My introduction to JLB was well before THE INHERITANCE GAMES was published with some of my favorite reads: THE FIXER and its sequel THE LONGE GAME. (Still wish more books were added to that series…) I had always planned to go back and read THE NATURALS series (which was published before those books) but ended up getting swept up in her new releases as they were all coming out. I read LITTLE WHITE LIES followed by THE LOVELY AND THE LOST followed by DEADLY LITTLE SCANDALS (sequel to LWL). I just kept going with all of her new books from 2018 and beyond. Then, the mother of all series started with THE INHERITANCE GAMES in 2020. I had high hopes because of how much I adored her writing in allll of these other books, and this series (now 4 books with the 5th and final coming next year) knocked my socks off. Her popularity really took off with that series because of booktok and generally because it’s excellent. I kept thinking I should buy THE NATURALS books at some point and give them a read but I kept delaying… which worked out in my favor, since they rereleased all of them with new covers this year. NOW was the time. I preordered the new covers and made a plan to binge-read the series in October of this year. It was the most open month based on other reading commitments coming to an end. All that to say… I’m finally caught up on her relevant backlist titles and read this series completely within a couple of weeks. Here are my reviews for each!
The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes Series: The Naturals #1
Genres: Young Adult, Mystery/Thriller
Published by Disney-Hyperion on November 5, 2013
Also by this author: The Fixer, The Long Game, Little White Lies, The Lovely and the Lost, Deadly Little Scandals , The Inheritance Games , The Hawthorne Legacy , The Final Gambit , The Brothers Hawthorne
Format: Paperback (352 pages) • Source: Purchased
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Jennifer Lynn Barnes, #1 bestselling author of The Inheritance Games , delivers an exhilarating mystery—perfect for fans of Criminal Minds and A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder
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 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. Soon, it becomes clear that no one in the Naturals program is what they seem. And when a new killer strikes, danger looms close. 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.
Jennifer Lynn Barnes's The Naturals is a gripping novel with killer appeal and a to-die-for romance. Don't miss the other books in the Naturals Killer Instinct , All In , and Bad Blood .
THE NATURALS was just as addicting as advertised! I saw so many people totally binge-read this series and knew that’s what I wanted to do as well. The first book sets up the series and the Naturals program in general. Cassie is contacted by the FBI because she’s really good at profiling people and understanding their backgrounds before even speaking with them. Her mom was murdered years ago and had previously taught her some of these profiling skills.
Book one brings her into the Naturals program and introduces us to the other kids. There’s Dean (also a profiler), Michael (who can read people’s emotions), Lia (human lie detector and amazing at lying herself), and Sloane (insanely smart with numbers, projections, etc.). They all live in an old Victorian house with Judd, who basically keeps them in line. Cassie hones her skills and continues training to be a better profiler with Dean and Agent Locke, who is essentially their teacher.
Immediately a love triangle develops and I’m definitely Team Dean. Michael is trying too hard to be clever and suave so he just ended up annoying me. I don’t think this was necessary but hey, this series came out in 2013 – love triangles were big especially for multi-book series.
I liked that this story had an individual mystery (local girls getting murdered by a serial killer) and the overlying mystery of what happened to Cassie’s mother. There’s somewhat of a connection between these two mysteries/killers so it was a super quick read trying to figure it all out. I read it in two sittings pretty much and then immediately dove into the next book.
I think Barnes’s writing has gotten stronger over time (obviously) and these do read more “early career” compared to her most recent books. I enjoyed the characters and the mysteries involved here. I think I expected to be completely blown away by it but just ended up enjoying it overall. Didn’t love the ending or big reveal really.
Killer Instinct by Jennifer Lynn Barnes Series: The Naturals #2
Genres: Young Adult, Mystery/Thriller
Published by Disney-Hyperion on November 4, 2014
Also by this author: The Fixer, The Long Game, Little White Lies, The Lovely and the Lost, Deadly Little Scandals , The Inheritance Games , The Hawthorne Legacy , The Final Gambit , The Brothers Hawthorne
Format: Paperback (400 pages) • Source: Purchased
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Friendship. Romance. Serial killers. The Naturals are on the case.
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 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?
Don't miss a minute of this fan-favorite series from the #1 bestselling author of The Inheritance Games , perfect for fans of One of Us is Lying and A Good Girl's Guide to Murder .
As I said, I immedaitely launched into book two when I finished book one. THE NATURALS featured two mysteries: Cassie’s mom’s murder (which will likely be the backdrop to the whole series) and the local serial killer. This book was kind of similar but there was much less focus on Cassie’s mom in this one. I think that makes sense from an overall pacing perspective because I think the next two books will definitely develop it more.
