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    The June Boys
    The June Boys
    The June Boys
    Audiobook8 hours

    The June Boys

    Written by Court Stevens

    Narrated by Court Stevens, McKenzie Fetters, Gabe Wicks and

    3.5/5

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    About this audiobook

    This audiobook edition includes:

    • The full-length, stand-alone Young Adult suspense novel
    • A bonus scene with one of the Gemini Thief survivors
    • A Q&A between Court Stevens and Ruta Sepetys, New York Times bestselling author of Fountains of Silence

    From award-winning and highly acclaimed author Court Stevens comes a gripping, emotional story of small towns, rumors, and thirteen missing boys.

    The Gemini Thief could be anyone.

    For nearly a decade the Gemini Thief, a serial kidnapper who abducts three boys on June 1st, has terrorized Tennessee. The June Boys being held captive endure thirteen months of being stolen, hidden, observed, and fed before they are released, unharmed, by their masked captor. The Thief is a pro, managing to elude authorities while abducting over twelve boys over the past ten years. No one knows why—but they do know they don’t want to be next.

    Now Thea Delacroix has reason to believe the Gemini Thief has taken a thirteenth victim: her cousin, Aulus.

    But the twisted game begins to change: one of the kidnapped boys turns up dead. With the help of her best friends and her boyfriend Nick, Thea is determined to find the Gemini Thief and the remaining boys before it’s too late. Only she’s beginning to wonder something sinister, something repulsive, something unbelievable, and yet, not impossible:

    What if someone she knows is the Gemini Thief?

    Praise for The June Boys:

    “Stunning twists and turns. Hang on tight.” —Ruta Sepetys, international bestselling author

    “Not only a terrifying story of the missing, but a heartbreaking, hopeful journey through the darkness.” —Megan Miranda, New York Times bestselling author of The Last House Guest

    “A gripping suspense that hooked me from the first sentence.” —Colleen Coble, USA TODAY bestselling author of One Little Lie and the Lavender Tides series

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherThomas Nelson
    Release dateMar 3, 2020
    ISBN9780785221920
    Author

    Court Stevens

    Court Stevens grew up among rivers, cornfields, churches, and gossip in the small-town South. She is a former adjunct professor, youth minister, and Olympic torchbearer. These days she writes coming-of-truth fiction and is the director of Warren County Public Library in Kentucky. She has a pet whale named Herman, a bandsaw named Rex, and several novels with her name on the spine: The June Boys, Faking Normal, The Lies About Truth, the e-novella The Blue-Haired Boy, Dress Codes for Small Towns, and Four Three Two One. Find Court online at CourtneyCStevens.com; Instagram: @quartland; Facebook: @CourtneyCStevens; Twitter: @quartland.

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    Reviews for The June Boys

    3.5/5

    71 ratings8 reviews

    What did you think?

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    • 2/5
      I was intrigued by the concept. Like why would a person kidnap their victim but then release them after a year? I want the tea. Sadly, it didn't live up my expectations. The plot wasn't entertaining enough and the suspense wasn't there. The characters were unremarkable as well. I didn't form any attachment with them at all. They were just there. Well, I did like Aulus. He's the only well-rounded character. His will for survival, and how he remained hopeful for the sakes of others, really makes me ache for him.

      The big revelation felt so underwhelming. The worst part is that I don't even know this character exists until the very end. Another reason why the big reveal didn't work because there wasn't any build-up suspense for this.

      Also, the narrator who narrate Aulus sounded like a guy in his forties, which is a little weird (since Aulus is a teenager). I thought maybe they probably should get someone who sounds younger. But maybe that's just me.

