After years of living in the wild, a teenage girl leads her adoptive family’’s search-and-rescue operation — but to find a missing child, she must uncover long-buried secrets from her past. 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 … Cady Bennett and one of her search-and-rescue dogs found her. Adopted into the Bennett family, Kira still struggles with human interaction years later, but she excels at the family business: search and rescue. Together 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.
When Cady’’s estranged father, the enigmatic Bales Bennett, tracks his daughter down and asks for her help in locating a missing child — one of several visitors who has disappeared in the Sierra Glades National Park in the past twelve months — the teens find themselves on the front lines sooner than they could have ever expected. As the search through seven hundred and fifty thousand acres of unbridled wilderness intensifies, Kira becomes obsessed with finding the missing child. She knows all too well what it’’s like to be lost in the wilderness, fighting for survival, alone.
But this case isn’‘t simple. There is more afoot than a single missing girl, and Kira’’s memories threaten to overwhelm her at every turn. As the danger mounts and long-held family secrets come to light, Kira is forced to question everything she thought she knew about her adopted family, her true nature, and her past.isappeared in the Sierra Glades National Park in the past twelve months — the teens find themselves on the front lines sooner than they could have ever expected. As the search through seven hundred and fifty thousand acres of unbridled wilderness intensifies, Kira becomes obsessed with finding the missing child. She knows all too well what it’’s like to be lost in the wilderness, fighting for survival, alone.
But this case isn’‘t simple. There is more afoot than a single missing girl, and Kira’’s memories threaten to overwhelm her at every turn. As the danger mounts and long-held family secrets come to light, Kira is forced to question everything she thought she knew about her adopted family, her true nature, and her past.isappeared in the Sierra Glades National Park in the past twelve months — the teens find themselves on the front lines sooner than they could have ever expected. As the search through seven hundred and fifty thousand acres of unbridled wilderness intensifies, Kira becomes obsessed with finding the missing child. She knows all too well what it’’s like to be lost in the wilderness, fighting for survival, alone.
But this case isn’‘t simple. There is more afoot than a single missing girl, and Kira’’s memories threaten to overwhelm her at every turn. As the danger mounts and long-held family secrets come to light, Kira is forced to question everything she thought she knew about her adopted family, her true nature, and her past.isappeared in the Sierra Glades National Park in the past twelve months — the teens find themselves on the front lines sooner than they could have ever expected. As the search through seven hundred and fifty thousand acres of unbridled wilderness intensifies, Kira becomes obsessed with finding the missing child. She knows all too well what it’’s like to be lost in the wilderness, fighting for survival, alone.
But this case isn’‘t simple. There is more afoot than a single missing girl, and Kira’’s memories threaten to overwhelm her at every turn. As the danger mounts and long-held family secrets come to light, Kira is forced to question everything she thought she knew about her adopted family, her true nature, and her past.h finding the missing child. She knows all too well what it’’s like to be lost in the wilderness, fighting for survival, alone.
But this case isn’‘t simple. There is more afoot than a single missing girl, and Kira’’s memories threaten to overwhelm her at every turn. As the danger mounts and long-held family secrets come to light, Kira is forced to question everything she thought she knew about her adopted family, her true nature, and her past.
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I’ve read Jennifer’s NATURALS series, a YA mystery/thriller series, which was very good. I liked THE LOVELY AND THE LOST even more — it’s a stand-alone (though could be a series) about a family who trains search dogs. Told from the viewpoint of an original and relatable 17 year old girl, the character development is fantastic — you feel like you know all the characters and the dialogue was quick and snappy. The suspense is layered masterfully as the group searches for a missing girl who disappeared while her family was camping.
I was given an advanced reading copy and offered a blurb to the author and publisher: “Knife-edged suspense, a fantastic plot, and authentic characters—both human and canine. THE LOVELY AND THE LOST grips you from the very first page and holds you until the very end. Riveting!”
A propulsive mystery-thriller about the dark things that happen in the woods. The Lovely and the Lost makes you feel the urgency of a search ad rescue, while laying the clues for a twisted crime. You will cling to this book until you reach the end.
An excellent read…
Wow! What an emotional rollercoaster! I laughed, I cried, I stayed up way too late. This is a poignant and painful tale that’s going to stick with me. It’s overall message of healing from trauma is encouraging and hopeful. The main character’s canine perception and reactions were intriguing and I kept expecting it to turn supernatural, but it’s not that kind of story. It’s mystery and suspense with the slightest hint of romance, and it’s wonderfully done.
