Unprotected

by Kristin Lee Johnson

Unprotected is the story of Amanda Danscher, a young woman who accepts a position as a child protection social worker.She quickly becomes embroiled in a case against their Minnesota town's former champion hockey player and favorite son, Chuck Thomas, who will do anything to buck the system rather than work with it including whatever it takes to get Amanda out of his way. Luckily Amanda reconnects with Jacob, a new county attorney who has the means to help and protect her, but no clue how to break down her own defenses. Set against the backdrop of the always messy and complex world of child protection, Unprotected is ultimately about family and a young woman's discovery that there are all kinds of family and many places that can be called home.

Genres: Fiction

272 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2012

Reviews

[Debbie Payne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book as a First Reader's Give away and was very impressed with the author"s writing style and how easily she made her characters come to life on the pages. She possessed the knowledge to give her readers a good glimpse into the world of social work and all it encompasses, The relationships in the book were complex and made us carrel about what was happening in their lives. You just knew that Amanda and Jake were made to be together yet up to the end of the book you were compelled to finish this wonderful story! And such an interesting twist that I certainly didn't see coming. I would definitely read a second book of Kristin's.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

First I have to say how eye catching and pretty the cover is. If I walked by it in a store I would pick it up flip it over to read the description. The characters were relatable, realistic and heartfelt. The story was interesting, touching and very well written.
I would highly recommend this book. I am looking forward to more stories from this new and very promising author.

I won this book through goodreads.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in a small Midwestern town, the characters and setting feel familiar. If you know the world of child protection, the plot will ring true. But even if you don't, the family relationships and unfolding mystery will hold your interest to the very end. It's a quick read and impressive debut from a new author.

[Paula Ackley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book. It was an easy read with likeable characters in tug at your heart situations. Unfortunately, these situations are all too common in our society. It's an eye opener. I loved the little twist at the end. It's worth reading.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved the characters and the book. Written by my husband's cousin. About a newbie social worker in Minneapolis. Read in just a few days. Job well done Kristin!

[Rhonda McKim · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book and the author is a friend of a friend of mine. Learned a lot about the social work system. The story had several plot twists and I liked the ending.

[Kim Kishel-Geiger · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book — an insight to the world of social work. I loved the multiple story lines and characters.
Left me wanting more!!!

[Kirsten · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to like this since she's a local author from MN, and it wasn't terrible...but it wasn't overly good either. The characters and story seemed forced. It's clear the author knows a lot about the social welfare system but seemed to over-explain at times, yet also has her character (who is IN this profession) be woefully ignorant about things at other times. Dialogue between characters was stilted as repetition of each other's name in conversation was overused. People don't say each other's name back and forth in natural conversation, and it wasn't a writing technique necessary to keep track of who was speaking. It just became annoying.
There were three major "unforgivables" for me in this book which brought my rating down to two stars rather than three:
1) A misuse of "peaked" instead of "peeked". Any spelling or usage error in a professionally published work is a major no-no in my mind.
2) I think a character's name changed midway through the novel. Amanda's co-teacher for her "adventure group" started out as a 40-year-old vegan EBD teacher named Blanche who later disappeared but seemed to be the same person as a new character named Madge.
3) The unfinished foster family story line with foster mother Mary and the child Justice (and his 3 other siblings). I could write this off as a "real-world-ish" situation where one doesn't always know how things turn out, but this is a book. Loose ends need to be tied up. Did the children stay together with the foster family? Were Mary and her husband successful in keeping the youngest child with them? Why didn't Mary like the older children? What was her deal? These are important questions that need answering!

I think with some better editing this could have been a better story.

[Purple Osprey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, the writer probably shouldn't quit her day job yet.
I like the idea of this book, but it seems a little off.
Psychology feels unrealistic. (All these people taking deep interest and truly caring for this damaged Amanda? Yeah, well, most healthy people would avoid her like plague. She's clingy and draining and depressed and insecure for god's sake)

The tone of the book is whiny. I get it that Amanda is supposed to be whiny and full of self pity, but there must be other literary means to let us know that she is lonely other than just saying "she's lonely" over and over again.

There is this big scandalous criminal case that just sort of fades into background and is so anticlimactic.
Overall the balance is wrong. There are right ingredients, wrong proportion.

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was lucky to have won this in a First Reads contest. I was hooked from the first sentence. I loved that it was a fast read,with great characters & story. I loved that the character's were written in such a way that one could relate to them. I liked how the author shared her knowledge of social work and the legal system and incorporated it into the story so you could see both sides of the issue. I recommend this to anyone that wants to have a good laugh, a good cry while enjoying a bit of mystery and romance.

[Tori Gorman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unprotected was an overall amazing book. It hooked me from the beginning with the romance between Amanda and Jacob. I loved how kris incorporated romance, social work, and plot twists all into one. It was cool to read about fictional social work cases. This was one of my favorite books, because it kept me interested throughout the whole book. The best part of it was the plot twists at the end. Can't wait to read unattached.

[Briana Capra · Rating 1 out of 5]

I just could not continue when the main character, as a social worker and someone who grew up poor-did not know what WIC stood for. Characters were over characterized: the black women were drug addicts and had spent jail time, the Mexican American had strict catholic parentage and had an unplanned pregnancy, and the poor white women wore Harley Davidson t shirts..... Please.

[Kristin Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's my book, friends. I sorta hafta give it 5 stars, huh? But I think I probably would have given it five stars anyway. Romance, mystery, characters I care about.....I hope you'll give it a try.