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Labeled Innocent, Presumed Dead
Not yet published
Expected 14 Feb 26Family isn’t always blood…but this blood is shed from your family.
What would you do if you were recruited to an FBI organization run by teenagers?
That’s the problem sixteen-year-old Natalia Serenelli is facing; her hacking skills land her a role in the top-secret group of mismatched agents with polar opposite skillsets—and personalities—called the Bureau. Their main focus is rescuing missing women and children, but things get complicated when it hits Natalia a little too close to home.
Five years prior, her older sister, Alison, snuck out to her criminal boyfriend’s house…though was never seen again, nor was a body found. A secret relationship gone seemingly wrong, police refused to reveal his identity and the FBI dismissed her case as a ‘runaway’. Natalia knows there’s a much darker force at play, however, and this only increases her trust issues in the authorities.
So it comes as no surprise when secrets unravel…secrets that the organization are keeping about their involvement in Alison’s case. But when things heat up between Natalia, another flirtatious member, and the Bureau’s ruthless leader, she has to make the impossible her suspicious found family…or her biological family of liars.
- - -
For fans of The Naturals, The Inheritance Games, and Pretty Little Liars, this brings a new generation of teenage detectives with government ties, a love triangle, and a whole lot of secrets.
*Check trigger warnings
What would you do if you were recruited to an FBI organization run by teenagers?
That’s the problem sixteen-year-old Natalia Serenelli is facing; her hacking skills land her a role in the top-secret group of mismatched agents with polar opposite skillsets—and personalities—called the Bureau. Their main focus is rescuing missing women and children, but things get complicated when it hits Natalia a little too close to home.
Five years prior, her older sister, Alison, snuck out to her criminal boyfriend’s house…though was never seen again, nor was a body found. A secret relationship gone seemingly wrong, police refused to reveal his identity and the FBI dismissed her case as a ‘runaway’. Natalia knows there’s a much darker force at play, however, and this only increases her trust issues in the authorities.
So it comes as no surprise when secrets unravel…secrets that the organization are keeping about their involvement in Alison’s case. But when things heat up between Natalia, another flirtatious member, and the Bureau’s ruthless leader, she has to make the impossible her suspicious found family…or her biological family of liars.
- - -
For fans of The Naturals, The Inheritance Games, and Pretty Little Liars, this brings a new generation of teenage detectives with government ties, a love triangle, and a whole lot of secrets.
*Check trigger warnings
Kindle Edition
Expected publication February 14, 2026
38 people want to read
About the author
Marcelina LoBue
4 books144 followersMarcelina LoBue is the 16-year-old YA mystery romance author of The Blood that Divides Us (an academic rivals to lovers, trauma healing murder mystery) and Labeled Innocent, Presumed Dead (a true crime thriller with a love triangle). The latter releases on February 14th, 2026.
When she’s not listening to true crime podcasts or writing about stab wounds, she’s focused on her education and highly involved in her school’s student council. Baking and teaching herself how to code—much like Natalia—has also preoccupied her time, in addition to having a bad habit of staying up too late reading romances on her Kindle.
When she’s not listening to true crime podcasts or writing about stab wounds, she’s focused on her education and highly involved in her school’s student council. Baking and teaching herself how to code—much like Natalia—has also preoccupied her time, in addition to having a bad habit of staying up too late reading romances on her Kindle.
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Review of advance copy received from Author
2 stars
Tysm to the author for giving me an ARC of this book!
I’m going to start this review off by saying that I have nothing against the author, and she has tons of potential, but this book just wasn’t for me. I’m extremely proud of her for writing this at such a young age and I think that if she continues writing im certain she will improve a lot
What to expect 💌
- Love triangle
- Teens working in the FBI
- very entertaining
⁀➷ Possible spoilers from this point on
Characters 🤍
⤷ Natalia- this girl has issues 😭 she punches people for no reason, fantasizes about pushing a guy into a lake, hallucinates twice, and is basically belly from tsitp when it comes to the love triangle. I think these quotes will speak for themselves
“𝘐 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥’𝘷𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘱𝘶𝘴𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘱𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘤 𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘳 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘢 𝘭𝘢𝘬𝘦, 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘸𝘪𝘮𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘢 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘤𝘳𝘪𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘥𝘢𝘥𝘴 𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘢”
she said this literally just after finding out this guy lied to her about one thing btw
“𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘷𝘪𝘰𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘵”
“𝘐 𝘭𝘦𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘴𝘺𝘤𝘩𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘢𝘤 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘴𝘦; 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘢𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘤 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘦 𝘬𝘦𝘱𝘵 𝘤𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴. 𝘕𝘰 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘦𝘦𝘵 𝘩𝘦𝘳. 𝘛𝘰𝘰 𝘣𝘢𝘥, 𝘴𝘰 𝘴𝘢𝘥. 𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘸𝘢𝘺𝘴”
seriously wtf 😭😭 that is not normal
“𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘐- 𝘰𝘳 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘩𝘦, 𝘮𝘺 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘧𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘐𝘵 𝘫𝘶𝘮𝘱𝘦𝘥 𝘶𝘱 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘢 𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘫𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘰𝘹”
⤷ Jayden- from the second he was introduced in this I hated him- first of all, the dyed white hair is just… I don even know 😭 as the book continued I kept finding more and more red flags, and I was literally so upset that he was who Natalia ended up with- though, when you think about it, they’re perfect for eachother. But are we forgetting that HE LITERALLY MURDERED SOMEONE?? FOR JUST TOUCHING NATALIAS ARM?? guys don’t even lie and say it was manslaughter- you don’t just throw a knife at someone by accident. So this guy has committed 2nd degree murder, and not in self defence. tbh I think it was just because of him being overprotective and possessive. And no, his traumatic past does not make up for this.
