her family and friends, and the traumatized “Girl” that survived something terrifying only to seek shelter and survive on her own in the woods. Adult readers may very well feel Kira is comparative to Kya from the runaway hit Where the Crawdads Sing, and they wouldn’t be wrong. As this appears to be the first in a series, I look forward to more stories about Kira as she discovers the truth behind her trauma.

For readers intrigued by the canine search and rescue details, I recommend the memoir Go Find by Susan Purvis as a companion read.

Huge thanks to Disney/Freeform Press and Netgalley for the free e-galley of this wonderful book. 4 stars!

I always enjoy Jennifer Barnes. She writes a good fast paced mystery with a twist and a cliff hanger ending. Great for reluctant readers and tweens wanting read teen books.

I like the Natural series and devoured it. I like how this is similar, but the search and rescue dog angle is different and there are not a lot teen books like it

Posted to Goodreads: Kira Bennett doesn't remember her past. Kira doesn't really remember anything before she was rescued from the woods by Cady Bennett who adopted her. But there was a before. There was time before Kira was lost in the woods by herself for weeks just trying to find a way to survive. Now, over a decade later Kira is a training with her adopted brother, Jude, and their bestfriend Free to go into the family search-and-rescue business. However, the family's lives start down a new path when Cady's father appears and asks the group to help search for a child lost in the Sierra Glades National Park. Kira wants to help find the lost girl but the longer she is in the wilderness the more her memories resurface and she quickly learns that some memories should remain lost.

I just really enjoyed this book. Jennifer Lynn Barnes has an incredible skill of writing pitch perfect realistic fiction that is set in extreme circumstances. The concept of training search-and-rescue dogs was both unique and fascinating. All of the characters in this book are wonderfully well developed with Kira being one of the most interesting characters I have come across in a YA book in quite some time. The only negative I had with the book was that the resolution of the mystery felt a little off however that is such a slight issue that the book is still a must read.

I thought the Lovely and the Lost was terrible and it took all I had to finish it. Kira is a once feral child turned teenager that lives with her adopted mother who was the one that found her in the woods those years ago. Along with her brother and friend, they train rescue dogs and of course help in rescues. A young girl turns up missing and the hunt is on but then again so are all the secrets, lies, snooping, betrayal and so on. There are so many characters you’ll need a notepad for keeping track. There will be side stories about many of the characters too. What’s up with Cady, Ash and her father? What’s the background on Kira? There are so many after a short while I easily figured most of it out or didn’t care anymore.

I really enjoyed the way the author had the character think like a dog. It added interest to the story. I LOL'ed at the "Boop." Look for it :o)

That being said, though, I'm not sure the author (or maybe it's the publisher) knows who her audience is. The vocabulary is very lofty, and it doesn't seem to match the genre of the story. Moreover, the author uses some old references that I'm not even sure today's readers would understand (for example, John Hughes movies, Fred Astaire).

I found myself not engrossed enough in the story to follow the mystery itself. Following the mystery, therefore, was more confusing than intriguing. As a whole I wanted to like it more than I did, but I struggled to finish it.

Kira lived in the woods, all alone. She did what she had to to survive but she doesn't remember a lot of what happened. A search and rescue group found her and Cady adopts her. She loves her family she's been adopted into but she's not good at human interaction. She doesn't like small talk or talking with other people. She doesn't make friends easily. And she's frustrated that she doesn't remember her beginnings but Cady thinks that's good. Why remember bad things? Now she's part of Cady's search and rescue team.

Freeform and Net Galley let me read this book for review (thank you). It will be published May 7th.

When Cady's father shows up and asks her to help him find a missing child, she doesn't want to. She hasn't forgiven him for not saving her boyfriend at the time he went missing. He couldn't but that doesn't matter. She's still holding a grudge. Kira wants to help. She remembers being young and lost in the woods and she wants to save the girl from some of things she endured. They end up going. With four dogs and handlers they can cover a lot of ground.

This turns into more than a rescue hunt. Cady's father is dying and he hasn't told her yet. Kira ends up having nightmares and recalling her unknown childhood. They find a piece of the jacket the girl was wearing so they know they are on track. Kira and an unlikely friend she's made find a cave she was in and the jacket she was wearing but no child. They continue searching and finding more life truths on the way.

