Still Photo

by Kim Harnes

Jess Waterford’s mother is evil. Since she took off seven years ago—just days after Jess’s ninth birthday—without so much as a wave goodbye, Jess has always wondered what happened to her. And despite the end of her mother’s mental and physical abuse, the memories and the scars still remain. Jess conceals the hurt within by practicing her photography, and by spending as much time as her dad will allow with her baseball star boyfriend, Brody Campbell. Determined to make use of her new camera, Jess dives into photographing everything in sight. But periodically the resulting prints are flawed, ever so slightly: a smudge on a tree trunk; a blemish in the bus window. These imperfections are not as random as they may seem, however, and Brody and Jess soon discover together that each of these pictures combine to form another image—the grisly image of a murder scene, with Jess’s mother as the victim. As the new photograph takes shape, Jess’s desire to complete it consumes her, and Brody’s health begins to deteriorate. Torn between her quest to reveal her mother’s killer and her continued worry over Brody’s failing health, Jess finally finds the last piece to the puzzle, and the answer sends her world spiraling into depths from which she may never recover.

Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary, Thriller, Mystery, Death

272 pages, Paperback

First published March 26, 2014

About the author

Kim Harnes learned to read at the age of two and never looked back. Growing up as an avid lover of horror novels, campfire stories, and the obsession with ghost towns and cemeteries, it only made sense that her own writing would incorporate the paranormal, the bizarre, and the unexplained. She is an award-winning songwriter, an active member of the SCBWI, and currently lives with her family and numerous pets in Sparks, Nevada.

Reviews

[Maxine (Booklover Catlady) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Still Photo grabbed hold of me, spun me around a few times, tipped me upside down and spat me back out the other end.

What a breathtaking and surprising journey this novel took me on. The book was engrossing, different, fresh and snappy, and I for one, was glad I got to be one of the lucky ones reading it. This is a Young Adult novel with teenage characters but do not let that for one minute put you off if you are an adult reader.

Jess Waterford’s mother is evil. Since she took off seven years ago—just days after Jess’s ninth birthday—without so much as a wave goodbye, Jess has always wondered what happened to her.

And despite the end of her mother’s mental and physical abuse, the memories and the scars still remain. Jess conceals the hurt within by practicing her photography, and by spending as much time as her dad will allow with her baseball star boyfriend, Brody Campbell.

The start of the book highlights to us the relationship journey that Jess has with her boyfriend, Brody - shared time together, a really sweet romance that has budded out of a friendship started in the third grade, as little kids that both loved baseball.

Jess's home life is dark and abusive, we get tastes of flashbacks she is having, memories she would rather were not poking through the psyche, but that she can't escape from. Her mother treats her horrifically whilst her dad buffers things rather helplessly from the sidelines. I felt a lot of sadness for Jess as a character.

Jess has a passion for photography and her father buys her a camera from a yard sale, soon Jess and Brody spend time snapping photos of different things, days out, baseball games, but something out of the norm is going on, with printouts of the photos a jigsaw puzzle of a full picture is being formed, like a ghost print on top of the original photo. Brody has a really bad feeling about this and develops strange and bizarre sickness, random nose bleeds and worse, he thinks it's to do with the photo.

Jess is relentlessly and obsessively almost driven to find the last piece of the picture, this is when she surmises that the picture comes together as an image of her mother being murdered with the murderer in the picture.

I was so darn certain I knew who it was, I was so darn wrong. So, so wrong!

NOW....turn the book upside down, stand on your head to read it, shake it from side to side, keep reading, be on spin cycle with it in your tumble dryer, take some imagination producing natural herbs. Got it? That is what happens next when you read this book. I was like...

"What? Huh? No way! Seriously? Can't be? But? She? What about..? Didn't he..? This is bizarre, hang on I think I know what's going on now. Oh crap, no I don't, here we go again. What on earth? My brain hurts now."

