Recommended Ages: Gr. 6-8

Plot Summary: Nicki is living in an orphanage and has been for a long time. She is shocked to have an opportunity to join a family, but she's not allowed to know anything about them unless she agrees to it. This isn't a normal foster care or adoption situation. The family is in the witness protection system, which means they're hiding from dangerous people. The government is trying their best to protect them, which in this case, means adding a second child to the family to throw off the people looking for them. Nicki makes a pretty quick decision, even though it means leaving her friends at the orphanage without saying goodbye, going through a whole lot of training for her new role as a family undercover, changing her name, and living a lie. Will all of her efforts protect her and her new family?

Setting: Durham, North Carolina

Characters:
Charlotte - 13 year old, orphan, sassy, type A personality often but not always, has a history of stealing
Janice - person in charge of making sure Charlotte is ready for her new role and serves as her point person once she's with the family
Harriet - new mom, born into a mafia family and turns them in, loving, open to change
Jonathan - new dad
Jackson Trevor - new brother, sour about all the changes, doesn't want to leave his old life and friends
Nancie - neighbor, very chatty and open in an embarrassing way to her daughter
Brit - Nancie's daughter, loves online gaming, in gaming competitions, Charlotte's friend

Recurring Themes: identity, orphan, orphanage, family, love, disappointment, danger, doing the right thing, moral dilemmas

Controversial Issues:
reference to Hunger Games
pg 58 - hell

Personal Thoughts: I wasn't sure about this book when I picked it up but it was fabulous. Just the right amount of character development and action. I do not believe it is for elementary students, however. The idea of being chased by the mafia is terrifying. The reference to Hunger Games also made me think this book is written for junior high.

Genre: action/adventure

Pacing: fast, suspenseful
Characters: decent amount
Frame:
Storyline:

Activity: ( )

Thanks to years in foster care making her tough and street smart, Nicki Demere is asked by the U.S. Marshals to join a family of three that needs to be protected from their criminal family, camouflaging them as a family of four. As Charlotte Trevor, she does what she can to help protect her new family while also being the most average student possible. But before long, all of the Trevors learn how difficult it can be to outrun one’s past.

I don’t know why it’s so much harder to figure out how to start a review when I like a book than it is when I dislike a book. I guess because it just doesn’t seem good enough to start out with, “This book is great!” But this one really is. I don’t know how plausible the premise is, but the author sure made it seem realistic, considering that Nicki isn’t the only kid tapped for “Project Family.” From the orphanage to training with the Marshals and finally to her new home, Nicki makes an impression with everyone along the way. I didn’t always feel like her voice was all that realistic to a 13-year-old, but on the other hand, her rough history makes her anything but average. And the way her past affects her in the present was written well and adds to her being quite the sympathetic protagonist.

There were some things about this book that were predictable (at least for me, reading it as an adult) but at least one thing that happened that I did not expect at all. Throw in few emotional moments, a style that’s easy to read, and suspense built in the form of brief mentions of the criminals trying to track down the hidden family, and it’s easy to see why this book hooked me. There were even several laugh-out-loud moments here and there. I read this at the same time that my 13-year-old daughter did, and she loved it too. She agrees that it was suspenseful and thrilling. High endorsement from the target audience! ( )

After the death of her grandmother and with her father in prison, Nicki has been shuffled from foster home to foster home looking for someone who will accept her for what she is, a thief, specifically a pick-pocket. When the US Marshals create Project Family, Nicki is trained and chosen to move with a family into the Witness Protection Program (WITSEC) as their daughter. Elena, the family's mother has testified against her brother and they are now all in danger. Nicki becomes Charlotte and joins the Trevor family in North Carolina. What follows are funny, touching events that find Nicki/Charlotte trying to settle into her new life where she must maintain a B- average and remain as unobtrusive as possible, but Nicki has never been good at being unobtrusive.

Greetings From Witness Protection! is a fun coming-of-age story with some mystery, adventure and school hijinks thrown in. Nicki's character is well developed as are the other members of the family along with Nicki's best friend, Brit. Someone like Nicki could not have survived what she has unscathed, so her kleptomania adds depth and reality to her character. Overall, Greetings From Witness Protection! has characters that are easy to identify with and is a wonderful middle grade story. ( )

Totally implausible plot. But totally fun read. ( )

Picked it up by accident...Lucky me! A strong protagonist who could have easily slid into angry snark. Instead, she uses her own painful experiences to help her new fake family heal and become cohesive, makes a valuable friend and even gets her new angsty younger brother to get real. Plenty of action at the end, coupled with a surprise i didn't see coming. Altogether a very satisfying read. ( )