⤷ Kyle- yeah, I also hate him. Something about him just bothers me, idk what. Also I literally can not find someone name Kyle attractive. Partially because that’s it uncles name. But also partially because it sounds like a middle aged man with a bushy beard who lives in the forest. Idk why but is just does 😭 also he’s in a position of power over Natalia which mean that they could never be together anyways… plus I hated how he called her darling. and um he said this:
“𝘈𝘴 𝘧𝘢𝘳 𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘮 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘥, 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘥𝘪𝘥𝘯’𝘵 𝘱𝘶𝘵 𝘢 𝘭𝘢𝘣𝘦𝘭 𝘰𝘯 𝘪𝘵, 𝘴𝘰 𝘪𝘵’𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘪𝘧 𝘪𝘵 𝘪𝘴, 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘥𝘰 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘴”
And yes, he kissed her immediately after saying it. LESS THAN 24 HOURS AFTER SHE KISSED JAYDEN
⤷ Aera- there’s also something seriously wrong with her… im sorry but why does she go from being best friends with Natalia so saying the worst insults to her for no reason?? Here are some beautiful examples of that:
“𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘤𝘵 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘴𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘥 𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘯 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘧𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘬𝘺”
…what does this even mean
“𝘠𝘰𝘶’𝘳𝘦 𝘢 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘪𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘱𝘪𝘦𝘤𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘨𝘢𝘳𝘣𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘧𝘰𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦”
this feels like it would be offensive to someone who was actually in foster care 😭
“𝘐 𝘴𝘶𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳”
What I liked 🩸
⤷ it was very entertaining- like it was literally so addictive and it was fun to read
What I didn’t like 💌
get ready for a rant 🤭 this might end up being my longest review yet, im just warning you
ok, first of all some things were incredibly unrealistic. So apparently Kyle opened up a new branch of the fbi a few years ago, based on his current age im assuming he was around 15 at the time. HOW DOES A RANDOM 15 YEAR OLD OPEN A NEW BRANCH OF THE FBI??? Also he was from Russia, idk if he was even an American citizen, and wasn’t he arrested for murder (he didn’t actually murder someone but what charged for it)???? Plus he had like no education, so how tf was he able to do that??? Did he just go up to the fbi and say “hey im starting a new branch btw”
Now, on a similar note, in books like the naturals at least they have more realistic talents. See, in the naturals they have natural talents, like profiling or detecting lies, and solve cold cases, plus it’s run by an adult fbi agent. See, that alone is slightly unrealistic, but at least it makes sense. In this, on the other hand, they have skills that typically require years of training to be able to do- forensics, hacking, etc. and they work mainly on active cases, specifically missing young women. And they’re all between the ages of 10-18.
Now, im also wondering why they kept doing illegal stuff like breaking into places and sneaking around the police. Like you’re literally the fbi 😭😭
I also found the portrayed if the police to be very inaccurate. Yes, police can and do make mistakes, and can be lazy. Books like agggtm show this very well. In this it was just absurd. Apparently a man who was a convicted murderer, kidnapper, rapist, and involved in human trafficking was allowed to just get community service and then move to the US and become a high school math teacher 😭 no. It doesn’t work like that. Plus the police refused to look into any missing person case or murder. Uhhh what are they focusing on then, robbery??? I don’t even know 😭
Another thing that made me very mad was one math mistake. Ok, ok, im a perfectionist. But this was a noticeable error that bothered me so much. Basically, the mom was a teenager in 2006, im assuming she was 17 as she had her drivers license but was in high school. In 2018 her first daughter was 15. That means she was born in 2003. So the mom would’ve had her at 14. And while yes, teen pregnancies exist, when she was a teenager in 2006 she did not have a child, and there are no mentions of her having a teen pregnancy. Her daughter was not adopted. So how is this even possible???
