In Between

Made me laugh well into the night!

I loved this book! I've never read anything by Ms. Jones before, but I'd heard so many good things about her books that I thought I'd give her a shot. And I was blow away! I laughed till my sides hurt and well past midnight!


Katie was far from perfect character, she wasn't an especially troubled one, with severe problems either (the kind that don't make any sense). She is a normal girl, whose mom is in prison for selling drugs, who has been put into foster care by the state. Katie tries to make sense of her life, and fit in with her new family and friends. She makes a couple wrong turns along the way, but Katie Parker is finding her way!


I loved the way that Ms. Jones made Katie Parker, and the other characters so 3-D. I felt like I knew the characters after reading his book, really knew them. And that doesn't happen that often for me.

One of my favorite characters was Maxine, Katie's Foster Grandma, she was one of the main reasons I laughed as much and as hard as I did. Maxine had this way of "just saying it," that made me chortle incessantly.


This is a book for teen girls that is a head and shoulders above the hand full of other books I have read from this genre. I would mostly recommend this book to teen girls, because it's pretty obvious from the cover and everything else that it is a teen girl book. I don't think members of the opposite sex would dare to read it!


The story was engaging a hard to put down, (sometimes I had to put it down because I was laughing too hard). I found Katie very relatable, and the dialog was out of this world GREAT! Katie has this amazing dry humor, even if you're not typically a dry humor person, (I'm not) you'll find yourself laughing along with her adventures.


Katie learns important lessons about fitting in, and about who God is, in this fast paced. lighthearted, read from Jenny B. Jones. I highly recommend this book! I chortled well into the night, so much, that my parents threatened to take it away so that I could sleep! You don't want to miss it!


ISBN-13: 978-1-60006-098-4

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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Highly Recommended!

Let's start out by stating: This book is "Act 1" of the "Katie Parker Production" series. My suggestion? Buy Acts 2 and 3. Right now...before you go any further. It's OK, I'll wait right here for you! I cannot tell you enough how much I loved this book! Although it is categorized as "Teen Fiction/Contemporary", I would highly recommend this series for adults also. Jones does an excellent job of drawing the reader in and extracting a wide range of emotions from you. There are times where you will find yourself routing for Katie, cheering her on. Whether it is her wild adventures with Crazy Maxine, or her misadventures in the science lab, you will find yourself acting as her biggest cheerleader. Other times, you will need to remind yourself, she is still just a child, and she has a lot of growing up yet to do. She doesn't always make the wisest decisions, but she is trying, with little adult guidance up to this point. James and Millie Scott turn out to be great foster parents, but not what Katie was expecting. First of all, James is a pastor, and Katie's interaction with God has been very limited. Millie seems to have it all together even though she seems to be hiding a secret. Can things work out for Katie in In Between, or will she be sent packing back to Sunny Haven Home for Girls? I give this book 5 stars and would definitely allow my tween or teen to read this book! Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from NavPress Publishers as part of their Blogger Review Program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Great Christian writer

Great reads for young Christians!

A Fun Read!!

When her mother was given a prison sentence for selling drugs, Katie Parker was sent to the Sunny Haven Home for girls. She'd been at the home for six months and had just started to figure out how to survive there when she had to move. Pastor James Scott and his wife, Millie, had agreed to take Katie in as their foster daughter. Katie had felt alone most of her life and she had to deal with difficult situations beyond her control, so for her there was no hope for a better day. She questioned God's love for her and she wasn't too sure about this couple in their fifties; especially since her new foster father was a Pastor. Residing in the home of a man of God certainly wasn't something she'd agree to if she'd been given a choice. But Mrs. Iola Smartly, the woman who ran things at Sunny Haven, knew she had taken Katie to the right place. Occasionally I do judge a book by its cover. I saw this one and immediately thought it'd be a fun read, and it was. As I read Katie Parker's story I was entertained by her wit, and although her foster grandmother, Maxine, seemed a little off (not quite there, looney tunes, peculiar, downright strange) her unique personality and shenanigans brought even more enjoyment. Again, this was a fun read!