I was very impressed with this book. I loved the premise of the teens being trained for Search and Rescue. I thought the writing was very crisp and appropriate. I loved how quick-witted Free and Jude were and found Gabriel to be intriguing. But the story really belonged to Kira. The way the author wove her past trauma into her character and the way she related to events and people was fascinating to read. I especially liked the comparisons and similarities to the dogs, and how much she could relate to them. The mystery they were all trying to solve was well thought-out and kept me turning pages. I read this book in one day and would highly recommend it to teenagers and adults. This review was written based on a complimentary pre-release digital ARC courtesy of Disney Book Group (Freeform) via NetGalley.
With brilliant characters and a jaw-dropping mystery, Jennifer Lynn Barnes weaves a thriller as majestic and dangerous as the national park she used for the setting.
I was completely engrossed in this book from beginning to end. I loved every single one of the characters. (OMG, Jude, I loved him so much – we all need a Jude in our lives!) I loved how all of these characters interacted with each other and I was totally invested in their relationships and history. The search and rescue aspect was very interesting to me and I loved that these teenagers had been training for it all of their lives. I could feel their connections to their dogs, and to each other, and I teared up in several places from that (unusual for me). I found the heroine, Kira, so very intriguing with her mysterious past and the painstaking work she had to do to get from how she was when Cady found her to where she is in the present. (Deliberately vague to avoid spoilers). The suspense of the missing girl and Cady’s past had me flipping page after page, anxious to get the answers. When the answers came they weren’t mind-blowing, but they were completely satisfying, especially that surprise bit at the end between Bales and Kira. This book tells a complete story but does set up possibilities for future stories, which I am clamoring for wholeheartedly. I very much want more about these characters so I really, really hope the author has plans to gift us more adventures.
4.5 Stars
I read an uncorrected proof of this book that I received from NetGalley
The Lovely and the Lost is the first book by Jennifer Lynn Barnes that I have read and it was pure joy. I love her writing style, and her character development is well done. The plot is fast paced, with plenty of twists and turns, secrets and deception all of which makes this book hard to put down.
“Bad things happen to bad little girls, a voice whispers
from the dark place.”
The main character, Kira, has a past that she can’t remember, a history that plagues her with horrible flashbacks. Throughout the book, the author gives us snippets of Kira’s past, not too much, but just enough to keep me reading and wanting more.
Cady and Silver, one of Cady’s search and rescue dogs, find a wild and broken Kira who has been living alone in the woods for an undetermined amount of time. Even though Kira has lived with Cady and her son Jude, she still struggles with people outside her adopted family. However, Kira has no problems relating to and loving the dogs she helps train for search and rescue. Jude, Kira and their friend Free all aspire to be part of a search and rescue team. Cady is pulled into the rescue effort to find a lost little girl, Bella; the three friends are about to find out first hand how quickly, dangerous and out of control a situation can become in the wilderness.
There were so many levels to this book, not just the missing child aspect, but how the heroine, Kira, relates to the missing child and how she was able to grow and come to terms with what has happened in her past. This book is about love and the sacrifices that are made in the name of love. Romantic love, a mother’s love and the love that friends share. Also, coming to terms that you are worthy of the love your “family” freely gives is a significant theme in this book. Family comes in many forms, and this book explores some of them, whether it is between humans or between dogs and humans. I especially enjoyed the bond that Kira had with her dog Saskia. The author does an excellent job in interweaving the feeling that Kira is experiencing while searching for this child with what is lurking just beneath her subconscious.
I enjoyed this book very much, but I was left with wanting a bit more. I wanted to know more about Kira’s past and how she came to be in the woods. I would have liked a little more “Jude” in this book. Also, there is a little twist at the end of the book, the kind of twist that left an opening for a follow-up book. So, I have to wonder, does the author has a plan for a second book which I would be totally up to reading.
***I kindly received this galley by way of NetGalley/publisher/author. I was not contacted, asked or required to leave a review. I received no compensation, financial or otherwise. I have voluntarily read this book, and this review is my honest opinion .***
Exciting teen search and rescue team
Kira was a feral child when rescued from the wilderness eleven years ago. Cady Bennett and her search and rescue dog, Silver, are the ones that rescued the half-dead girl and then adopted her later. Kira loves Cady and her best friends are Jude, her adopted brother, Free, their free-spirited neighbor, and of course the search and rescue dogs they all have.
Cady is contacted by her estranged father, who is also an expert at search and rescue, to help look for a missing little girl in the wilderness near where he lives. And so the adventure starts. Hunting for this little girl brings up many buried memories of Kira’s and secrets are waiting around every corner.
I loved the characters in this book especially Kira, Jude, and Free. Jude especially is someone I would have loved to have been friends with as a teen. Quirky, geeky and always positive.
The story is fast-paced and full of action. It takes place in a fictitious locale but is well described and easy to imagine.
I hope that the author decides to turn this into a series.
I received this book from Disney Books through Net Galley in the hopes that I would read it and leave an unbiased review.