Next, there was a love triangle. I hate love triangles, but sometimes they can be executed well. But this definitely was not 😭 Natalia was fr acting like belly from tsitp. Playing with their emotions, struggling to choose between them, and so much more. She also kissed both brothers within a 24 hour period. The love triangle basically just pmo throughout the whole book. The romance in general felt like insta love which also bothered me a lot, and here is how a kissing scene is described:
“𝘔𝘦 𝘮𝘦𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘦𝘱𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘣𝘰𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘵𝘴𝘶𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘪 𝘰𝘧 𝘦𝘤𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘴𝘺 𝘸𝘢𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘮𝘦. 𝘐𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘏𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘯”
yayyy it’s finally time to move onto the next section of things I didn’t like- quotes that made absolutely no sense:
“𝘔𝘺 𝘣𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘰𝘸𝘭𝘦𝘥”
Are you a wereworlf?? Do you need to see a doctor???
“𝘐 𝘳𝘢𝘯 𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦, 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘴𝘢𝘭𝘵 𝘭𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘸𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘪𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘴𝘵”
first of all, lakes aren’t salty, also you don’t ingest air, you inhale it 😭
“𝘐 𝘤𝘳𝘺 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘰𝘱 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘺 𝘭𝘶𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘢𝘴𝘱𝘪𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘥𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺”
“𝘐 𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘢 𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘢𝘱𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘭”
“𝘐 𝘴𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘥 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘢 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘺 𝘵𝘰𝘥𝘥𝘭𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘮”
“𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘭𝘰𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘯𝘰𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘣𝘢𝘭 𝘭𝘢𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘦𝘳”
“𝘛𝘸𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘴𝘬𝘦𝘥 𝘨𝘶𝘺𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘕𝘖𝘛 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘰𝘵 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘥”
btw the one who said that one was describing watching her parents get murdered… why is she focusing on the hotness of the murderers 😭 also im pretty sure she (Aera) is supposed to be lesbian… so uh why is she focusing on how hot men are?
“𝘐 𝘴𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮𝘦𝘥 𝘴𝘰 𝘮𝘶𝘤𝘩 𝘮𝘺 𝘷𝘰𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘴 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘥. 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘵’𝘴 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘐 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘮𝘶𝘵𝘦”
That is physically impossible
“𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘪𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘴 𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯 𝘮𝘺 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘢𝘴 𝘭𝘰𝘶𝘥 𝘢𝘴 𝘮𝘺 𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘴𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮𝘴. 𝘌𝘹𝘤𝘦𝘱𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘪𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘹𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵. 𝘏𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘵”
…im confused
“𝘐 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘭𝘺 𝘧𝘭𝘰𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘥 𝘮𝘺 𝘣𝘰𝘥𝘺 𝘶𝘱 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘢 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘮”
“𝘞𝘩𝘰 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘧 𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘥𝘳𝘶𝘨𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘥𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘬𝘴?”
“𝘏𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘓𝘖𝘛𝘚 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘰𝘰𝘴. 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘨𝘢𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘥𝘰 𝘐 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵?”
“𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘐𝘝 𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦”
no but what is an iv moniter 💀 ivs are used for fluids or medication, not monitoring vitals 😭✋
“𝘋𝘪𝘻𝘻𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘪𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘺 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘤𝘩”
You don’t feel dizziness in your stomach 😭😭 you’re mixing it up with something else- maybe anxiety, or nausea or something
Finally, a lot of it was copied from the naturals. The premise 5 teenagers working for the fbi who are talented at certain things and very traumatized. there’s a very similar love triangle as well, where one guy is serious and brooding (and blonde), and the son of a murderer who helped a victim escape, and the other is a random very unserious and flirty guy. Also, the whole plot is also quite similar. In the naturals, Cassie’s mom goes missing, presumed murdered when she’s 12, and years later theres a serial killer who chooses victims who look like her. Well, the exact same thing happened in this, except it’s her sister. Plus lipstick is a huge part of this plot- just like in the naturals 😭
Tysm to the author for giving me an ARC of this book!