SOO GOOD!

Wow. This book is amazing!! The whole story just engulfs you! It really does pull you into the story. I love the characters because of all the different personalities they portray. This is just not some Christian book-it's a book that everyone can read! It really helps you understand things from a unfortunate person's view. I just LOVE LOVE LOVE this book!!! <333

Awesome and fun to read!

This story is incredible! It took me nearly a year to find this book in my pile and now I'm asking myself why I didn't search for it sooner. This story is addicting and funny and a total delight to read. Loaded with laugh-out-loud moments on nearly every page, In Between also has a lot of depth and tenderness within it's pages. I've rarely seen fiction this interesting and well-done. For an author to capture the mind of a teen foster child and package it so precisely is amazing by itself, but then to create the right mix of characters and believeable situations to bring out the best in this girl is nothing short of sheer genius. That psycho grandma is so hilarious! And Katie's personality and 'voice' is a scream. As far as craft goes, inner dialogue does NOT get any better than this. Sweet and sarcastic, Katie managed to grab my heart from the first chapter because she was so genuine and so lost. But this book is not a downer at all. It choked me up at the end, but also made my heart soar. This is what Christian fiction should be...real enough to make you 'get it' and insightful enough to change your heart. And the character arc of this teenager who didn't know anything about church or Jesus was so believeable and well done that it is probably the best thing about this book. That, and the psycho grandma. As for me, I am now officially a Jenny B. Jones fanatic. This is one author I will not miss. I plan to read everything she writes. Not kidding!

A fun story that still makes you think

Katie Parker is someone every girl (and even her mom) can relate to -- her view of life as a 16-year-old tring to fit in (in a new town as a foster kid, no less) is sometimes funny, sometimes serious. But there are some great messages there even in all the crazy happenings. Katie deals with making new friends, trying to find her way around school, going to church for the first time, forgiveness, and paying the price for getting caught in the middle of something. She learns some lessons we all need to know about trust, faith and problems. Katie's a very real kind of girl, which made me cheer for her from the very beginning. I highly recommend it for any middle or high school girls, and can't wait to read the next book.

Loved this book!

In Between is an incredible book! I read in one day because I could not put it down. It's a great book for all ages. It is super funny & has a great story line. I can't wait for On The Loose to come out this August!

Middle of Nowhere

I really enjoyed reading this book. I couldn't put it down, the character of Katie was very likable and you really felt for her. High school is always painful and even more so when you're the new kid and you're an outsider trying to fit in. The Scotts were really nice and I was glad to read that there were some messy secrets in their past, so as to not make them look too perfect. I also liked their church, their youth group sounds really cool. I got angry at first at how Katie was treated after the vandalism. No one seemed to believe that she had been tricked simply because she was a foster kid. It felt like none of the adults had ever been in that same situation about peer pressure and wanting to fit in. But it was good to see Katie grow and learn to accept her new family and friends. I liked Frances and her family, although I could see how someone like Katie would be intimidated at first by her. At first Maxine's character really annoyed me, just like she did to Katie. I mean she was rude, abrupt, not considerate of other's feelings and very direct and to the point. I didn't like especially how after Katie spied for her and fell out of the tree and got hurt, that she did nothing for her. But I did like how their relationship grew and the secret romance bit was a hoot. This book gave plenty of laughs, some downright hilarious. I liked how the ending didn't tie up everything, leaving enough room for a story for the next book. I would have been disappointed to see a tearful reunion with everyone crying, it would not have been realistic. I would highly recommended this book for teens. Older readers will enjoy it too but I think that teens will highly relate to Katie and therefore enjoy the book. Looking forward to the sequel!

One amazingly well written YA book!

This was a great read! I can't wait to see what happens with Katie Parker in the book. Jenny B. Jones keeps the words jumping off the page and makes you not want to stop reading until you are finished....then you are sad because the next book isn't out yet - perfect book for summer!

BEST BOOK EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

i think it is one of the best books i have ever read and i think everyone should buy it!!!!!

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