Seriously clever plot development that just twists and turns until you are dizzy and every single time I thought HA! I have got it worked out I was proven to be in the wrong over and over again. But I am a clever reader! Gosh I loved the way the book did this to me. I could not stop reading, I missed dinner, I was obsessed with putting the puzzle together and having to know. You have been warned, addictive book reading material here.

More and more things happen in the overall scheme of things. Jess's character is written exceptionally well, oh boy, she is light and shade and oh, oh so flawed! You will form many opinions on how you feel about Jess from pity to disgust, at least I did. I commend the author, Kim Harnes for her ability to make the characters in this book really shine with depth, I thought it was really well done.

What happens to Jess and Brody once the photo pieces are put together? What does it mean that someone murdered her mother? Who can be trusted? This and many more questions keep you going right to the grand finale of the book which will put you again in the spin cycle on the tumble dryer then leave you hanging out upside down wondering which bus just ran you over.

Fantastic plot, genius plot. Clever plot. Intriguing, psychologically messy and disturbing, stand out characters, brain twisting reveals. Heck, what more do you want. A read I highly recommend, go in with NO expectations, just read it and let the journey commence. With consistent five star reviews (at the time of my review posting) I know this one is a clear example of stand out fiction.

I am not taking any photographs for a while. Just in case, you know?

I requested a copy of this book from the author, Kim Harnes, with much thanks as I was intrigued by the plot and wanted to review this novel specifically, I was not disappointed. Thank you for that opportunity Kim.

[Sarah Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

(Source: I received a digital copy of this book for free on a read-to-review basis. Thanks to author Kim Harnes.)

“Why does she hate me so much?”



This was a really interesting YA psychological thriller, and I totally didn’t guess what was going on!

I liked Jess and Brody. Poor Jess had had such a rough time of it with her abusive mother, and I felt really sorry for her! Being beaten up regularly could not have been easy for her.

“You ruined my body. My career. If I hadn’t had you, I’d still be modelling right now.”



The storyline in this was really good, and I didn’t guess what was going on. The first half of the story focused on Jess and her photography with some dodgy photos and a mystery to be solved, and then the second half was very different! I didn’t know what was really happening, but boy did I want to find out!

“Blood oozed around both of his hands, down his arms, and dripped off his elbows as he ineffectively attempted to stop the flow. Dark ruby droplets splattered the hallway like some B-rater horror flick.”



There was some romance in this, and I really liked Brody. I felt like Brody and Jess made a really great team, and I was happy that Jess had had someone to support her whilst she suffered with her mother.

“He really did love that girl. She had a fantastic smile. And beautiful eyes.”



The ending to this was surprising, but I liked it. Things might not have ended exactly as I would have expected at the beginning of the story, but it was certainly a different ending!
7.5 out of 10

[Aditi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kim Harnes, an American author's debut psychological novel named, Still Photo is all about darkness and photographs, which not only awes your mind but will also send chill up your spine, and as suggested by the author, Kim Harnes, that you must specifically read this book with your lights on! My favorite quote from the book,

“Within us all lurks something dark.
The opposite of what we portray ourselves to be."
I'd like to take a moment to thank the author, for giving me this opportunity to read and review her debut book.

This is a story about a young teenager named Jess Waterford. Her life changes forever when her abusive mother left her seven years ago, without uttering a single word and that made her wonder what happened to her mom. And eventually Jess concealed her pain by taking up photography and cocooned in the world of her baseball champion boyfriend, Brody Campbell. But when her photographs turns out to be bizarre and strange, things around her went uphill, like her boyfriend started having nose bleeds and his health started deteriorating, making Jess realize that it has something got to do with Jess's photographs. But Jess was determined to put all those bizarre pictures together and to get an idea about it, thus letting her see the picture of her murdered mom with the murderer and hence a journey begins in Jess's life to search this murderer.