I’m going to start this review off by saying that I have nothing against the author, and she has tons of potential, but this book just wasn’t for me. I’m extremely proud of her for writing this at such a young age and I think that if she continues writing im certain she will improve a lot
What to expect 💌
- Love triangle
- Teens working in the FBI
- very entertaining
⁀➷ Possible spoilers from this point on
Characters 🤍
⤷ Natalia- this girl has issues 😭 she punches people for no reason, fantasizes about pushing a guy into a lake, hallucinates twice, and is basically belly from tsitp when it comes to the love triangle. I think these quotes will speak for themselves
“𝘐 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥’𝘷𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘱𝘶𝘴𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘱𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘤 𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘳 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘢 𝘭𝘢𝘬𝘦, 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘸𝘪𝘮𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘢 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘤𝘳𝘪𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘥𝘢𝘥𝘴 𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘢”
she said this literally just after finding out this guy lied to her about one thing btw
“𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘷𝘪𝘰𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘵”
“𝘐 𝘭𝘦𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘴𝘺𝘤𝘩𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘢𝘤 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘴𝘦; 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘢𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘤 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘦 𝘬𝘦𝘱𝘵 𝘤𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴. 𝘕𝘰 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘦𝘦𝘵 𝘩𝘦𝘳. 𝘛𝘰𝘰 𝘣𝘢𝘥, 𝘴𝘰 𝘴𝘢𝘥. 𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘸𝘢𝘺𝘴”
seriously wtf 😭😭 that is not normal
“𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘐- 𝘰𝘳 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘩𝘦, 𝘮𝘺 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘧𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘐𝘵 𝘫𝘶𝘮𝘱𝘦𝘥 𝘶𝘱 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘢 𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘫𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘰𝘹”
⤷ Jayden- from the second he was introduced in this I hated him- first of all, the dyed white hair is just… I don even know 😭 as the book continued I kept finding more and more red flags, and I was literally so upset that he was who Natalia ended up with- though, when you think about it, they’re perfect for eachother. But are we forgetting that HE LITERALLY MURDERED SOMEONE?? FOR JUST TOUCHING NATALIAS ARM?? guys don’t even lie and say it was manslaughter- you don’t just throw a knife at someone by accident. So this guy has committed 2nd degree murder, and not in self defence. tbh I think it was just because of him being overprotective and possessive. And no, his traumatic past does not make up for this.
⤷ Kyle- yeah, I also hate him. Something about him just bothers me, idk what. Also I literally can not find someone name Kyle attractive. Partially because that’s it uncles name. But also partially because it sounds like a middle aged man with a bushy beard who lives in the forest. Idk why but is just does 😭 also he’s in a position of power over Natalia which mean that they could never be together anyways… plus I hated how he called her darling. and um he said this:
“𝘈𝘴 𝘧𝘢𝘳 𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘮 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘥, 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘥𝘪𝘥𝘯’𝘵 𝘱𝘶𝘵 𝘢 𝘭𝘢𝘣𝘦𝘭 𝘰𝘯 𝘪𝘵, 𝘴𝘰 𝘪𝘵’𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘪𝘧 𝘪𝘵 𝘪𝘴, 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘥𝘰 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘴”
And yes, he kissed her immediately after saying it. LESS THAN 24 HOURS AFTER SHE KISSED JAYDEN
⤷ Aera- there’s also something seriously wrong with her… im sorry but why does she go from being best friends with Natalia so saying the worst insults to her for no reason?? Here are some beautiful examples of that:
“𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘤𝘵 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘴𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘥 𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘯 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘧𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘬𝘺”
…what does this even mean
“𝘠𝘰𝘶’𝘳𝘦 𝘢 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘪𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘱𝘪𝘦𝘤𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘨𝘢𝘳𝘣𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘧𝘰𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦”
this feels like it would be offensive to someone who was actually in foster care 😭
“𝘐 𝘴𝘶𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳”
What I liked 🩸
⤷ it was very entertaining- like it was literally so addictive and it was fun to read
What I didn’t like 💌
get ready for a rant 🤭 this might end up being my longest review yet, im just warning you
ok, first of all some things were incredibly unrealistic. So apparently Kyle opened up a new branch of the fbi a few years ago, based on his current age im assuming he was around 15 at the time. HOW DOES A RANDOM 15 YEAR OLD OPEN A NEW BRANCH OF THE FBI??? Also he was from Russia, idk if he was even an American citizen, and wasn’t he arrested for murder (he didn’t actually murder someone but what charged for it)???? Plus he had like no education, so how tf was he able to do that??? Did he just go up to the fbi and say “hey im starting a new branch btw”
Now, on a similar note, in books like the naturals at least they have more realistic talents. See, in the naturals they have natural talents, like profiling or detecting lies, and solve cold cases, plus it’s run by an adult fbi agent. See, that alone is slightly unrealistic, but at least it makes sense. In this, on the other hand, they have skills that typically require years of training to be able to do- forensics, hacking, etc. and they work mainly on active cases, specifically missing young women. And they’re all between the ages of 10-18.
