The list of facts:
-The Gemini Thief has been kidnapping boys for almost a decade.
-The kidnappings occur every June.
-The boys are kept for thirteen months until their release.
-Thea's cousin, Aulus McClaghen, was taken by the Gemini Thief.
What Thea suspects:
-The Gemini Thief is someone she knows in her hometown.
The question is....who?
The June Boys by Court Stevens was just the kind of thriller that absolutely engulfs me. While the case of the missing boys opens the book, Stevens had a masterful way of increasing the suspense of the story, chapter by chapter, until you're practically racing to the end. What I loved about Stevens' writing was that she was able to do this through her atmosphere. Sometimes thrillers tend to increase the tension by adding gore or elements of horror. Instead, Stevens cultivated an atmosphere built on Thea's quest to find her cousin and the Elizabeth Letters written by one of the June Boys.
Additionally, the nonlinear narrative heightened my zest to know who was behind the June kidnappings and, even more so, why? As the book progressed, Stevens' deliberately chosen narrative makes you compelled to know more about each character rather than having readers hone in on a singular protagonist. This expanse on the thriller genre was an excellent statement about taking a further look at those around you and realizing that even though we might know people for years, we will never truly know what they are capable of....until June.
If you're looking for a compelling narrative with a half built castle, a small town mystery, and a clock that silently ticks behind you, I'd highly recommend The June Boys by Court Stevens.
Mood Board
ABOUT THE BOOK
The June Boys
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Release Date: March 3, 2020
Genre: Young Adult, Mystery, Thriller
Synopsis:
The Gemini Thief could be anyone. Your father, your mother, your best friend’s crazy uncle. Some country music star’s deranged sister. Anyone.
The Gemini Thief is a serial kidnapper, who takes three boys and holds them captive from June 1st to June 30th of the following year. The June Boys endure thirteen months of being stolen, hidden, observed, and fed before they are released, unharmed, by their masked captor. The Thief is a pro, having eluded authorities for nearly a decade and taken at least twelve boys.
Now Thea Delacroix has reason to believe the Gemini Thief took a thirteenth victim: her cousin, Aulus McClaghen.
But the game changes when one of the kidnapped boys turns up dead. Together with her boyfriend Nick and her best friends, Thea is determined to find the Gemini Thief and the remaining boys before it’s too late. Only she’s beginning to wonder something sinister, something repulsive, something unbelievable, and yet, not impossible:
What if her father is the Gemini Thief?
BOOK LINKS
Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/46390614-the-june-boys Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0785221905/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_U_jc0xEbMQV7QW3
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Book Depository:
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Courtney “Court” Stevens grew up among rivers, cornfields, churches, and gossip in the small town south. She is a former adjunct professor, youth minister, Olympic torchbearer and bookseller at Parnassus Books. These days she writes coming-of-truth fiction and is the Community Outreach Manager for Warren County Public Library. She has a pet whale named Herman, a bandsaw named Rex, and several novels with her name on the spine.
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