Pretty Little Liars meets Riverdale in Don’t Say a Word, a standout YA mystery from indie-pub favorite Amber Lynn Natusch. Kylene Danners’s ex-FBI agent father is in prison for murder and she’s hell-bent on getting him out. But trying to investigate in the small town where a defensive lineman is a hero no matter who he tries to kill and the girl who gets him locked up is public enemy number one … him locked up is public enemy number one is dangerous. Dark secrets are everywhere in Jasperville–the kind Ky can’t walk away from.
When rookie FBI agent Cedric Dawson returns to town to finish an open investigation, he goes undercover at her high school–as her ex. Determined to keep her from interfering, Dawson’s plan backfires after Ky gets an anonymous call about missing girls officially labeled as runaways–runaways that didn’t really run away at all.
Because dead girls can’t run.
And they don’t say a word.
At the Publisher’s request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
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A snarky, brave, likeable sleuth of a heroine; a thoughtful, fast-paced plot; suspense, mystery and a dash of romance. Fans of Veronica Mars will love this!
A quick-witted heroine, a fast-paced plot, and a twisty whodunit mystery that kept me on my toes. Fans of Riverdale and Veronica Mars will adore Kylene Danners and devour this suspenseful story.
Dare You to Lie filled the empty spot Veronica Mars left in my heart. A smart who-done-it that kept me guessing to the end! I can’t wait for the next book.
Amber Lynn Natusch’s brilliant and fast-paced storytelling shines through in her strong, good-girl-turned-raw heroine, Kylene Danners. Natusch weaves in sharp-witted dialogue for her well-developed characters, creating everything from behind-the-hand giggling to full-out barking laughter as I turned the pages. Read this book the way it was meant to be read: consumed in one sitting. Once you do, you’ll be clamoring for more.
3.5 stars
As with most books in a series, I highly recommend you start with the first book: Dare You To Lie. Otherwise, like me, you may be a little lost at the beginning of this book.
Kylene and FBI agent Cedric Dawson are working together to unearth some secrets. Dawson, the FBI agent, goes undercover as Ky’s old boyfriend. He is focusing on discovering why girls are ending up dead at the high school and he needs Ky’s help.
Kylene is obsessed with finding out who framed her dad, an ex-FBI agent. Even though he warns her from prison to leave everything alone, she is in need of Dawson’s help.
The story moves at a good pace, but again, I highly recommend reading the first book in this series in order to get the most out of this book.
What Concerned Me
News Flash: Read the first book in this series – Dare You to Lie -(Hometown Antihero, Book 1)
Sometimes it’s not that important to read books in order, but in this case book two is finishing what the first one started.
My Final Thoughts
The characters were interesting and the pace was consistent. Plus the various subplots helped to keep this story moving.
And for those who like a bit of romance, look for that too. This book is sure to capture teen readers‘ interest.
Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillian for the ability to read an ARC of this book and offer my thoughts.
And the Hometown Antihero series continues with Don’t Say a Word. I gotta say that it took a little bit of time for things to pick up, but there was a huge puzzle to solve around the prostitution ring. Dawson and Kylene make such a dynamic team and came to love their “partnership” instantly. Amber lovedddddd dangling these two in front of us, makes me curious to see what will come of these two. I’m an unapologetic romance reader, of course I’m going to want to more
With everything that she endured in Dare You to Lie, she’s still dealing with the aftermath and it’s definitely taking a toll on her. And now that she’s pulled into getting to the bottom of something else, there wasn’t really a chance for her to really sit and just digress.
As I did in the previous book, I was still constantly frustrated with the people of Jasperville that talked her down. But Ky is such a strong-headed heroine that she’d never back down. As she would normally fly off the handle, she kind of held off sometimes especially when Dawson was around. He was such a great buffer to her tendencies and I just loved the constant support he gave her.
By the end, Dawson and Ky’s partnership is really solidified and you can start to see Dawson’s harsh exterior crumble a bit when it comes to Ky. These two are seriously so close to losing it and exposing that they do actually care for one another. As to what capacity it is, we won’t know yet for sure.