Now I'm in a luck that I got to read two brilliant debut books in a row! I'd like to applause for the author for her brilliancy and smartness . This woman knows how to make it dark and thoroughly twisted with her choice of simple words. A thoroughly researched and an utterly well-developed plot, gives that compelling edge to her story. Now let's talk about her "characters"! Jess simply wowed me with her attitude, pain, determination and strength and sometimes she made me hate her so much. I really fell hard for this girl, Jess. The idea that the author invented is completely unusual and totally out-of-the-box and that what makes the story more interesting to read and with such a smooth pace, the book is bound to pull you into its course/flow. The book doesn't have any ghosts yet she wrote the book like you might find a ghost at the end of the book. And those psychologically flawed characters will not only scare the shit out of you, but will also draw a mark upon your minds!
And trust me the author is successful in making her readers scared to hold a camera for a long time!

So what are you waiting for! Grab this book now and make your brain twisted in the aura of this book's darkness!

[ReadAlongWithSue ★⋆. ࿐࿔catching up · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was lucky enough to get this book direct from the author Kim Harnes.

Just looking at the cover intrigued me, it told me of a person that was split, I thought, maybe split personality.
The dark tare in the middle, I thought was something sinister. I'm a sucker for book covers telling a story and this cover really did suit the plot.

We have Jessica. We have Brody. We have Jessica's Mother who is a drunk and abuses Jess. We have her Father who she loves, respects and looks up to.

But is all as it seems? No its not.

The start of the book was slow for me. It picked up though, and when it did it was a fast pace that kept me wanting to read more when I should have been doing household chores!

Its difficult for me to give you an outline of this book as no matter how I try I'm going to reveal a spoiler, so I don't want to focus on that, what I do want to focus on is the authors writing.

Kim Harnes has a way of telling a story, it really sucks you into its pages. The revelation at the end of this book was just not what I expected. I really didn't think of that at all!!!

Some chapters throw you back into Jess past with Jess life, ideas and emotions, then you come up to the present day and you wonder towards the ending what was real and what was not. Not in a confusing way, it was all to do with the "twist" the "plot".

I really don't know how Kim Harnes thought this brilliant story through, but whatever and however she materialized this plot is outstanding.

I would definitely urge you to read it. Keep with it, it really shocks the pants off you at the end.

[Kim Harnes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sometimes you become so involved in the writing
you have to put the laptop aside to stop the character's anger from coursing through your own veins. I only hope I've portrayed it on paper the way I felt it in my soul. Enjoy!

[Winter Sophia Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

Captivating, Breathtaking & Intriguing! A Twisted Read! I Loved It!

[smalls · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book! Oh my goodness. At first it feels very typical teenager book and predictable. But damn! So not! It was so fun to know all the places mentioned in the book. My daughter attends the same high school. We live in the same area. I am so impressed! I highly recommend this book to my local book friends! Very well done. You have to commit to reading it all the way through. Once u get to a certain point u won’t want to put it down. But until then promise to read it all the way through. I don’t think you will regret it! What a crazy ride!

[Marcus Damanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Still Photo, by Kim Harnes, is a shocking, unforgettable read.
Meet Jess Waterford, a more-or-less typical teenager who aspires to become a professional photographer. She lives with her single father and attends school with her boyfriend Brody Campbell, the local baseball hero. She works part-time at a photography studio with old George, learning the trade while enduring the drudgery of shooting vapid, half-naked pre-anorexic swimsuit models. In spite of a past she’d rather forget—one in which she was both abused and neglected by her own mother—Jess has found her place in the world, things to hope for and look forward to, a life to live and to love.
Incidentally, you will remember that the name is “Jess,” not “Jessica,” if you know what’s good for you.
The purchase of a first-rate camera by her doting and insecure father opens a thriller with more than a hint of the supernatural at play as several of Jess’s shots slowly begin to unveil a terrible secret in their backgrounds. In the first half of the book, Jess and Brody work to uncover that secret even as strange and terrifying afflictions—both psychological and physical—pummel them the closer they get to the truth. But don’t get to sure of yourself in your own predictions, O Reader, because you have no idea what’s coming. Approaching the second half of the book, you’ll say to yourself, “I know where this is going.” But you don’t.
You’ll think you do. But you don’t.
Saying any more about the plot would be a disservice to both the author and her audience. Kim Harnes has woven a completely unexpected tale rooted in the ordinary. Her characters talk like real people; her baseball fields, high school classrooms, and hospital wards come to life with the reality of the small town anyone could have grown up in. And when a small girl stands alone in the rain in the parking lot waiting past dark for her father to pick her up—only to have her worst nightmare, her mother, arrive in his place … well, let’s just say that Kim Harnes can make a grown man cry. And leave him troubled in his sleep long hours after …
In the end, readers will find themselves emotionally and intellectually exhausted—in the best possible way. What’s more, the reader will have been shown the value of believing one’s self (if not always believing in one’s self), even when the people who are supposed to love and protect you either fail miserably or betray you at every turn.
Surprising, upsetting, and unexpectedly funny at times, Still Photo resonates with storytelling prowess, a nightmare you’ll want to have over and over again.