I found this story haunting. I enjoyed reading it but it'll stick with me a while. I spent a lot of time in the woods when I was child so I could relate to Kira's memories. At least I didn't get hurt when I was there. You'll think about this one every now and then...

I love Barnes' work. She's been a favourite author of mine since I read The Naturals and The Fixer—and she's never disappointed me with anything she's written after those series, The Love and the Lost included. It includes Barnes' trademarks: a thrilling and captivating mystery, an intelligent young woman at its forefront, and impeccable writing and pacing. The thing that makes it better? Dogs!! So many rescue dogs.

Part of what makes The Lovely and the Lost so engrossing is that, Barnes never just focuses on the mystery aspect of the book. Throughout the novel, family drama unfolds, and you can't help but be sucked into all of it. The characters all grow on you, and you feel persoanlly invested with what happens to them. ANd this book has a ton of relationships, including (but not limited to): Kira and her dogs (ahh!! a husky!); Kira and Cady (I want to say foster mother, but I never remember these things correctly); Kira and Jude (foster brother) and their friend, Free; Cady and her friend; Kira and Gabriel, yet another mysterious person with a mysterious past. Barnes writes these relationships so well that they all feel like genuine, real-life people, as opposed to a character on a page!

The mystery was absolutely riveting. I can never guess how these things go with her books—which makes me love JLB's books all the more. They're complex and intricate and, often times, confusing. It definitely adds to the mystery of it, but sometimes I feel like I can never keep up.

I liked Kira! She's the main character, a foster child with no memory of her past. She was an interesting, if somewhat volatile, character. But, if I'm honest, I was a bit more invested with her dogs... Still, Kira was like every other JBL character. Intelligent, able to hold her own, determined... all of that good stuff. I love characters like that, don't get me wrong... but I've also read about her four different times. I know Barnes has an archetype. It's great. But, and this was a complaint with her latest release too, Little White Lies, I don't want to see her old main characters mirrored in her new ones. The voice sounds exactly the same, even if the story isn't. This is probably my biggest issue.

Overall, Jennifer Lynn Barnes does it yet again with this new release. 3.5/5 stars!

What a wonderful surprise! A book that I expected to be just a so-so story about a girl saved by the love of a foster family & the dogs they train, turned out to be a compelling, suspenseful story about resilience and the power & harm of secrets.

Although the story started slow for me, about a third of the way in I realized that there was something more going on here. Tales from the past were gradually revealed, characters were put in peril, and the mystery surrounding a missing girl took some unexpected twists and turns. By the end, I was fully committed and invested in the characters. A great read for teens & adults alike.

I received a free copy from NetGalley. Search dogs, a lost child, a coming to age teen, a few mysteries from the past, and good friends come together for a quick read. Not a book you want to put down, it is a great read for a rainy afternoon. I'm hoping to find more by the author or that it turns these characters into a series.

Kira doesn’t remember much about her childhood, but she does recall being lost in the woods and being found by Cady Bennett and her search-and-rescue dog. Although she was adopted by Cady, she still has trouble feeling like she belongs in a family. She has no difficulties interacting with the canines used with the search-and-rescue business and she hopes to continue with this endeavor into her adult years. When Cady and her team are asked to help search for a missing child in the Sierra Glades National Park, Kira can’t stop thinking about this missing girl and her own experience being lost in the wilderness.

The Lovely and the Lost is a stand-alone mystery that leaves a lot to be desired. Even though there were some twists and turns as the pages were turned, overall there was just something lacking in the novel. Barnes usually has dynamic characters that make readers want to know more, yet these characters were a little flat and didn’t make me want to stay with the story. Overall I liked the ending and decided I liked the book, so I encourage those who want to read it to stick it out till the end because it is worth it.

I'm a big fan of Barnes' The Naturals series, so I was really excited when I initially heard about this new book. A YA mystery about search and rescue dogs?! I am all in! The Lovely and the Lost definitely lived up to my expectations - I fell in love with the characters (Jude!!!) and was totally invested in their stories. The mystery was solid and I didn't see the surprise twist at the end. My only complaint was that I wanted more - another 50 pages of character development would have been just fine by me. My hope is that Barnes will continue with these characters and we will get more about Cady and Kira's histories - please, please, please let this be the start of a series!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book. I was extremely elated to have the opportunity to read an advanced copy as Barnes is one of my favorite YA authors, having enjoyed The Naturals series and others.

