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jdanker's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Murder
Moderate: Child abuse
victoria_elaine's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.25
I hit kind of a dead center of this book where I struggled to get through it in the middle, but the last half had me enraptured. The plot twists went crazy. HER MOTHER IS ALIVE??? And baby Laurel/sister?? has me feeling all types of ways - this is heartache fr Idek what to say about this i will just be immediately moving on to the next book 🙏🏻
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Death of parent, and Murder
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Child abuse and Stalking
lkristin2018's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Another great YA mystery by Jennifer Lynn Barnes. The Naturals have to solve a series of murders in casinos in Vegas. The case is more complicated than anyone could have predicted. The Naturals are both brilliant and emotionally complex.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Torture, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, and Murder
jessskye's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, and Murder
Moderate: Abandonment
filipa00's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Death of parent, and Murder
nico_reads_'s review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Blood, Death of parent, and Murder
Minor: Abandonment
sharlapeggy's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Liked this more than killer instinct but the first book will always be my favourite. Like that the story is progressing too across books!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, and Murder
mikathereviewer's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Summary of my review: Sloane gets a greater spotlight for this book, new strategy to make the plot twist unpredictable, research done on mathematical phenomenon, complexity is high, realistic characters with different copying ways of heavy emotions, still dislike Lia as she is way too nosey and acts like she knows everyone better than Cassie, except 1 plot twist were all predictable, cringe scene (only found 1), bit of romance again, gripping ending.
‘You don’t understand it. But just because you don’t understand something doesn’t mean you get to ignore it. You can’t just pretend the pattern doesn’t exist and hope it goes away.’
- Sloane
This time we are in Las Vegas and in a grand hotel named Majesty. Lots of numbers, math and especially poker is the main topic for the third book in the natural series.
Who kills the people who play poker?
Who is skilled enough in maths?
And who sees through the killer's poker face?
Just as I wished for it on my first review for this series we finally get Sloane to get more screen time!! I'm so happy to see her more often and being able to have a look at her past.
(Near the middle to the end of the story we also get Lia's backstory!!)
I really liked about these plot twists and story that they were all new. Nothing like the previous books and the strategy for letting the story not be predictable is also each time different so when you are skilled in finding out one of these, you are likely to find the next one not that predictable. Honestly so far; The first book was the least predictable. The 2nd was a bit annoying but still didn't got 1 and this one was ONLY predictable. There was nothing I didn't know of (based on who was the killer, not talking about the ending plot twist, which I will call later on the 2nd major plot twist). But for the defence of this book — It had less plot twists than the previous ones.
Also was fond of the research done of a certain mathematical calculation/phenomenon. I know it's not made-up so this author actually needed to understand it to put it inside her book; And even though I'm not a maths genius I would say she did a great job. Was very interesting to see the complexity of this book to be also way higher than the rest. I liked that. A lot. It felt different and more refreshing. Needed to think more which was a challenge to me as most mystery books just give you the answer in the hand before letting you think about them.
We get a bit of trauma and mental illnesses once again for this book and I'm not mentioning which character but that's a bit of a content warning from my side here; We get a scene of a panic attack. And let me tell you why I mention this instead of just collecting it with the rest of content warnings at the bottom of my review; Even though it might trigger some I think that such is a good tool to make characters seem more real and less one-dimensional. They all have their quirks and backstory but they also all have DIFFERENT ways to cope with emotions and situations. Already mentioned the rest in my last review though, but we get a new one. And I think personally that panic attacks are quite fascinating on its own.
Lia is so nosey out of nowhere it gets on my nerves. Sorry to all Lia fans, but I never really liked her. She also doesn't mind her own business but was mad when someone else didn't mind their business in the first book. The irony.
I also hate how she acts like she is the main character by telling Cassie all the time that she doesn't know how someone else feels. Like as if Lia knows it from ALL of them. I'm sure she had other issues in her childhood and just acts like she understands everyone. There is no way she experienced EVERYTHING all the 4 others did.
Also why did she interrupt the re-union moment from Sloane and Aaron? She had no right to do so and I think Sloane can protect and speak for herself. She is such a brat and haughty, like that's NOT about YOU it's about Sloane and Aaron.
The plot twist were this time a bit less and more story focused on the last few books. There were 2 major plot twists. And let me tell you that the killer was so obvious this time it hurt. The person was my FIRST 'suspect' and then when they said something obvious which only the killer has I was like; They do this on purpose so that we continue thinking that this person is the killer. And guess what. That wasn't it. Or maybe the author wanted it to be predictable I don't know but I knew who the killer was. And since it was too predictable I also changed my 'suspect' and then in the end it was exactly the obvious one. Like we know it's that person not even 40% in the book!! We aren't halfway through and we know it's that person! And guess what. The author tried to make a second major plot twist regarding the same person so that we think it's ain't them. But that won't help anymore. It's too late!