[Sasha Hibbs · Rating 5 out of 5]

At a glance, the cover led me to believe that I was in for a sinister, creepy ride, and I can say at the end, that is exactly what happened. There was no disappointment.

There are a few novels that at the end, I'm left scratching my Kindle screen, saying to myself in a futile attempt to make my Kindle produce more pages, "Where's the rest? I want more!" And so that was the case with Still Photo. It was just that good.

This is a genre I don't visit too often and having devoured Still Photo I think I'll reconsider and am a bit afraid other psychological suspense novels might perhaps pale in comparison.

The flow of the story and the character building were nothing short of stunning. This was one of those novels that at 1AM I had a conflict crop up between my two selves. One saying, "Seriously, you have to get up at 6AM. PUT. IT. DOWN!" and then my other self was saying, "Just one more chapter. JUST. ONE. MORE!"

Oh what a ride! I loved all the characters: Brody, Jess, her Dad...Ms. Harnes fleshed them out in great detail.

Still Photo easily earns 5 very creepy, spine chilling stars from this reader. I will certainly be on the lookout for future works.

[Huston Piner · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had the pleasure of reading this spine-chilling book before Ms Harnes had it published. It's a dark page-turner that will keep you guessing and leave you breathless. You'll feel pulled between the psychological and supernatural elements and find yourself mystified by the author's ability to keep you guessing and keep you reading. It's a fantastic read and well worth having on your ebook/book shelf.

[Chris Ledbetter · Rating 5 out of 5]

WOW! What a ride! This story kept my mind actively engaged right to the very end! Great story crafting. This is a wild, psychologically thrilling book with more twists and turns than a roller coaster! I thoroughly enjoyed the story.
PRETTY DAMN GOOD!!!

[Bridie Hall · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a super creepy, dark psychological read that left me breathless. Kim Harnes is a masterful writer and manages to keep you guessing from the very first, to the very last page. An outstanding YA novel and an outstanding writer. I am amazed.

[Johnna Campbell · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book begins with wonderful characterization that Harnes creates with her descriptive and occasionally sarcastic, yet honest and humorous, writing. The first page had me chuckling, and I couldn't wait to read on. I was hooked when I met the protagonist (Jess Waterford) and was privy to her innermost thoughts that she also expresses candidly to other characters. Even though this is a YA novel, and I am not a teen, I felt like I could relate to Jess on many levels. She is a character that many people can empathize with - at first. As I grew to love Jess, her boyfriend Brody, and their adorable young-love relationship, I realized they were ever-evolving and not necessarily who I thought they were. Although I was a bit saddened by this, because I had grown to love them, it added elements of suspense and piqued my curiosity.

Yes, there are many twists in this psychological thriller. The perpetual peripeteia kept me engaged in the novel and wanting to discover what would happen to the characters I had grown to love. There are no spoilers here, but I will say this: I strongly recommend this book for it's readability, remarkable characterization, and exciting narrative.

