What do you think?
Rate this book
Chasing Yesterday #2
Betrayal
Some things are too painful to remember--and too deadly to forget.
Found: One girl, age 13. Unconscious. Unharmed. Unclaimed. Unidentified.
Lost: Everything.
J.D. and Daniel are on the run, searching for answers about her past...and about the dangerous powers she can't seem to control. She knows she can't trust the memories implanted in her mind by the mysterious Dr. Styron, but they still feel real--and they won't stop haunting her. J.D. must race to uncover the truth and unlock the dark secrets in her brain...before it's too late.
Found: One girl, age 13. Unconscious. Unharmed. Unclaimed. Unidentified.
Lost: Everything.
J.D. and Daniel are on the run, searching for answers about her past...and about the dangerous powers she can't seem to control. She knows she can't trust the memories implanted in her mind by the mysterious Dr. Styron, but they still feel real--and they won't stop haunting her. J.D. must race to uncover the truth and unlock the dark secrets in her brain...before it's too late.
209 pages, Paperback
First published July 1, 2007
39 people are currently reading
1069 people want to read
About the author
Robin Wasserman
116 books1,476 followersRobin Wasserman is the author of the novels MOTHER DAUGHTER WIDOW WIFE (June 2020) and GIRLS ON FIRE. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, Tin House, The Los Angeles Review of Books, and several short story anthologies. A recent MacDowell Colony fellow, she is also the New York Times bestselling author of more than ten novels for young adults and teaches in the low-residency MFA program at Southern New Hampshire University.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 104 reviews
June 9, 2012
In this sequel to Awakening, we see J.D. and Daniel on the run, 10 days after the events that left an impact on their lives. J.D. starts discovering things that make her even more dangerous than she thought. She's putting some clues together and noticing that Daniel can be in danger just by being around her. But, when she's thrust into different situations, can she risk trusting the one person that's always been there for her?
I gotta say, this sequel kind of left me wanting more. I felt like the book was a bit monotonous up until the very end. I'm really glad that J.D. finally found her back bone, and discovered what she had inside her. The ending made me so frustrated, because I didn't want it to end there. I can't wait to see how everything unravels, and of course, I want to see what happened to Daniel. 4.5 stars yet again.
I gotta say, this sequel kind of left me wanting more. I felt like the book was a bit monotonous up until the very end. I'm really glad that J.D. finally found her back bone, and discovered what she had inside her. The ending made me so frustrated, because I didn't want it to end there. I can't wait to see how everything unravels, and of course, I want to see what happened to Daniel. 4.5 stars yet again.
October 7, 2024
This series is just as addictive as it was when I was a kid! Definitely some semi-major plot holes that I didn't recognize the first time around, but overall still just such a fun plot and a great story.
May 19, 2019
I've never shouted at a book the way I shouted at this one. What happened? Don't worry J.D. I feel your frustration. This book needed a lot more time in editing and rewriting. Let's get into it.
BY the way I assume you've read the last book if you are reading this so Spoilers.
COVER
The cover is just as awesome as the last one. More of her face revealed more memory. I get it. One question though is why is she different? Hair style and the color seem different. What's with the necklace?
Interior
I appreciate the slow progression of how she figured out how to tap into her powers and how unintentional it started. I remember shouting that she was going to go full Phoenix. (X-Men movie reference) With how dangerous she is, the inner conflict of abandoning Daniel is a nice touch. Unfortunately like with every moment of inner monologue it’s used like a hammer over and over again.
I’m not afraid, I am strong, Daniel can have a normal life, I have power.
Literally everything bad that happens in this book is J.D.’s fault. She is an emotional roller coaster that isn’t consistent and her thoughts are a muddled mess.
Know I know her brain is in a blender but that doesn’t excuse how self-sabotaging she is.
I wish I could say J.D. was the only one that made dumb moves but so does Daniel.
First off why did Daniel go to the police? Their living in an underground system why not send a message through the pipeline?