The sentence that let me know before being 40% in the story to think it was too obvious to keep that person as a suspect:
“And for a high school dropout, I’m pretty good at math.”
My note to it: ah f*$k that's too obvious now if if was him. I say it was his sister Tory as she seems a bit passive aggressive towards him.
(In the end though I sticked to Aaron as I thought since we got Sloane's backstory that it ends like the first book)
Also, another thing that was quite obvious was when after already being 39% in the story and we get told it's an organised killer, like are you serious?? WE KNOW THAT. It's more than OBVIOUS!
Also we got told so often (lost count) that the kills are personal so I was always on the lookout for someone who could have a motive for the people who died or was in general a personal person. And guess what; I was right. The kills were personal. Who could have guessed.
Here is the sentence of it (40% in): The numbers mattered to the UNSUB. They matter to you, because they matter to someone else. I’d thought that the UNSUB was performing. For who?
One could theoretically say after being in the latest of 40% into the story that we could already guess the killer and it's motives.
The cult thing was somewhat predictable. I didn't get so far to actually get it, but in the end I was like; Yeah that makes sense with the way we got the word already mentioned multiple times before in this book (I just say Lia). But I was also close to get it as we also got mention of a god complex somewhat when we got into the killer's perspective and he always spoke highly of himself. I was like; So either he has a god complex or he is in some kind of group (and that 'group' was in the end a cult, so I was close). Due to getting the cult topic mentioned to Lia I was like; SHE was in a cult and not someone else. And to be honest I think the next book lets us see Lia being part of that cult where Cassie's mum was once too and that Lia landed on the street just like Beau was in the dessert. (Probably why she also changed her name, which ALWAYS seemed suspicious to me) Trust me with this one. I know that's why we didn't get Lia's backstory yet. The author reveals them on purpose after eachother the further we get into this story. Trust me Lia was part of that damn cult.
The thing I got right at the ending plot twist was that the mother still lived and that I was somehow correct about my theory from the first book (also included in my first review) that the mother was somewhat a villain. Like what. Where's the surprise now? :(
Here's also once again my note to a certain moment of it; "What I did know was that my mother was alive."
The note: I knew that they got the test wrong and that her mother lives
Also what does the author have with the age of 12 and trauma? Like literally every character has some kind of trauma at that age
Is the author alright?
Do I need to worry??
There was also this one cringe-worthy scene: “She was your whole world, your alpha and your omega, and then she was gone.” Don't think I need to explain this.
Once again a bit romance but still less than the first book! So that's a progress, I guess. And I think they also finally decided who gets Cassie now instead of continuing fighting. At least it sounded like that.
Only romantic thing I think was adorable was when Dean didn't use 'I' for the case of Cassie's mum as he didn't want to imagine to have done this to her and her mum.
Speaking of adorable, the scenes were Sloane needed a hug and said it in her analytic way was so wholesome and how she hugged Cassie more than once! They are such cute friends!!
The ending was very gripping. We are so close to an all-end for this series and I know EXACTLY what will happen in the next book based on the ending, BUT that's good as I will be more excited to read it than if it's an ending that tells me nothing and doesn't make me excited to read the next.
I also really wanted to give this book this time 4 stars, but the whole predictability was such a disappointment. Originally wanted to give it 4, due to the complexity and it's rare to see something like this nowadays in mystery books. Maybe the next and last one will get 4 from me.
—————
PS love the Batman reference in chapter 9 ;)
‘You don’t understand it. But just because you don’t understand something doesn’t mean you get to ignore it. You can’t just pretend the pattern doesn’t exist and hope it goes away.’
- Sloane
This time we are in Las Vegas and in a grand hotel named Majesty. Lots of numbers, math and especially poker is the main topic for the third book in the natural series.
Who kills the people who play poker?
Who is skilled enough in maths?
And who sees through the killer's poker face?
Just as I wished for it on my first review for this series we finally get Sloane to get more screen time!! I'm so happy to see her more often and being able to have a look at her past.
(Near the middle to the end of the story we also get Lia's backstory!!)
I really liked about these plot twists and story that they were all new. Nothing like the previous books and the strategy for letting the story not be predictable is also each time different so when you are skilled in finding out one of these, you are likely to find the next one not that predictable. Honestly so far; The first book was the least predictable. The 2nd was a bit annoying but still didn't got 1 and this one was ONLY predictable. There was nothing I didn't know of (based on who was the killer, not talking about the ending plot twist, which I will call later on the 2nd major plot twist). But for the defence of this book — It had less plot twists than the previous ones.
Also was fond of the research done of a certain mathematical calculation/phenomenon. I know it's not made-up so this author actually needed to understand it to put it inside her book; And even though I'm not a maths genius I would say she did a great job. Was very interesting to see the complexity of this book to be also way higher than the rest. I liked that. A lot. It felt different and more refreshing. Needed to think more which was a challenge to me as most mystery books just give you the answer in the hand before letting you think about them.
