Review: The Lost Causes by Alyssa Embree Schwartz & Jessica Koosed Etting

Author: Alyssa Embree Schwartz & Jessica Koosed Etting
Publisher: Kids Can Press
Date of publication: September 2017

They’re the last people you’d ask to help with anything, much less a murder investigation. The rich girl, the obsessive, the hypochondriac, the addict and the hot-tempered athlete—people think they’re beyond help. Lost causes. But where the world sees losers, the FBI sees its only hope.

With the help of a dangerous serum, the FBI erases the teens’ past problems and unlocks a psychic ability within each of them. In return, all they have to do is help find the killer who’s turned their small town upside down.

But as they close in on a suspect, they expose a conspiracy that puts them directly in harm’s way and makes them wonder who—if anyone—they can really trust.

If anything happens to them, will anyone even care?

In The Lost Causes, five high school students have been pretty much given up on by everyone around them.  They all are dealing with depression, OCD, addiction and other issues. They are recruited by two FBI agents to help out with a murder investigation by using abilities they didn't know they had.

I ended up enjoying this one.  The premise was pretty cool.  The five students are given a serum that unlocks latent psychic abilities.  They are able to use their new abilities to help solve a murder case.  The mystery was good and kept me guessing.  What I enjoyed the most was watching the five characters overcome their issues.  I liked them tremendously and really cared about what happened to them.  They were able to form a solid friend group.  If asked, I'm not sure I could pick a favorite out of the bunch.  The book ends in a way that would make room for a sequel.  If there is one in the future, I'll definitely pick it up.  This is a good fairly, clean YA and I would definitely recommend it.