A quick read at less than 150 pages, the book begins on a note of high tension -- with the protagonist parkouring up the side of a multistory building -- and the tension pretty much never lets up throughout the whole book. I wasn't surprised to learn it's part of a series; indeed, it felt a bit unfinished, because you never do learn very much about Jo, Jace, Bentley and Emmett. I liked how the protagonist was female; I think teen girls need more tough, go-getting female role models in their fiction. ( )

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review from Orca Book Publishers via LibraryThing's giveaway a while back.

Exposed forms part of a powerfully packed trilogy of Young Adult fiction written by three authors. Short but feisty, Judith Graves' work follows the risky adventures of sixteen-year old Raven, who has found her family in a Vancouver car theft ring. Diesel the leader is known for rescuing youth from the streets and providing them with shelter and a sense of community, but Raven is shocked to discover the reality of his intentions when he puts her apprentice in serious danger. Enraged, she makes a promise to take Diesel down, and to expose him for what he is -- a manipulative, dangerous man.

Highly fast paced, Exposed takes readers down the grimy and gritty depths of a car ring, placing a sharp, cunning female protagonist at center stage. While narrative coherency occasionally suffers at the expense of the speedy plot development, Graves accomplishes a powerful ton in her work. Some may find the characters to lack color, but the novel compensates for it with its raciness and originality. As a side note, I was delighted to read a YA set in Vancouver -- while the film industry makes great use of the landscape of the Canadian West Coast, it has yet to charm the literary world! ( )

Good book for a quick read. I think the author could definitely went more in depth for a longer book. It was good. :) ( )

Exposed is a pretty short novel, almost a novella which surprised me. But because of that all the extra stuff you find in novels was cut out, leaving just the story, keeping it simple and fast paced.

Raven is about to turn 16, she seems to be pretty level-headed for a 16 year old even though her 'job' is jacking cars, primarily out of private car ramps. But as she nears her birthday, the day she is supposed to be set free, things she believed about her life are turning out to be lies. One lie gets her friend killed and another lie gets her blamed. She isn't going to take it any more and starts making plans to get even.

Quick book, fun read. I think I would have found Raven to be a crush if I had read this when I was a teenager. ( )

This is an interesting urban mystery about a 16 year old member of a crime ring. She specializes in climbing buildings in order to break into upper floors. It would be great for reluctant readers because it’s only 137 pages, a quick read, and full of action. Raven is a very sympathetic character with a strong, street-smart teen voice. The action is quite plausible, and the plot touches on the grittier realities of life as a street kid but is not so stark that parents of a younger teen reader would be upset. The only real issue I had with the book was that the transitions felt a bit jumpy between a couple of the scenes (probably to keep the length manageable and the book action packed). Otherwise, it was a highly interesting read, and seems like a promising series. ( )