Janie Face to Face by Caroline B Cooney (Janie Johnson series #5)

“Emotional conclusion to the thriller-romance Janie series”

I'm so upset that this is the end of this series, but like all good books series-it must come to an end. It truly is amazing to see the progression of Janie's maturity and decisions of what to do with her life-and how she balances each family. The book opens with Janie in her freshman year of college and how much everything is changing around her-such as her own identity and how she deals with the two families.

 

This book was definitely filled with more drama, crime, and excitement. There were several plot twists and surprises which absolutely shocked me. I really enjoyed the chapters from Hannah’s point of view. It’s surprising how diluted, vengeful, and delusional she truly was. From her *spoiler* writing the book to the true description of what she looked like, everything was just a surprise. Overall, I think it was the perfect ending to the Janie Johnson series. She gets a fairytale ending as well as the two families, because the threat that has been looming over their heads is finally gone.

Loved the book and the series. I will most definitely be handing them down to my sister.

What Janie Saw by Caroline B. Cooney (#4.5 Janie Johnson)

“Discover what still matters to Janie, who was kidnapped as a toddler and reunited with her birth family as a teenager, and who may still be in danger as a young woman.”

In this ebook short story, Janie’s story becomes once again in the media spotlight by help of the Visionary Assassins, a band that Reeve brought into the limelight while in What Janie heard. This song and video unfortunately seen by everyone in the country, more specifically Hannah Javerson.

This short story I’m not too sure of, it was only 32 pages, but showed a somewhat evil side of Hannah. It was a strange leap from the 4th installment of the series when Hannah got the remaining amount of money in her father’s account.

In this story, Hannah is working two jobs to stay afloat and live, but more importantly has it out for Janie. While Janie is trying to decide what she will do for college, where she can go to disappear, and if she can fully love and trust Reeve again.

The Voice on the Radio by Caroline B. Cooney. (#3 in the Janie Johnson series)

“Reeve get his chance to be the voice on the radio. Where tells the most interesting story he knows, Janie.”

The story takes place in the fall and the start of a new school year. Reeve is off to college and Janie is home finishing up her last two years of college. When Reeve finds his calling, being a radio host, and freezes on air...he spills the story and secrets of Janie and her two families.

This book had a lot more meaning than just the boyfriend being greedy and using Janie’s story to become famous. It has a lot about forgiveness and about acceptance of oneself and of others, coming to terms with who you are, and also growing up. In the end, Janie learned to love herself, accept the situation she was in with the two families, and find place for both of them in her life. She also learned to forgive Reeve as well as Hannah for ruining both set of parents lives.

It was honestly a great book. I’m not going to lie, it was a little annoying at times, but if you read through and past that...it’s a great continuation of the Janie Johnson series.

Whatever Happened to Janie? By Caroline B. Cooney (#2 in the Janie Johnson series)

“Janie Johnson or Janie Spring? There’s enough love for everyone, but how can the two separate families live happily ever after?”

This book follows the aftermath of the ending of the first book, The Face on the Milk Carton. Janie had just called her birth parents, and now she has to live with the consequences of reaching out.

I was very uncertain about my feelings toward this book, but reading it as an adult...I can appreciate it more. Janie has an overall childish attitude about the entire situation but it makes sense, she’s a child. What got me hooked was the response of both sets of parents as well as her siblings. Being an older sister, it hit heavily upon the fear and even the thought of losing your sibling and how it would impact the family dynamic. It showed truly what the birth family, the Johnson's, went through for 12 years...and how her disappearance took a toll on everyone.

It was a good read and I will be finishing the series. Just make sure to read in order, if you’re going to pick up the second book the story won’t make much sense.

The Face on the Milk Carton by Caroline B. Cooney

A fifteen year old girl who is goofing off with her friends discovers she is the missing girl on the milk carton. Skeptical and unsure of her “parents”, she begins to put together information to complete the full picture.

I picked this book up on a whim from a local thrift book shop. It is for middle school/younger teenagers and I was just looking for an easy summer read. I enjoyed the plot and it was entertaining. There was just enough information and thrill to keep the reader entertained, especially when finding out the truth of how she got to her new family. The book was entertaining enough I bought the rest of the books from Thriftbooks. Figured I’d read them and then pass them down the future generations and my younger sister. I would recommend for middle school or freshman/sophomores to read...I'll make another post when I finish the other books.