Her judgement Is downright awful. I respected the dumb delusion in the last book but here it makes no sense. She says she doesn’t know her enemy and needs to do research then she messes around through half a book doing nothing. (This book has a bucket of fluff.) I don’t quite understand why she is upset with Daniel. Is it because he went to the police and the police were tied with LysenCorp? Prize money? Really where did that hatred come from? And What makes her think he’ll be able to leave the Center again. Like Tec warned her if he dies it’s on her.
A guy gives you a place to sleep and eat and says you are safe you don’t trust and yet you break into a factory and you trust the bakers and a complete stranger that tried to mug you in the last book. For someone that doesn’t trust an illegal underground system she sure goes into a stranger car a lot. (Twice to be exact.) Once we reach the end, I really didn’t care what happened to her she.
With that statement in place SPOILERS!!SPOILERS!
After burning every contact and ally she has she goes right to the front door of the enemy believing she is Strong and Not Afraid and what? Thinks they’re going to quake in fear? There was no plan, no backup, no what ifs. I have power hear me roar! She literally did what Ansel said in the first few pages of the book.
BY the way I assume you've read the last book if you are reading this so Spoilers.
COVER
The cover is just as awesome as the last one. More of her face revealed more memory. I get it. One question though is why is she different? Hair style and the color seem different. What's with the necklace?
Interior
I appreciate the slow progression of how she figured out how to tap into her powers and how unintentional it started. I remember shouting that she was going to go full Phoenix. (X-Men movie reference) With how dangerous she is, the inner conflict of abandoning Daniel is a nice touch. Unfortunately like with every moment of inner monologue it’s used like a hammer over and over again.
I’m not afraid, I am strong, Daniel can have a normal life, I have power.
Literally everything bad that happens in this book is J.D.’s fault. She is an emotional roller coaster that isn’t consistent and her thoughts are a muddled mess.
Know I know her brain is in a blender but that doesn’t excuse how self-sabotaging she is.
I wish I could say J.D. was the only one that made dumb moves but so does Daniel.
First off why did Daniel go to the police? Their living in an underground system why not send a message through the pipeline?
Her judgement Is downright awful. I respected the dumb delusion in the last book but here it makes no sense. She says she doesn’t know her enemy and needs to do research then she messes around through half a book doing nothing. (This book has a bucket of fluff.) I don’t quite understand why she is upset with Daniel. Is it because he went to the police and the police were tied with LysenCorp? Prize money? Really where did that hatred come from? And What makes her think he’ll be able to leave the Center again. Like Tec warned her if he dies it’s on her.
A guy gives you a place to sleep and eat and says you are safe you don’t trust and yet you break into a factory and you trust the bakers and a complete stranger that tried to mug you in the last book. For someone that doesn’t trust an illegal underground system she sure goes into a stranger car a lot. (Twice to be exact.) Once we reach the end, I really didn’t care what happened to her she.
With that statement in place SPOILERS!!SPOILERS!
After burning every contact and ally she has she goes right to the front door of the enemy believing she is Strong and Not Afraid and what? Thinks they’re going to quake in fear? There was no plan, no backup, no what ifs. I have power hear me roar! She literally did what Ansel said in the first few pages of the book.
December 28, 2008
This was a somewhat disappointing continuation of the Chasing Yesterday series. J.D. is on the run from Dr. Styron and neither she nor Daniel has anywhere to go, so they end up bouncing from place to place while J.D. tries to control the guilt she feels over having killed the woman who was acting as her mother and figure out who she is and why Dr. Styron wants her. She makes a little progress – she knows that she has a lot of power, and that it’s triggered by certain things, but she has difficulty consciously controlling it. Further research reveals that J.D. was developed (somehow) by a corporation to be a weapon. Knowing that Styron and his team will keep searching for her J.D. decides to cut Daniel loose, unfortunately, he contacts the police in order to find her and this brings her back into Styron’s clutches. At this point, J.D. surrenders to the inevitable – she can’t make it on her own, so she might as well let Styron take her back. I suspect that she will snap out of her complacency (and regrow her backbone) in the next (and concluding) volume.