I stayed up late in the night finishing this book in one-sitting. I had some moments where I felt like I needed to look over my shoulder and double-check to see if my front door was locked. Probably wasn’t the best idea to be reading this in the middle of the night, but I couldn’t stop.
Amber took us on yet, another wild ride with some major mystery and suspense of who was behind all of this. And bringing us one step close to freeing her dad from prison. I NEED that day to come, soon. It’s killing me because I want nothing more to have her dad out of there.
A great edition to this series and I’m definitely looking forward to what Amber has in store for us!
**I RECEIVED A COMPLIMENTARY READER’S COPY FROM THE AUTHOR THIS DOES NOT AFFECT MY OPINION OF THE BOOK OR CONTENT OF MY REVIEW**
Amber Lynn Natusch
A small town full of dark secrets meets its match in Kylene Danners-if such a thing is possible. The daughter of an ex-FBI agent(now wrongly convicted murderer), Kylene has investigative prowess in her blood. It serves her well in this second book in this series when she gets involved with yet another mystery, the kind that could get her killed.
This book starts soon after the first book, Dare You to Lie, ends so we don’t miss much. Kylene, or Ky as she is called, is approached by Dawson, the youthful looking FBI agent that was featured in the first book. He needs to go undercover at her school to investigate missing teenage girls. So he poses as her ex, one who wants to get back with her. This causes all kinds of complications, the least of which is how it puts a damper on Ky getting back with her real ex-boyfriend, A.J. Miller. When she starts receiving anonymous phone calls from a girl who is informing her about what she knows about the missing girls, Ky is once again pulled into yet another huge mystery, one even darker than in the previous story. On top of that, Ky is still searching for clues concerning the murder that landed her innocent father in prison.
The characters made this book for me. Ky is full of snark and is very outspoken. Nothing seems to rattle her-well not until it’s over that is. She has no problems with taking on a bully or a raging murderer for that matter. She’s going to do whatever is necessary to survive. She’s turning 18 in this story. Dawson was not very likable in the first book, for me anyway. He believes Ky’s father is guilty since it was his mentor who was killed. He’s only 25, which is extremely young to be accepted into the FBI, so he has a lot to prove. He’s very protective of Ky and she is very snarky towards him. Slowly, but surely, she gets won over by Dawson and vice versa. It’s not quite a romance due to the age differences, but it totally acts like one at times. I quite liked both of them. A.J. is a different story. I loved his character and was actually rooting for him and Ky to reconnect. He’s the quarterback of the football team and is extremely popular at school. When Ky moved away for two years and came back, he hopes to reconnect with her. He definitely is one of my favorite characters. Is it a love triangle? Not yet, but maybe? Her best friends are Garrett, son of the police chief and Tabby, newly moved to town from Canada. They were both well realized by the author and personally, I would take either one as a best friend! Red herring characters abound in this book and while the culprit was someone that had been on my radar, there were plenty of others to choose from as well.
Like the first book, it’s left open for another one. I enjoyed this one immensely and hate having to wait as long for the next one. It’s young adult, but it’s written for older teens and up, mainly due to the darker subject matter. At least that’s my take on it. There’s a smidgen of teen drinking at a party, a bit of bad language at times and a few mentions of sexual situations, not all necessarily consensual, but part of the premise itself. Since this is YA, it should be noted that the main characters do not engage in actual sex, although more and more YA does include it.
I thought the book was well written with a well thought out mystery plot, engaging characters and a horrible town that I only want to visit in a book, never in person. I highly recommend this to ages 15-16 plus depending on maturity level.(Delighted Reader)
Equal parts fierce and funny, Kylene Danners is the friend you wish had your back. Natusch throws the reader into a pulse-quickening quest for justice that left me whiplashed in the best possible way. I want — no, need! — to see what Kylene does next!
A witty, fast-paced, action-packed romp through the seedy underbelly of small town America. Kylene’s spirited voice leaps off the page! Beware: Once you begin this thrilling ride, you’ll be up way past your bedtime.