Protected

The Watched Trilogy, Book 2

By: Cindy M. Hogan

Narrated by: Laci Morgan

Length: 10 hrs and 29 mins

Publisher's summary

Christy has the guy. The terrorists have been taken care of, and she has a shot at becoming popular. Life is great! Until they find her. Now she must run and leave behind everything she knows, including herself.

When Christy returns home, she discovers that not much has changed. Not only is she still an outcast, but the bullies are even more persistent than before. When the guy that sends her pulse racing shows up, everything changes.

Unfortunately, her feeling of triumph is short lived when the terrorists from DC come calling. Now, Christy and her boyfriend need to find a way to escape and hide.

©2012 Cindy M. Hogan (P)2014 Cindy M. Hogan

Great book

The author writes so well. All her watched series books are awesome. I can’t wait till they become movies

Excellent Story of Teen Girl Placed in Witness Protection

Any additional comments?

Protected by Cindy Hogan is an adventurous YA novel that is well written, fast paced, and consistent throughout. It is the sequel to Watched: Murder Was Just the Beginning, the first book in the Watched series. Not having read or listened to Watched, all you basically need to know for this book is that the heroine of the series, Christy, is a brainiac 10th grader who goes a high school trip to Washington, D.C. where she witnesses the murder of a senator's aide. In Protected, Christy is back from her high school trip and the terrorists who killed the aide in DC are now after her.

The majority of the book is focused on Christy entering into the FBI's Witness Protection Program, where her parents believe she died in a car crash. She moves across the country and starts training to assume her new identity as a varsity cheerleader in a new high school (keep in mind she is a true nerdy girl). Her training is more like boot camp, with a team of professionals training her in everything from gymnastics to martial arts. Besides taking lessons on self defense, she is also taught awareness of her surroundings and knowing possible escape routes at all times.

Laci Morgan did an excellent job narrating. She portrayed Christy as a likeable young woman surrounded by unbelievable events. Laci had great intonation and pace, keeping the story suspenseful throughout. She had differing voices for male and female characters, and expressed frustration and urgency when appropriate without becoming shrill. I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this audio book!

Love the gripping storyline!

What made the experience of listening to Protected the most enjoyable?

I gave the performance a 3.5 because in the beginning I felt like the narrator was not doing a superb job of changing her voice for each of the characters, especially the male characters. I didn't want it to take away from the amazing story so I bought the book to follow along with the narrator. This helped immensely and she got better as the story progressed. In my opinion, narrator adds a higher level of intensity to the story, especially when Christy/Michelle's life is in danger and she is on the run.

Who was your favorite character and why?

My favorite character is Christy because at sixteen she loses her entire life and must redefine herself as Michelle, the complete opposite of who she truly is. The MC is strong, compassionate, and tenacious.

What three words best describe Laci Morgan’s voice?

Upbeat and fun.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

This book get me on the edge of my seat. Even when training to be Michelle, you never knew when John was going to throw in a practice abduction attempt. Then as Michelle living her new life you still the very real threat that she would be discovered.

Any additional comments?

I love this trilogy and will definitely be moving on to book 3.

Loved it!

Would you consider the audio edition of Protected to be better than the print version?

I've both read the book and listened to it on Audible. Loved it both times and really enjoyed listening to it.

What other book might you compare Protected to and why?

This is an intriguing story line with great plot twists and suspense. I LOVED how it didn't have teenage smut like so many young adult novels. It was refreshing, intense and gripping.

Any additional comments?

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone. Great listen!!

I loved this book!!

So scary, fun, romantic! I read watched too! I will definitely be reading created! Loved it