Kira is not like other girls her age. She is a survivor, even if she doesn't remember much of her early years. She relates best to her dogs and her adoptive mother Cady and brother Jude and best friend "Free", a nickname for her next door neighbor Phoebe. They are a search and rescue family who trains dogs to aid in search and rescue operations. Cady saved Kira and made her part of her family. Now there is a missing girl to find, and an opportunity to meet Cady's father and other people from her life.

There are some surprises in this novel between what happened with the missing girl, and *Girl*, Kira's persona from her missing time in the wild. The plot of this book was a nice change from other books I've read. There is even a moment at the end that has you wondering about something significant, without leaving the reader feel like anything was unresolved. An excellent, quick read, you simply must read this book when released May 7th!!

I loved this book about a young woman who had been found lost in the wilderness who now trains Search and Rescue dogs and is about to do her testing to become a certified SAR member by trying to find a young girl lost in a vast wilderness. This book has so many layers to it I could not put it down in trying to peel away all the connections and mysteries. It seems very true to life and is full of interesting, multi-dimensional characters that I would like to know in real life. The activities and emotions that the characters go through in the course of the story are very believable and help drag you into the action. If you are a fan of mysteries or stories in the great outdoors this will be a good one for you. Thank you to #netgalley for the opportunity to read #thelovelyandthelost

The Lovely and the Lost by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

๏ ๏ ๏ Highlights ๏ ๏ ๏

YA Contemporary
Rescue Dogs
Family Drama
Mystery

๏ ๏ ๏ Links ๏ ๏ ๏

Goodreads | Booklikes | BookDigits

Amazon | Kobo | Barnes&Noble

GooglePlay | IndieBound




๏ ๏ ๏ My Thoughts ๏ ๏ ๏

I love The Naturals Series and The Fixer Duology by JLB, I love how smart her writing is and how believable they were, despite having crime-solving teens. I wanted to love this too...I mean, it's written by Jennifer and it has dogs...two things I love. Sadly, though, I was ultimately disappointed. I feel like she lost her mojo...and I really hope she hasn't.

The characters all felt off, kind of over-the-top unbelievable, none more so than the character of Jude...he was cringe-worthy annoying. The family drama was all over the place and kind of difficult to follow. The mystery of the missing girl was also a complete letdown, seriously, I just didn't buy it. The blurb led me to believe that it had all the makings of a super-good story, but it just didn't deliver. This is probably more of a two-star read for me, but my love for her stories wouldn't let me rate it that low...

๏ ๏ ๏ MY RATING ๏ ๏ ๏

☆2.5☆STARS - GRADE=D+




๏ Breakdown of Ratings ๏
Plot⇝ 2.5/5
Characters⇝ 2/5
The Feels⇝ 2/5
Pacing⇝ 3/5
Addictiveness⇝ 2.5/5
Theme or Tone⇝ 3/5
Flow (Writing Style)⇝ 2.3/5
Backdrop (World Building)⇝ 3/5
Originality⇝ 4/5
Ending⇝ 2.7/5 Cliffhanger⇝ ???
๏ ๏ ๏
Book Cover⇝ Could be better...
Setting⇝ Hunter's Point & Sierra Glades National Park
Source⇝ I received an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review
๏ ๏ ๏

Oh, this was a fun read. It’s very similar to the “teens capably doing professional work” vibe of The Naturals, but also gave me a slight flashback to reading Julie of the Wolves for the first time. I think I highlighted at least four passages, and three of them were quips from Jude, who shall now be added to my comedic book characters pantheon with the Weasley twins and Spencer Martin from Maureen Johnson’s Suite Scarlett series.
I pride myself on my ability to usually figure out “twists” in mysteries and thrillers, and I was so pleased there were several unexpected (but NOT unwarranted!) twists in the story that I didn’t see coming.

CW for emotional abuse, but it’s dealt with in a complex and nuanced, compassionate way.

I was so excited to receive an advanced copy of Jennifer Lynn Barnes’ new book. I am a huge fan. This book does not disappoint. I loved Kira and her family including the dogs! Jude was absolutely delightful. I like how Barnes always writes about broken people. They are never perfect and often struggling with some really hard stuff. I am hoping this book will turn into a series because I would love to know more about these characters.