Review: Killer Instinct

Killer Instinct (The Naturals #2)
by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
YA Mystery
Amazon  /  Goodreads

Plot Summary:

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?

Review:

This series continues to be engaging with it's myriad of twists and turns, and details about behavior and psychology.  I think I enjoyed the second book a bit more than the first because the characters are further developed and they feel even more like a real team.  There's still a lot of issues they have with each other though, so there's plenty of emotional drama that each character needs to deal with.  Character development is necessary in this series because of how much it delves into psychology, and it's great fun to understand how they think.

Even though this story revolves around some gruesome murders (although thankfully it's not heavily detailed in that aspect) and it does follow the mindset of a serial killer, the story feels more like a light and entertaining read.  It's not overly grim which is a big plus for me.  I find it very interesting how the author maintains the lighter YA feel despite the darker aspects of the story.  While I did enjoy the psychological profiling information that we often get when Cassie evaluates other people, I did think it was a little too much at times - there were moments when I really wanted to advance with the story instead of stopping to go over the details of someone's face and posture.  I think the information was interesting, but sometimes wished it was balanced better with more action.

The first book has a bit of a love triangle, but the romance hasn't overwhelmed the story in both books so far which makes me happy.  With such terrible things occurring, it would not seem right if Cassie was more focused on which guy she liked more.  The resolution of this story was a highlight because it was so suspenseful and thrilling.  The mystery was set up well and delivered with many unexpected twists and revelations.  I really enjoyed this read, and am looking forward to the last book as I think it will address the mystery surrounding Cassie's mom which was set up in the first book!

(I received this book from the publisher or author for a fair and honest review.  I was not compensated for this review.)

Review: The Naturals

The Naturals
by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
YA Crime Procedural
Amazon  /  Goodreads

Plot 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:

This was a great, immersive read!  I love the idea that people who are more attuned to psychological tells and body language can use those skills to fight crime - it's like they are super-human but it's an attainable power.  Well if you are born with the knack.  The author assembles a great team of Naturals in this book too - they all have their quirks and their secrets which kept their unit sometimes tense, and in this case sometimes suspicious.  There are lots more to explore with the individual characters especially because some of the characters are initially a bit unlikable but I think there is definitely more to them and it will probably change my opinion of them.

The love triangle is the only thing that disappointed me in this story.  It felt unnecessary and a bit unexpected considering how standoffish Cassie always is, and it was hard to believe that two guys are suddenly interested in her.  I was also frustrated by how much the two guys conformed to stereotype - with fun, charming Michael vs. brooding, damaged Dean.  Although I am a bit torn between them - I'm not sure if have a preference for who Cassie should pick yet.

Although the love triangle aspect took up more time than I cared for, the story moved along at a great pace, and the mystery of who the serial killer was, was very well done.  I was surprised by the reveal and the series of clues that led us to the solution was clever and intriguing.  I loved that each Natural's gift was important to the story and helped Cassie figure out the clues.  And the look into the science of the mind was very interesting for me.  I don't normally watch C.S.I. type shows so reading about the investigation process in this book was fascinating.  This was a very quick read for me and if you love mysteries and stories rooted in psychology you should give this a try!