The Lovely and the Lost

By: Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Narrated by: Emily Lawrence

Length: 8 hrs and 29 mins

Publisher's summary

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 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. Along 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.

But 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 12 months—the teens find themselves on the front lines sooner than they could have ever expected. As the search through 750,000 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.

©2019 Jennifer Lynn Barnes (P)2019 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

I loved this book

My granddaughter bought this book for herself and we were supposed to read it together. We live far away from each other. I had never listened to an audio before. I'm hook now. GREAT BOOK AND!!!

A definite must read!

Wow, what a great story! I found myself making guesses as to what would happen the entire time, but it always surprised me. The characters were super likable, especially the dogs! It ends at almost a cliffhanger, where it seems like the author could expand on the story and right a second book, but the ending also ties everything to Getty well enough that it doesn’t need a second book, the reader can simply assume.
I wish I could give it more than 5 stars, because it’s one of the best books I’ve read in awhile!

Another winner from Jennifer Lynn Barnes!

Last month I read/listened to The Inheritance Games as my first Jennifer Lynn Barnes book and gave it 5 stars. I knew then I wanted to try some of her other books. I received this book, along with 9 other books as a gift and knew I had to try it first. The whole search and rescue thing reminded me of a few books from one of my favorite authors, Iris Johansen.

I was drawn in pretty much instantly. The main character, Kira, is so interesting. She’s so strong and resilient while still realistically a little broken. I love the relationships between her and all the other characters, especially her brother Jude and her dog Saskia.

Jude was another great character. So fun to read. The perfect balance to Kira.

Oh, and the dogs! You definitely can’t leave out the dogs! I love how each of the dogs had a name and a personality. I feel like it would have been easily in a book with so many dogs to for some to just be “Free’s partner” or something like that. As a dog lover, I’m so glad the author didn’t go that route. I enjoyed learning the names and personalities of each one.

I was a little bummed that the ending didn’t wrap up some of the storylines as much as I would like. There are definitely some elements that beg for a sequel but the author said on Tumblr in 2019 that she didn’t know if there would ever be a sequel. That’s the reason this got 4 stars instead of 5 for me. Those unresolved storylines eat away at me.

I still definitely recommend reading it though! Looking forward to trying another of Barnes’ books to see if they are all just as good as these first two I tried.

The narrator on this one did a good job. She gave the characters distinctive enough voices to know who was talking and her voice was a good fit for the main character.

love it!

I loved the mystery and the happily ever after at the end. I will read more of this authors work.

Compelling!

Very compelling story. Couldn't put it down! Loved all the dog/people teams. Very good plot twist!

kept me captivated!

really enjoyed this audio book - the story kept me captivated the entire time, and the main character had a lot of depth and complexity. my only complaint is not fully loving the end - I felt like there were loose ends I never got answers to. overall great though!

Wow!

For a YA book, this was amazingly great! I highly recommend! I didn’t want it to end!

very engaging story

found this in the Audible plus catalog as a "free" listen. the story was quite the hidden gem of a book. it didn't feel like a YA book glad I gave it a go

Great Book!

This was an awesome story! Characters were interesting & had an unexpected ending. Narrator was great. I laughed frequently, experienced anger,pain & tears. Overall, simply enjoyed this author’s book!

Great Listen

I really enjoyed this story. Emily Lawrence is great with the narration. The story is fast paced, never boring, and has wonderful characters. I especially liked the way she developed her characters and the twists and turns in the story. Great book, get it; you won't be disappointed with this one.