[Medeia Sharif · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jess’s hobby is photography—it is both a craft and an activity that provides comfort. Her past is one of emotional and physical abuse from her cruel mother, who disappeared when she was nine years old. When Jess receives a state-of-the-art camera from her father, she’s excited until she sees smudges on the photographs. The defects displease her, but then she realizes that all the smudges, if cut out, reveal another picture—one smudge is a brick, another a bit of a streetlamp, another a part of someone’s body, and so on. She keeps taking and printing photos to see what comes out. While she works on the new picture that emerges, her boyfriend, Brody, is getting nosebleeds and headaches that worsen the closer she gets to piecing together the image from the smudges. The last piece that finishes the image breaks apart what she knows about reality. The mystery of the picture and how her mother died, as well as what Jess was hiding about her past, is chilling. This psychological page-turner starts out normal, and the buildup is amazing as the story becomes stranger and more suspenseful.

[Summer Rackley · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars are not enough, that was the best book I've read in quite awhile!!!

[Claudette Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very nice thriller, suspense. I enjoyed this novel very much and would try other works by this author!

[Sandi Warner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a good book! The storyline immediately pulled me in and I couldn't put it down.

[Zakiah · Rating 5 out of 5]

While reading Still Photo this novel consist of having romance and suspenseful mystery events. As a teenage girl has a passion for photography and a teenage boy is in love with the game of baseball, as a normal teenage life turns around in the blink of an eye. The reader encounters what it is like to have unfamiliarity’s with one of your parents as you try so hard to impress someone and nothing seems to be good enough. Not only that, shows the reader how curious people can be, as their curiosity doesn’t always lead to comforting results. Some of the characters perspectives and actions can also relate to many teenagers mentality. The author did a great job being strongly descriptive as each characteristic stands out. Each page kept me curious as new events kept me wanting to know more. The mood Kim Harnes is conveying is what also kept me engaged with the hilarious, serious, passionate and sarcastic tone. I would recommend this to everyone as the story it tells and mysterious turn outs.Still Photo

[Lisa Dess · Rating 5 out of 5]

Whoa!! I was SO not expecting the major plot twist which totally changed the direction of this book. Well done!

Jess is a very complex character and was SO well developed.

This book held my attention and was paced well.

[Monse · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book, it had amazing description and detail leaving me with images in my head. The plot was great the turning point was insane. I especially liked the characters in the book. it felt as if I were in the story.

[Debra McCracken · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book with some surprising twists,; really caught me off guard, and not many books can do that!

[Niki Cluff · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I first read the blurb for this story, I knew I had to read the entire thing and I was on the edge of my seat! Jess is such a complex character!

The book was engrossing. This is a Young Adult novel with teenage characters but do not let that put you off as an adult reader.

Jess Waterford’s mother is evil. Since she took off seven years ago—just days after Jess’s ninth birthday—without so much as a wave goodbye, Jess has always wondered what happened to her.

And despite the end of her mother’s mental and physical abuse, the memories and the scars still remain. Jess conceals the hurt within by practicing her photography, and by spending as much time as her dad will allow with her baseball star boyfriend, Brody Campbell.

Jess's home life is dark and abusive. Her mother treats her horrifically whilst her dad buffers things from the sidelines.

Jess has a passion for photography and her father buys her a camera from a yard sale, soon Jess and Brody spend time snapping photos of different things, but something out of the norm is going on. Printouts of the photos have a jigsaw puzzle of a full picture is being formed, like a ghost print on top of the original photo. Brody has a really bad feeling about this and develops strange and bizarre sickness, random nose bleeds and worse, he thinks it's to do with the photo.

Jess is obsessively driven to find the last piece of the picture, and when the picture comes together it's an image of her mother being murdered with the murderer in the picture.

I never saw the ending coming! Such a good read!

I was given the book by the author in exchange for an honest review.

[Jacci · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dark and twisty doesn't even begin to explain this book. I may have had nightmares. Not for the faint of heart but kept me reading. If you like dark fiction, you'll love Kim Harnes debut novel!

