Timmy's Review of You Don't Know Jack by M.C. Lee

This is a book that I didn’t think I would like at first, but it proved me wrong around the fourth chapter. It was hard to get into, because it was so totally different from anything else I had ever read. This turns out to be one reason why I really liked the book. Once I was able to get a grasp on what was going on, I had no problem putting myself in the main character’s mind. I threw myself into Jack’s point of view and I LOVED the story after that. I could totally relate to Jack’s feelings if I were placed in the life he lived in. 

Jack isn’t the empty shell that we first think he is. He proves that by his feelings toward his last mission, and the fact that he feels guilty about it. He also shows it in his feelings about his new mission. It isn’t because he had no thoughts and emotions before this. It’s that he never had a chance to explore them. He doesn’t have a life like all the other kids, and simple things such as popular drinks and styles, have no meaning to him. Not because he wants them not too, but because he hasn’t experienced them or had a chance to really learn about them. 

Jack’s whole life is The Center he grew up in and works for. He has never known anything but portraying someone other than himself for the missions he goes on. He can figure out and analyze the situations and people he is in or around, but not himself. I’m very curious to see how he grows in the next book. 

I really enjoyed trying to figure out the secret organization Jack works for and what they could possibly stand for, but this author has a knack for suspense and mystery, so I still I don’t know! Luckily the ending left a huge gap for more to come. That made me really happy in this instance and when it usually leaves me feeling cheated. 

I’m excited to see what comes of Jack and Leo. They have a sweet romance that I would like to see it continue. I want so badly for Jack to have a happy ending. Though this book didn’t really have a happy ending, it didn’t end like it was over. It was almost as if this was just the first chapter of a continuing story. Now, normally I don’t like that kind of ending. I don’t like when a book ends right when it gets good, but MC Lee pulled it off well. I felt that this part of the story was done, and now we will move on to the next chapter of Jack’s life. 

The story has a heartbreaking unexpected twist at the end that even surprised me, and that is unusual. I normally can guess what will happen in a book or movie. This was a really interesting mystery story that kept me interested until the very end and more. I will be bugging the author for another book! (Well, I would if I knew the author, which I don’t, so if anyone that reads this and knows him/her please bug for me. ;)  ~Timmy

You Don't Know Jack by M.C. Lee

Available in Print and eBook 

Dreamspinner Press/Harmony Ink Press, Amazon, Barnes & Noble,
and Omni Lit

About You Don't Know Jack

Jack has never known an ordinary life. “The Center,” a shadowy organization with its own hidden agenda, has been his home, his school, and his job. Under the command of a man he knows only as his guardian, Jack has trained relentlessly in order to carry out the Center’s secret missions. In the three years since he turned thirteen, he’s been given more and more complex assignments, rarely questioning the reasons behind each operation. Now, going by the name Jack Carlisle, his orders are to go to Maine and befriend high school track star Leo McCormack. 

Jack finds Leo easy to like, and soon the like becomes something more. He knows he shouldn’t act on his attraction—it’s against all the rules. However, Leo wants Jack in his life as much as Jack wants Leo, and soon the two begin a relationship. Jack gets a sweet taste of real life, but when the mission ends the fallout could be disastrous--and not just because Leo’s father is the target of the operation.

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