This book focused on Dean’s father, who is revealed to be a serial killer in book one. It looks like someone is out there trying to copy his crimes. The group is immediately brought in on the case due to the connection with Dean, thanks to their new overseer Agent Sterling. The FBI agents are constantly battling with what to do: these kids are continuing to involve themselves in active cases when the Naturals program is supposed to be for cold cases only (for their safety). However, Dean’s connection to his father and this copycat killer are too strong to ignore… especially when his dad requests to speak to him directly.
I thought the whodunnit aspect of this one was really kind of unique. The overall reveal compared to the killer in book one was more interesting. I think I liked this book less overall than the first book, simply because I was more interested in figuring out what happened to Cassie’s mom than what Dean’s dad’s copycat killer was up to. The single book mystery here was less interesting than book one’s.
All In by Jennifer Lynn Barnes Series: The Naturals #3
Genres: Young Adult, Mystery/Thriller
Published by Disney-Hyperion on November 3, 2015
Also by this author: The Fixer, The Long Game, Little White Lies, The Lovely and the Lost, Deadly Little Scandals , The Inheritance Games , The Hawthorne Legacy , The Final Gambit , The Brothers Hawthorne
Format: Paperback (400 pages) • Source: Purchased
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Three casinos. Three bodies. Three days.
After a string of brutal murders in Las Vegas, Cassie Hobbes and the Naturals are called in to investigate. But even with the team's unique profiling talents, these murders seem baffling: unlike many serial killers, this one uses different methods every time. All of the victims were killed in public, yet the killer does not show up on any security feed. And each victim has a string of numbers tattooed on their wrist. Hidden in the numbers is a code -- and the closer the Naturals come to unraveling the mystery, the more perilous the case becomes.
Meanwhile, Cassie is dealing with an equally dangerous and much more painful mystery. For the first time in years, there's been a break in her mother's case. As personal issues and tensions between the team mount, Cassie and the Naturals will be faced with impossible odds -- and impossible choices.
With lives and love on the line, the stakes couldn’t be higher in this fast-paced, thrilling novel from the #1 bestselling author of The Inheritance Games, perfect for fans of A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder and One of Us Is Lying.
This was another fun installment in the series! The Naturals head to Las Vegas to deal with a serial killer who has seemingly no MO or preferred method of killing. I liked that this one had more of Sloane’s backstory because she and Lia are still pretty mysterious at this point in the series. She’s from Vegas so we’re able to see more about why she landed with the Naturals and get insight into her family situation.
I liked this one a bit more than the previous because of the change of scenery and continued fleshing out of the other characters. However, still not in love with any of these. I totally expected some five-star reads in this series!
I tend to prefer when Cassie’s mom’s murder is more involved throughout the book (like in the first book but less so in the second one). This was a bit better as far as that is concerned, and led to some interesting revelations as the story got going! The ending, as a result, was a bit wild – the story goes in a unique direction that I didn’t see coming. Definitely have to suspend your disbelief a little bit but it does set up for a cool final book, IMO.
Bad Blood by Jennifer Lynn Barnes Series: The Naturals #4
Genres: Young Adult, Mystery/Thriller
Published by Disney-Hyperion on November 1, 2016
Also by this author: The Fixer, The Long Game, Little White Lies, The Lovely and the Lost, Deadly Little Scandals , The Inheritance Games , The Hawthorne Legacy , The Final Gambit , The Brothers Hawthorne
Format: Paperback (528 pages) • Source: Purchased
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When Cassie Hobbes joined the FBI's Naturals program, she had one goal: uncover the truth about her mother's murder. But now, everything Cassie thought she knew about what happened that night has been called into question. Her mother is alive, and the people holding her captive are more powerful—and dangerous—than anything the Naturals have faced so far.
As Cassie and the team work to uncover the secrets of a group that has been killing in secret for generations, they find themselves racing a ticking clock.
New victims. New betrayals. New secrets.
When the bodies begin piling up, it soon becomes apparent that this time, the Naturals aren't just hunting serial killers.
Not-so-fun fact: I was spoiled on a major plot point when setting up this multi-review post because I copied this synopsis before finishing the third book in the series. Womp. It was something I saw coming, but still. BOO.
This final book was kind of a wild ride. I didn’t love the direction the previous book went and this one obviously doubled down to finish up the story. It was definitely more involved than I expected it to be. On the plus side, I like what JLB did to connect all of the characters and their backstories to what was going on. I liked learning more about Lia, which I was requesting, but we also learned even more about Michael. There was a new character introduced that I really enjoyed – I wish she was there earlier to get more time!
This was a satisfying resolution to the story overall, despite getting more out of hand than I thought a YA book series would lol. The comp of “YA Criminal Minds” is very apt. For some reason I didn’t expect the whole thing to get so dark even though it was about serial killers lol.
This isn’t my favorite series by JLB but I’m so glad I finally read it. This book and the first one were my favorites but all of them basically are rated the same. I would recommend these if the premise sounds interesting to you and you’re a fan of her writing style in general.
Glad to see that the series as a whole was pretty solid for you! I’m looking forward to reading these soon!