We get a bit of trauma and mental illnesses once again for this book and I'm not mentioning which character but that's a bit of a content warning from my side here; We get a scene of a panic attack. And let me tell you why I mention this instead of just collecting it with the rest of content warnings at the bottom of my review; Even though it might trigger some I think that such is a good tool to make characters seem more real and less one-dimensional. They all have their quirks and backstory but they also all have DIFFERENT ways to cope with emotions and situations. Already mentioned the rest in my last review though, but we get a new one. And I think personally that panic attacks are quite fascinating on its own.
Lia is so nosey out of nowhere it gets on my nerves. Sorry to all Lia fans, but I never really liked her. She also doesn't mind her own business but was mad when someone else didn't mind their business in the first book. The irony.
I also hate how she acts like she is the main character by telling Cassie all the time that she doesn't know how someone else feels. Like as if Lia knows it from ALL of them. I'm sure she had other issues in her childhood and just acts like she understands everyone. There is no way she experienced EVERYTHING all the 4 others did.
The plot twist were this time a bit less and more story focused on the last few books. There were 2 major plot twists. And let me tell you that the killer was so obvious this time it hurt. The person was my FIRST 'suspect' and then when they said something obvious which only the killer has I was like; They do this on purpose so that we continue thinking that this person is the killer. And guess what. That wasn't it. Or maybe the author wanted it to be predictable I don't know but I knew who the killer was. And since it was too predictable I also changed my 'suspect' and then in the end it was exactly the obvious one. Like we know it's that person not even 40% in the book!! We aren't halfway through and we know it's that person! And guess what. The author tried to make a second major plot twist regarding the same person so that we think it's ain't them. But that won't help anymore. It's too late!
The sentence that let me know before being 40% in the story to think it was too obvious to keep that person as a suspect:
My note to it: ah f*$k that's too obvious now if if was him. I say it was his sister Tory as she seems a bit passive aggressive towards him.
(In the end though I sticked to Aaron as I thought since we got Sloane's backstory that it ends like the first book)
Also, another thing that was quite obvious was when after already being 39% in the story and we get told it's an organised killer, like are you serious?? WE KNOW THAT. It's more than OBVIOUS!
Also we got told so often (lost count) that the kills are personal so I was always on the lookout for someone who could have a motive for the people who died or was in general a personal person. And guess what; I was right. The kills were personal. Who could have guessed.
Here is the sentence of it (40% in): The numbers mattered to the UNSUB. They matter to you, because they matter to someone else. I’d thought that the UNSUB was performing. For who?
One could theoretically say after being in the latest of 40% into the story that we could already guess the killer and it's motives.
Here's also once again my note to a certain moment of it; "What I did know was that my mother was alive."
The note: I knew that they got the test wrong and that her mother lives
Also what does the author have with the age of 12 and trauma? Like literally every character has some kind of trauma at that age
Is the author alright?
Do I need to worry??
There was also this one cringe-worthy scene: “She was your whole world, your alpha and your omega, and then she was gone.” Don't think I need to explain this.
Once again a bit romance but still less than the first book! So that's a progress, I guess. And I think they also finally decided who gets Cassie now instead of continuing fighting. At least it sounded like that.
Only romantic thing I think was adorable was when Dean didn't use 'I' for the case of Cassie's mum as he didn't want to imagine to have done this to her and her mum.
Speaking of adorable, the scenes were Sloane needed a hug and said it in her analytic way was so wholesome and how she hugged Cassie more than once! They are such cute friends!!
The ending was very gripping. We are so close to an all-end for this series and I know EXACTLY what will happen in the next book based on the ending, BUT that's good as I will be more excited to read it than if it's an ending that tells me nothing and doesn't make me excited to read the next.
I also really wanted to give this book this time 4 stars, but the whole predictability was such a disappointment. Originally wanted to give it 4, due to the complexity and it's rare to see something like this nowadays in mystery books. Maybe the next and last one will get 4 from me.
—————
PS love the Batman reference in chapter 9 ;)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, and Murder
Moderate: Child abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, and Abandonment
Minor: Kidnapping, Stalking, and Alcohol
abbiebonnyman's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Self harm, Torture, Violence, Death of parent, and Murder
Moderate: Gore, Self harm, Grief, Stalking, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders
fairychos's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
This book in summary is basically just: Plot twist after plot twist after plot twist. Again. and Again. and Again.
what the FUCK. and yea, this was yet again another one of the books in this series (wrote: all, so far) that i’ve finished within a DAY. I’M NOT EVEN KIDDING. ITS GOT ME HOOKED?!? gosh i love this sm time to start book 4 even though it’s like 10pm ! yay !
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood and Murder