Book Review: The Naturals

Title: The Naturals Author: Jennifer Lynn Barnes 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.

I actually finished this book a couple weeks ago but with school starting back up and the holidays I haven't been able to write this review. Finally I'm free (for a moment) so I can finally write it.

First off, love the cover. The present that is wrapped in police crime tape caught my eye immediately when I was at the bookstore. Second, the blurb at the top says:

"The Naturals is Criminal Minds for the YA world and I loved every page."- Ally Carter
 I LOVE CRIMINAL MINDS!! I find is so fascinating how they get into the minds of killers through profiling and I thought this book did an amazing job combining the Criminal Minds aspect and YA literature. There aren't that many young adult thriller books out there so it was really great to read a book that had all the elements of a teen fiction novel and a mystery-thriller. Third, I've read some of Jennifer Lynn Barne's other books, incuding Nobody, which I reviewed here.

The characters in The Naturals were one of my favorite parts because of their diverse personalities and because of how real they were. The main character, Cassie, is a really great character to connect with because of how normal she actually is. She is a natural. A natural at what she does, which is reading and profiling people. This is not a paranormal book so these kids "powers" really were their natural abilities which is what makes all the characters in the novel so unique.The supporting characters, Dean, Michael, Lia, and Sloane brought so much to the story. Every single one of the characters I listed above is so unique and different in their own way and it made the book so much better and more interesting. 
There was a love triangle, and I have to admit that love triangles aren't my favorite thing in the world, but the romance in the book was subtle and it didn't overpower the plot.

The plot was fast-paced, suspenseful, and full of mystery and I can honestly say I loved every page. There are certain books that make you want to just drop everything and read and that is exactly how I felt when reading The Naturals. I wanted to know what was going to happen next and I was just as anxious as the characters were to find out who the killer was. When a book has characters that I can relate too and a plot that has me hooked since the first page, I will finish said book in less than a day. The Naturals took me around a day to read. 

Because of Cassie's natural abilities, she is recruited for The Naturals Program. A program for gifted teens who help solve cold cases. Soon, a new and dangerous serial killer comes to light and for some reason he/she has taken a very special interest in Cassie. Cassie, along with her new friends from the program, try to figure out who this new threat is and why the killer is going after her. 

Overall this book has been one of my favorite reads of 2014. I highly recommend The Naturals to people who are fans of Criminal Minds or mystery/thriller novels. The Naturals is definitely one of those books that leaves you wanting more when the last page is turned so I am eagerly awaiting the second book which comes out in November. SO FAR AWAY!!!

This gif of Dean perfectly describes my current situation.

--AMANDA