Now, im also wondering why they kept doing illegal stuff like breaking into places and sneaking around the police. Like you’re literally the fbi 😭😭
I also found the portrayed if the police to be very inaccurate. Yes, police can and do make mistakes, and can be lazy. Books like agggtm show this very well. In this it was just absurd. Apparently a man who was a convicted murderer, kidnapper, rapist, and involved in human trafficking was allowed to just get community service and then move to the US and become a high school math teacher 😭 no. It doesn’t work like that. Plus the police refused to look into any missing person case or murder. Uhhh what are they focusing on then, robbery??? I don’t even know 😭
Another thing that made me very mad was one math mistake. Ok, ok, im a perfectionist. But this was a noticeable error that bothered me so much. Basically, the mom was a teenager in 2006, im assuming she was 17 as she had her drivers license but was in high school. In 2018 her first daughter was 15. That means she was born in 2003. So the mom would’ve had her at 14. And while yes, teen pregnancies exist, when she was a teenager in 2006 she did not have a child, and there are no mentions of her having a teen pregnancy. Her daughter was not adopted. So how is this even possible???
Next, there was a love triangle. I hate love triangles, but sometimes they can be executed well. But this definitely was not 😭 Natalia was fr acting like belly from tsitp. Playing with their emotions, struggling to choose between them, and so much more. She also kissed both brothers within a 24 hour period. The love triangle basically just pmo throughout the whole book. The romance in general felt like insta love which also bothered me a lot, and here is how a kissing scene is described:
“𝘔𝘦 𝘮𝘦𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘦𝘱𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘣𝘰𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘵𝘴𝘶𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘪 𝘰𝘧 𝘦𝘤𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘴𝘺 𝘸𝘢𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘮𝘦. 𝘐𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘏𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘯”
yayyy it’s finally time to move onto the next section of things I didn’t like- quotes that made absolutely no sense:
“𝘔𝘺 𝘣𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘰𝘸𝘭𝘦𝘥”
Are you a wereworlf?? Do you need to see a doctor???
“𝘐 𝘳𝘢𝘯 𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦, 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘴𝘢𝘭𝘵 𝘭𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘸𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘪𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘴𝘵”
first of all, lakes aren’t salty, also you don’t ingest air, you inhale it 😭
“𝘐 𝘤𝘳𝘺 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘰𝘱 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘺 𝘭𝘶𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘢𝘴𝘱𝘪𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘥𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺”
“𝘐 𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘢 𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘢𝘱𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘭”
“𝘐 𝘴𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘥 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘢 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘺 𝘵𝘰𝘥𝘥𝘭𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘮”
“𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘭𝘰𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘯𝘰𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘣𝘢𝘭 𝘭𝘢𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘦𝘳”
“𝘛𝘸𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘴𝘬𝘦𝘥 𝘨𝘶𝘺𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘕𝘖𝘛 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘰𝘵 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘥”
btw the one who said that one was describing watching her parents get murdered… why is she focusing on the hotness of the murderers 😭 also im pretty sure she (Aera) is supposed to be lesbian… so uh why is she focusing on how hot men are?
“𝘐 𝘴𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮𝘦𝘥 𝘴𝘰 𝘮𝘶𝘤𝘩 𝘮𝘺 𝘷𝘰𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘴 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘥. 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘵’𝘴 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘐 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘮𝘶𝘵𝘦”
That is physically impossible
“𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘪𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘴 𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯 𝘮𝘺 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘢𝘴 𝘭𝘰𝘶𝘥 𝘢𝘴 𝘮𝘺 𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘴𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮𝘴. 𝘌𝘹𝘤𝘦𝘱𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘪𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘹𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵. 𝘏𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘵”
…im confused
“𝘐 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘭𝘺 𝘧𝘭𝘰𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘥 𝘮𝘺 𝘣𝘰𝘥𝘺 𝘶𝘱 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘢 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘮”
“𝘞𝘩𝘰 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘧 𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘥𝘳𝘶𝘨𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘥𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘬𝘴?”
“𝘏𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘓𝘖𝘛𝘚 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘰𝘰𝘴. 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘨𝘢𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘥𝘰 𝘐 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵?”
“𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘐𝘝 𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦”
no but what is an iv moniter 💀 ivs are used for fluids or medication, not monitoring vitals 😭✋
“𝘋𝘪𝘻𝘻𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘪𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘺 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘤𝘩”
You don’t feel dizziness in your stomach 😭😭 you’re mixing it up with something else- maybe anxiety, or nausea or something
Finally, a lot of it was copied from the naturals. The premise 5 teenagers working for the fbi who are talented at certain things and very traumatized. there’s a very similar love triangle as well, where one guy is serious and brooding (and blonde), and the son of a murderer who helped a victim escape, and the other is a random very unserious and flirty guy. Also, the whole plot is also quite similar. In the naturals, Cassie’s mom goes missing, presumed murdered when she’s 12, and years later theres a serial killer who chooses victims who look like her. Well, the exact same thing happened in this, except it’s her sister. Plus lipstick is a huge part of this plot- just like in the naturals 😭
December 30, 2025
* ੈ✩‧˚
⤷ Labeled Innocent, Presumed Dead by Marcelina LoBue
* ੈ✩‧˚
⤷ find me as @abby.reads14 on YT <3
* ੈ✩‧˚ 𝕣𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕟𝕘:
★★★★★
⤷ 4.5 stars
* ੈ✩‧˚ 𝕥𝕣𝕠𝕡𝕖𝕤:
⤷ mystery romance
⤷ love triangle
⤷ FBI secret organization
* ੈ✩‧˚ 𝕔𝕠𝕟𝕥𝕖𝕟𝕥 𝕨𝕒𝕣𝕟𝕚𝕟𝕘𝕤:
⤷ profanity - yes
⤷ romance - 1.5/4
⤷ violence - 3/3
⤷ trigger warnings - kidnapping, human trafficking, rape
* ੈ✩‧˚ 𝕥𝕙𝕠𝕦𝕘𝕙𝕥𝕤:
Wow this was… there’s a lot to unpack here.