I would have given it five stars if it weren't for some of the formatting and editing issues and as an author, I know that those have nothing to do with the author. Evernight Teen could have worked harder to make this book as perfect at it deserved to be.

[Trinity Harnes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely riveting! This was an unforgettable read. I fell in love with the characters very quickly. And just when you think you have it all figured it out, you are hit with twist after twist! I couldnt put it down, read is start to finish in one sitting. Loved it and will be recommending to all my reader friends!

[Jenna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Still Photo is a real page turner. There were twists and turns that I didn’t see coming. The book was so well written and it had me up well into the night because I just couldn’t put it down!! It even had me crying at parts. It’s the most captivating book I’ve read in a long time. I’d love for the author to come out with more books.

[BbarryFamily · Rating 5 out of 5]

This YA psycho thriller is wonderfully written and full of twists and turns. I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys the psychological thriller genre. I had trouble putting it down.

[Romancing the Book · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reviewed by Heather
Book provided by the author
Originally posted at Romancing the Book

Still Photo tells the story from two points of view, Jess Waterford and Brody Campbell. I like that you can read the thoughts and feelings of both Jess and her boyfriend, Brody. They are a very playful and humorous couple. Always joking and picking on each other. It is not hard to see how in love they both are despite their young age. Both of them are still in high school, which is where most of the story takes place.

It did not take me long to fall in love with this book. After the first chapter, it was hard to put it down. When I would force myself to stop reading for a little while, I was anxious to start again. This book filled me with emotions from happiness to complete despair. I laughed at the jokes and actions, I cried when the story took an amazing twist and I thought there was no hope for the characters.

The storyline and characters are very realistic and easy to relate to. At first the love came easily and naturally, by the end, both of them were fighting to be together. I never expected the dramatic truth that is revealed in the last quarter of the book. The author, Kim Harnes, really knows how to keep her audience entertained and ready for more. I almost wish that there was a sequel but I loved the ending. I do not thing that Harnes could have written it better. It wraps things up and does not leave any loose ends. I would say this book is a must read for anyone who is interested in contemporary suspense novels.

[Taytem · Rating 5 out of 5]

Still photos was one of the best books I have ever read. It takes you through the tale of Jess waterfords life with flash backs and the love of her and Brody. Brody is a baseball star and Jess is an aspiring photographer. She can take the most brilliant photographs but as you get farther into the story you realize that there is more to her photos than a smudged tree or window. You are taken through her mothers murder and she uses your emotions and manipulates you into believing that it is just a poor printing job. But as you find out it is way more.

And after all the loss and longing in Jess's life you find that there is more to Brody as well. He is struggling to keep his health up and Jess needs him more than ever.

This book works your emotions and keeps you reading on the edge of your seat at all times. I feel like I can relate to Jess because of her divorced parents and feeling that there is always more to know about the story behind the picture.

[Misfits farm · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this without reading the synopsis beforehand. (I would have read it but a while ago). What starts as a story of young love changes dramatically. Jess has 2 loves- her boyfriend whom she has known since she was very young, and photography. Her mother left the family several years ago and she lives happily with her father as she had a traumatic relationship with her mother. I won’t spoil things but what a twist and then some! I couldn’t put this down! Characters so well written you could imagine them as neighbours. Scenarios you can vividly see and a story line never to forget.
Kim you have a talent- I can’t wait to read more. Thank you.
I voluntarily chose to read this ARC and all opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased.

[Angela · Rating 5 out of 5]

From the start, I thought, what a nice young love story. Sure, things seemed a little weird, a little off, a little too perfect -- did Children of the Corn teach me nothing! Then the momentum picks up, as does the realization this isn't your typical YA trope. After which, I realized I have fallen down the rabbit hole and it's so perfectly done I only want to go deeper to find out what happens next.

WELL.

I'm not going to tell you. YOU need to read this book and enjoy the freefall like I did.

Twisting, turning, dark, but what I'm calling a happy ending.