This series has a lot going for it, conceptually. Unfortunately, everything is oversimplified. There’s action, action, action, and not enough details to make the plot seem plausible. The characters, too – even J.D. herself – are so flat and colorless that it’s hard to care about them, even with this incredibly suspenseful mystery that surrounds them. The way things are set up right now, it doesn’t seem like J.D. (even if she shuts Styron and his evil corporation down) can have any kind of normal life. She’s completely alone in the world as far as we know (unless some family is conveniently revealed in the final book). Attempts to get inside J.D.’s head are dull and repetitive. She thinks about her mother a lot, and feels responsible (guilty) about her death. It just doesn’t seem realistic after awhile, especially since J.D. has so many other issues to sort out – like, oh I don’t know, her immediate safety?
These books would have worked better if the author/publisher had given some more space/pages/time to develop J.D. Like, keeping her in the home longer so we can learn more about her and so she can learn more about herself. Maybe that would have made them longer than average, but it might have improved them. Better yet, put it all in one volume, so that it’s not so annoying to be left hanging at the end. Series novels may operate under the cliffhanger principle in order to sell subsequent volumes, but you need to have at least some of your curiosity satisfied or the exercise of reading them becomes frustrating and monotonous.
This series has a lot going for it, conceptually. Unfortunately, everything is oversimplified. There’s action, action, action, and not enough details to make the plot seem plausible. The characters, too – even J.D. herself – are so flat and colorless that it’s hard to care about them, even with this incredibly suspenseful mystery that surrounds them. The way things are set up right now, it doesn’t seem like J.D. (even if she shuts Styron and his evil corporation down) can have any kind of normal life. She’s completely alone in the world as far as we know (unless some family is conveniently revealed in the final book). Attempts to get inside J.D.’s head are dull and repetitive. She thinks about her mother a lot, and feels responsible (guilty) about her death. It just doesn’t seem realistic after awhile, especially since J.D. has so many other issues to sort out – like, oh I don’t know, her immediate safety?
These books would have worked better if the author/publisher had given some more space/pages/time to develop J.D. Like, keeping her in the home longer so we can learn more about her and so she can learn more about herself. Maybe that would have made them longer than average, but it might have improved them. Better yet, put it all in one volume, so that it’s not so annoying to be left hanging at the end. Series novels may operate under the cliffhanger principle in order to sell subsequent volumes, but you need to have at least some of your curiosity satisfied or the exercise of reading them becomes frustrating and monotonous.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 10, 2010
A really great book shows us how everything is great and worth to die for
July 4, 2018
Another good story by Wasserman. J.D. is now on the run with Daniel, but still does not remember her past. She also knows that she has some kind of power that she can't explain, and it frightens her. She and Daniel seek to find out more information that might lead them to the truth. They run across Jacob who gives them what seems like a home living underground with other runaways, but it isn't long before J.D. realizes that she has endangered all of them, including Daniel. Who can she trust? Will Jacob betray them? I'm anxious to read the final book in the trilogy, Chasing Yesterday #3, The Truth.
November 14, 2018
I finished the book. "Pain, pain everywhere, and hen it narrowed to a point." The things that had happened at the end of the book is J.D. ended up going back to LysenCorp and then she had gotten injected with a shot that would put her to sleep when she woke up she obeyed everything Dr.styron told her to do.Another thing is Danielle ends up going back to the center. The last thing that happened is people who worked for the "government" had tried to sell her like some object. I didn't like when she had to go back to the place that made her do bad things. I also didn't like when Danielle and J.D got split up. The last thing that i didn't like is the "good guys" tried to auction her off like some object. In the next book i think that J.D. finally remembers everything that she did before all her memory was lost and another thing i think is gonna happen is Danielle brakes out of the center and goes looking for J.D. and ends up with LysenCorp as well.
December 17, 2021
I had to read the 2nd book before the 1st because my library didn't have it. I am currently reading the 1st book right now, but the 2nd book was SO GOOD!!!! I felt like i didn't even need to read the 1st one because the book was so easy to understand what was happening. This book is probably one of my favorites for sure!!!!