(before I start, thank you so much Marcelina for this free e-arc, I was so happy to get to read it and genuinely enjoyed it so much)
I have a bunch of thoughts so I’m going to segment this review.
Characters:
⤷ Natalia- Love her. Her inner monologue? Perfectly sarcastic and funny. Her hobbies and skills? Cute and unique. Her backstory and overall voice? Loved her, probably my favorite character.
⤷Jayden- Honestly better than I expected; even starting as a team Kyle fan, I never really disliked him… well expect for one part that I’ll get into under spoilers.
⤷ Kyle- Yeah team Kyle forever!! He was so sweet and never truly mean or cold, and like he’s a reader? Didn’t realize that but I love him (side note: the Fake Skating cameo??? Yes, just yes.)
⤷ Aera- She was nice, and I don’t really have much to say about her, good or bad. I didn’t dislike her; I just can’t think of anything in particular to say about her.
⤷ Alison- Her diary entries were a nice addition, if absolutely heartbreaking. Revealing some of the story through them was a nice way to drop more hints and set up the story even more, and I liked that detail.
⤷ Stephanie- Never read a more punchable person in my life. Can’t say much about her without angry-spoiler-ranting.
Setting:
Nice, fairly normal; loved how it was Lin Irdirva, so the initials for the police department were LIPD, aka the acronym for the book (I didn’t realize this myself btw, it was in one of Marcelina’s vlogs).
Plot:
The plot was CRAZY. Like, I didn’t really expect ANY of the twists, and the interconnectedness of it all, while at times a tad unrealistic, was honestly just so cool and full scope in tying it all together. I'll get into all of the individual twists below (please only continue if you've read the book :)
Spoilers:
⤷
⤷
⤷
⤷
⤷
⤷
* ੈ✩‧˚ 𝕨𝕠𝕦𝕝𝕕 𝕀 𝕣𝕖𝕔𝕠𝕞𝕞𝕖𝕟𝕕?
⤷ Yes! This was honestly just a really fun, chill read that I quite literally binged in two days and enjoyed so much. If you're looking for a The Naturals/AGGGTM-esque read, I'd recommend you check this out!!
* ੈ✩‧˚ 𝕣𝕖𝕝𝕖𝕒𝕤𝕖:
⤷ Labeled Innocent, Presumed Dead releases February 14, 2026!!!
* ੈ✩‧˚ 𝕡𝕣𝕖-𝕣𝕖𝕒𝕕:
⤷ Thank you SOSOSOSOSO much to author Marcelina LoBue for giving me this free e-arc in exchange for an honest review! I've been wanting to read this book since the first outlining vlog and I'm so excited to finally read this story; early, no less!
All thoughts are my own <3
⤷ Labeled Innocent, Presumed Dead by Marcelina LoBue
* ੈ✩‧˚
⤷ find me as @abby.reads14 on YT <3
* ੈ✩‧˚ 𝕣𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕟𝕘:
★★★★★
⤷ 4.5 stars
* ੈ✩‧˚ 𝕥𝕣𝕠𝕡𝕖𝕤:
⤷ mystery romance
⤷ love triangle
⤷ FBI secret organization
* ੈ✩‧˚ 𝕔𝕠𝕟𝕥𝕖𝕟𝕥 𝕨𝕒𝕣𝕟𝕚𝕟𝕘𝕤:
⤷ profanity - yes
⤷ romance - 1.5/4
⤷ violence - 3/3
⤷ trigger warnings - kidnapping, human trafficking, rape
* ੈ✩‧˚ 𝕥𝕙𝕠𝕦𝕘𝕙𝕥𝕤:
Wow this was… there’s a lot to unpack here.
(before I start, thank you so much Marcelina for this free e-arc, I was so happy to get to read it and genuinely enjoyed it so much)
I have a bunch of thoughts so I’m going to segment this review.
Characters:
⤷ Natalia- Love her. Her inner monologue? Perfectly sarcastic and funny. Her hobbies and skills? Cute and unique. Her backstory and overall voice? Loved her, probably my favorite character.