      So yeah, it wasn't a good reading experience. Though I was hooked on finding who's the Gemini Thief, the experience of getting there wasn't fun.
    • 2/5
      was I the only one who thought this was confusing? I didn't have a clear idea of who several of the characters were. I didn't think they were very well presented.
    • 5/5
      The June Boys is at truly incredible book. Both the story and the audio production were high quality.
    • 5/5
      I have to admit I was surprised by The June Boys. This novel is multi-layered and complexly-written, something I just wasn’t expecting from a YA mystery/thriller/suspense. Perhaps my view of the genre is too narrow. After reading Stevens novel it isn’t anymore. The June Boys is a highly recommended read.The story is told through the first person voice of Thea, a high school senior whose life was upended when her cousin was abducted by the Gemini Thief. For 10 years boys of varying ages have been abducted and held for a year and then released unharmed. Thea is on a mission to find Aulus and enlists three friends in the investigation. The second point of view is shared through letters that Aulus is writing from his captivity. Both give the reader a good sense of what is going on, but not the whole picture. The pace of the book is urgent and the reader is kept on tenterhooks hoping that the book will not end in tragedy. I found the writing intense, some of the scenes cringe-inducing, and the whole story kept me listening well past the time I needed to move on to other things in my day. The book does have a YA vibe with its language and characters. I would say this one is for older youths, high school at least, because of its subject matter. There is a wrap-up at the end that helps bring the story closure, but created more to ponder. I think The June Boys would make an excellent choice for families to read or listen to together or for a youth book club. The spiritual questions that arise deserve good conversation. Specific to the audiobook: the multiple narrators make each voice clear.All in all, I found The June Boys to be a riveting read. If you like thrillers, YA lit, or are looking for a book that will engage your older teenagers, I highly recommend it.Highly Recommended.Audience: older teenagers to adults.(I purchased the audiobook from Audible. All opinions expressed are mine alone.)
    • 5/5
      The June Boys is a 2021 Lone Star novel. I found this mystery intriguing from the beginning to the end.Thea (often called "Thee") worries about what happened to her cousin Aul. In 2001, a kidnapper started taking boys on June 1st every year or so and releasing them 13 months later on June 30. Aul was taken the summer before their senior year in high school. Thea, Nick (her boyfriend), Gladys, and Tank spend their senior year trying to find where the boys are kept. One June Boy has been found dead, which hasn't happened before. The FBI (led my Nick's sister, Dana) have failed to find any of these boys for the last ten years but have posted billboards: "The Gemini Thief could be anyone. Your father, your mother, your best friend's crazy uncle. Some country music star's deranged sister. Anyone. Someone is stealing Tennessee's boys. Report suspicious behavior." Thea's thinks the Gemini Thief (the kidnapper) could be her father.The novel spends most of the time in May, as the people wonder if boys will be taken June 1 again. They hope Aul will be released. The four teens look for evidence to prove Thea's dad is guilty. He's always been a man of secrets, so Thea wonders if this secret is his biggest. The lie she's had a hard time processing is that he has been building a castle for ten years and never told her. Her uncle is the sheriff, so with his knowledge and Dana's knowledge, the teens know more than most people about the kidnapper. She possesses a close family with others in town. They know how to investigate as well as read/watch all interviews with released June boys to see if they can find anything that would indicate her father is guilty.Aul, meanwhile, feels that death may become a reality soon. He's with three other boys. The kidnapper, known as Welder, hasn't brought food or water for them. This lack of sustenance is unusual. The Gemini Thief always takes care of the boys (even if they are captured and placed in a bunker or basement or whatever it is). Aul starts to believe something has happened and the Thief cannot bring them provisions. Without food and water, they will die. He writes about his experience because he wants people to know what happened if he dies. These writings are addressed to Elizabeth and known as the Elizabeth Letters.I thought the beginning was hard to follow--perhaps I was in a hurry and needed to sit and concentrate. I was always intrigued while reading and never got bored wanting to "look/read ahead to see what happens." I did not figure out who the Gemini Thief was, so it was a bit of a surprise. I liked that the author has a bonus chapter at the end placed ten years later. It's a dark novel--it won't read like a YA novel. It read like an adult novel to me. I had a lot of questions while reading--is this a supernatural novel, a religious novel? Who is Elizabeth? Will Aul die?--it's a darker book where I can see that sometimes people aren't rescued and it's about the darkness found in some humans? I loved the pastor--she's awesome! It may have taken me a bit to "get into it," but I really found it intriguing and enjoyed being pulled along not knowing where I was going.
    • 4/5
      I don’t know what I was expecting, but I wasn’t expecting what I got, and I loved it. For some reason I had it in my head that this was going to be a fantasy. So i was really surprised when it was a modern day kidnapping and the mystery of where did they go and who took them. Them is the June Boys. On June 1 every few years, 3 boys are taken. They are released a year later. Then the next year, sometimes the year after, 3 more are taken. There is no real rhyme or reason to who gets taken, they vary by age, skin color, etc. Our story starts in 2010. Thea and her friends have been trying to solve the Gemini Thief (June Boys) case for a year. Her cousin was taken (they think). Because of crazy family secrets, Thea’s dad becomes a major suspect and the story grows from there. An interesting thing about this story is the Elizabeth letters. We get both sides. We see Thea’s side of what is going on, and the side of the missing June boys. One of the boys, writes the “elizabeth letters.” some of these could make you cry, so be warned. I really enjoyed this book. I loved finding out who Elizabeth way. However, on the audiobook, there are 2 extra things. The first is with one of the survivors 10 years later and the second was an interview with the author. I wish I hadn’t listened to them, as they took away from the story instead of enhancing it. This was a great mystery that kep me entertained over a few days. It would be enjoyable by teens and adults alike.
    • 2/5
      Every June 1st, the Gemini Thief kidnaps three boys and holds them captive until June 30th of the next year. Thea believes that the Gemini thief has taken her cousin, Aulus. The book alternates between Thea and her friends as they search for clues, and Aulus writing a series of letters while in captivity. When the FBI discovers one of the boys dead, a keychain links the boy to Thea's father. Thea is left with the unsettled thought that her family, or someone close to her family, is the Gemini Thief.This book was extremely predictable. I thought there were very few twists or surprises. Some things, felt less than realistic, particularly when Thea's boyfriend was being fed information by his FBI sister. The letters that Thea wrote from captivity were particularly hard to read on the Kindle - perhaps because they were images instead of text. Overall, this one was a bust.
    • 5/5
      A YA mystery with some Twin Peaks flavor. Mom long gone, dad unreliable and obsessed, uncles questionable, boyfriend reliable and supportive, best friends likewise. This is Thea's reality as she tries to solve the strange disappearance of her favorite cousin, Aulus. Was he a victim of the infamous June Boy kidnapper? If so, will he be released in June like all the others? Then the body of one of the currently missing boys turns up on a roadside with something linking him to her cousin. What ensues involves secrets, hidden bunkers, lies, Thea's discovery of more of her father's secrets, including the story behind the castle he's been obsessively building for years, more death and plenty of artfully placed red herrings. It's a very gripping story, well crafted and will appeal to many teens with complex family secrets, or who like a solid mystery.