⤷Jayden- Honestly better than I expected; even starting as a team Kyle fan, I never really disliked him… well expect for one part that I’ll get into under spoilers.
⤷ Kyle- Yeah team Kyle forever!! He was so sweet and never truly mean or cold, and like he’s a reader? Didn’t realize that but I love him (side note: the Fake Skating cameo??? Yes, just yes.)
⤷ Aera- She was nice, and I don’t really have much to say about her, good or bad. I didn’t dislike her; I just can’t think of anything in particular to say about her.
⤷ Alison- Her diary entries were a nice addition, if absolutely heartbreaking. Revealing some of the story through them was a nice way to drop more hints and set up the story even more, and I liked that detail.
⤷ Stephanie- Never read a more punchable person in my life. Can’t say much about her without angry-spoiler-ranting.
Setting:
Nice, fairly normal; loved how it was Lin Irdirva, so the initials for the police department were LIPD, aka the acronym for the book (I didn’t realize this myself btw, it was in one of Marcelina’s vlogs).
Plot:
The plot was CRAZY. Like, I didn’t really expect ANY of the twists, and the interconnectedness of it all, while at times a tad unrealistic, was honestly just so cool and full scope in tying it all together. I'll get into all of the individual twists below (please only continue if you've read the book :)
Spoilers:
⤷
⤷
⤷
⤷
⤷
⤷
* ੈ✩‧˚ 𝕨𝕠𝕦𝕝𝕕 𝕀 𝕣𝕖𝕔𝕠𝕞𝕞𝕖𝕟𝕕?
⤷ Yes! This was honestly just a really fun, chill read that I quite literally binged in two days and enjoyed so much. If you're looking for a The Naturals/AGGGTM-esque read, I'd recommend you check this out!!
* ੈ✩‧˚ 𝕣𝕖𝕝𝕖𝕒𝕤𝕖:
⤷ Labeled Innocent, Presumed Dead releases February 14, 2026!!!
* ੈ✩‧˚ 𝕡𝕣𝕖-𝕣𝕖𝕒𝕕:
⤷ Thank you SOSOSOSOSO much to author Marcelina LoBue for giving me this free e-arc in exchange for an honest review! I've been wanting to read this book since the first outlining vlog and I'm so excited to finally read this story; early, no less!
All thoughts are my own <3
January 2, 2026
Before we start I would like to thank Marcelina Lobue for giving me the amazing opportunity to be an ARC reader for her book 💞
I absolutely knew from the summary that I would be obsessed with with this and guess what ? I was so right
This book gave me major « the naturals » vibe and I’m delighted because I’ve been searching for a book that would gave me the same feelings for soooooo long.
It was a true page turner that had me gasping at all the plot twist, I was so hooked I literally finished it in a day.
I loved the characters so much but I would love to see a deeper cut on each and everyone of them (before or after Natalia) especially Area. I would sell my soul to know even more about her (Marcelina pleaseee hear me outtt) or give Kyle a little bit of love ? 😔
The writing was incredible and I was baffled when I learned the author is 16. Like whatttt. I’m around the same age and let me tell you most of us don’t know how to write like that. The diary entries were chef kiss omggg.
So if you’re looking for a well written YA mystery that gives the naturals vibe, you are at the right place !!!
I absolutely knew from the summary that I would be obsessed with with this and guess what ? I was so right
This book gave me major « the naturals » vibe and I’m delighted because I’ve been searching for a book that would gave me the same feelings for soooooo long.
It was a true page turner that had me gasping at all the plot twist, I was so hooked I literally finished it in a day.
I loved the characters so much but I would love to see a deeper cut on each and everyone of them (before or after Natalia) especially Area. I would sell my soul to know even more about her (Marcelina pleaseee hear me outtt) or give Kyle a little bit of love ? 😔
The writing was incredible and I was baffled when I learned the author is 16. Like whatttt. I’m around the same age and let me tell you most of us don’t know how to write like that. The diary entries were chef kiss omggg.
So if you’re looking for a well written YA mystery that gives the naturals vibe, you are at the right place !!!
Currently reading
December 29, 2025💘Preread:
I got an ARC of this book and I cannot wait to read this!! 🙌🏼💗🔎📖
The synopsis has me HOOKED and the author, the queen, Marcelina herself is so dedicated to writing and being respectful to her readers, litterally love her!!
I got an ARC of this book and I cannot wait to read this!! 🙌🏼💗🔎📖
The synopsis has me HOOKED and the author, the queen, Marcelina herself is so dedicated to writing and being respectful to her readers, litterally love her!!
![Profile Image for Hannahhh ;) [free palestine].](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fi.gr-assets.com%2Fimages%2FS%2Fcompressed.photo.goodreads.com%2Fusers%2F1716322390i%2F174687111._UY200_CR29%2C0%2C200%2C200_.jpg&w=128&q=75)
Want to read
December 29, 2025₊˚⊹♡ pre review
I can’t believe I just got this arc ahhhhhhh!! I’m so immensely grateful, so thank you Marcelina! This honestly made my day <33 This is said to give off vibes of the naturals which I’m obsessed with so let’s hope that I love this even more than the blood that divides us.
I can’t believe I just got this arc ahhhhhhh!! I’m so immensely grateful, so thank you Marcelina! This honestly made my day <33 This is said to give off vibes of the naturals which I’m obsessed with so let’s hope that I love this even more than the blood that divides us.
Currently reading
December 28, 2025so so SOOO excited to binge this😭💕honored to be an arc reader for marcelina yet again🤭
November 21, 2025
I HAD THE HONOURS OF BETA READING THIS BOOK AND LET ME SAY IT'S A MASTERPIECE. i cannot wait for the release and to see all of the improvements!!
Want to read
November 22, 2025Im so excited to read this! Finally i wont be so alone and depressed on valentines day! ill have an amazing new book to finish instead!
January 2, 2026
2 ⭐️
Dnf at 45%
Thank you to the author for a free arc in exchange for an honest review of the book. The author is a very sweet person, and my opinion on the book has nothing to do with her
I went into this really hoping to enjoy it, and though it was definitely not bad, I don’t think it was really for me.
What I liked:
There were some things that I was enjoying, it was definitely very fast paced, and I was super entertained at the start of it. I definitely think that this is a fun story for the right audience.
What I didn’t like:
The characters were not that likable imo. Natalia seemed a little crazy, she was being a rude a lot of the time sort of reminded me of some other fmcs that I just wasn’t a fan of, (ex. belly conklin, jamie teher-foster.) She also punched someone because he accidentally called her her sisters name…?
The love triangle- not a fan of love triangles for the most part.
Some of the writing was really confusing to me, and it felt hard to understand what was going on a lot of the time.
It also was very similar to the naturals, and since I loved the naturals I had very high hopes, but it just wasn’t really for me.
Overall, definitely not a bad book, it just really was not for me
Dnf at 45%
Thank you to the author for a free arc in exchange for an honest review of the book. The author is a very sweet person, and my opinion on the book has nothing to do with her
I went into this really hoping to enjoy it, and though it was definitely not bad, I don’t think it was really for me.
What I liked:
There were some things that I was enjoying, it was definitely very fast paced, and I was super entertained at the start of it. I definitely think that this is a fun story for the right audience.
What I didn’t like:
The characters were not that likable imo. Natalia seemed a little crazy, she was being a rude a lot of the time sort of reminded me of some other fmcs that I just wasn’t a fan of, (ex. belly conklin, jamie teher-foster.) She also punched someone because he accidentally called her her sisters name…?
The love triangle- not a fan of love triangles for the most part.
Some of the writing was really confusing to me, and it felt hard to understand what was going on a lot of the time.
It also was very similar to the naturals, and since I loved the naturals I had very high hopes, but it just wasn’t really for me.
Overall, definitely not a bad book, it just really was not for me
Review of advance copy received from Author
4.5 stars!!!
OH MY OH MY GOSH! her writing has gotten so so much better which is crazy because genuinely TBTDU was amazingly written. genuinely loved this so so much! thank you Marcelina for the arc! I read this in one night! The plot twists kept me on my feet the WHOLE TIME. if you read chapter 50 oml i was bawling my eyes out. Still mad at you for that Marcelina oml😭😭
I love her writing sm and mind you she’s only 16!! You can really tell she loves writing this book was so so good. Also the love triangle? It was done rlly good! 😛😛 Ofc I’m team Kyle but when this releases lmk what team your on. Anyways I can’t wait for this to release so so proud of Marcelina!🫶🏻🫶🏻🫶🏻
OH MY OH MY GOSH! her writing has gotten so so much better which is crazy because genuinely TBTDU was amazingly written. genuinely loved this so so much! thank you Marcelina for the arc! I read this in one night! The plot twists kept me on my feet the WHOLE TIME. if you read chapter 50 oml i was bawling my eyes out. Still mad at you for that Marcelina oml😭😭
I love her writing sm and mind you she’s only 16!! You can really tell she loves writing this book was so so good. Also the love triangle? It was done rlly good! 😛😛 Ofc I’m team Kyle but when this releases lmk what team your on. Anyways I can’t wait for this to release so so proud of Marcelina!🫶🏻🫶🏻🫶🏻
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