November 29, 2022
Interesting premise. Fast paced. If you have no memory, who do you trust? If you have superpowers, when do you use them? For whom? Does having superpowers give you the right to hurt others? What if you think you are being attacked or misjudge people or a situation?
July 15, 2023
I read this series in elementary school way back in the day. As a kid who struggles with staying interested in book this truly was the series that fully immersed me into the world and a lifetime of loving to read!
January 18, 2025
This was a follow up book in the series to the the first one, which in my opinion was better than this one. It felt like JD was running from countless fears/people in this book but didn’t give a large reason why. It was alright and an easy read but expected more to happen before the very end.
December 2, 2022
It's hard to find a pointless story that leads to nowhere like this one.
Read
July 13, 2023Ditto to book #1.
April 6, 2025
kinda living my Y/N life rereading these
January 28, 2016
In the second book of the Chasing Yesterday series, Robin Wasserman sends her character, J.D., on a mission to discover her past. The book begins with a confused J.D. who has just discovered that she has had fake memories implanted in her mind. Throughout the book she must learn to decipher which memories are real and which ones are lies. She doesn't know where she is going, but she knows one thing, she must stay away from the "doctor" who gave her fake memories. This novel follows J.D.'s mission to discover her past and her special telekinetic abilities as she also tries to formulate a plan on how to defeat this "doctor." As the title foreshadows, along J.D.'s journey she is betrayed by someone she knows. She then must figure out whom she can trust and determine who is her real enemy.
I really enjoyed this book. However, I made the mistake of not realizing it was a sequel until I had brought it home. I think that it would have helped make the book clearer had I read the first book as well. The beginning of this book started off too slow for my taste, but I loved the ending of the book because that is when the action really began to pick up.
I think that this book would be great for the 4-6 grade age range because of its action, adventure, and plot twists.
I really enjoyed this book. However, I made the mistake of not realizing it was a sequel until I had brought it home. I think that it would have helped make the book clearer had I read the first book as well. The beginning of this book started off too slow for my taste, but I loved the ending of the book because that is when the action really began to pick up.
I think that this book would be great for the 4-6 grade age range because of its action, adventure, and plot twists.
Read
October 10, 2016Type: Chapter book
Genre: Fiction
Summary: This is the second book in a three book series. J.D. and Daniel are still attempting to uncover the mysteries behind J.D.'s life and her strange dreams. They know that there are people chasing J.D., trying to catch her, but they don't know why. J.D. is battling with her own conscience. She knows that she attacked the woman who pretended to be her mother, but can't help but wonder if it was the right thing to do.
Questions: What do you think the woman wanted with J.D.? What is your prediction for the next book? Do you think J.D. and Daniel will see each other again?
Critique: Robin Wasserman continues to keep me on my toes. Just as the previous book, this one is a rollercoaster for one's emotions/opinions. The reader has to continuously challenge what they think, because the plot never turns out like it seems it will.
Craft elements: Because it's part of a series, this book doesn't necessarily have a conclusion or solution to the problem. A teacher could ask students to write an ending to it, pretending that their isn't another book. He/she could also have students write what they think will happen in the next book. This is great for practicing making predictions!
Genre: Fiction
Summary: This is the second book in a three book series. J.D. and Daniel are still attempting to uncover the mysteries behind J.D.'s life and her strange dreams. They know that there are people chasing J.D., trying to catch her, but they don't know why. J.D. is battling with her own conscience. She knows that she attacked the woman who pretended to be her mother, but can't help but wonder if it was the right thing to do.
Questions: What do you think the woman wanted with J.D.? What is your prediction for the next book? Do you think J.D. and Daniel will see each other again?
Critique: Robin Wasserman continues to keep me on my toes. Just as the previous book, this one is a rollercoaster for one's emotions/opinions. The reader has to continuously challenge what they think, because the plot never turns out like it seems it will.
Craft elements: Because it's part of a series, this book doesn't necessarily have a conclusion or solution to the problem. A teacher could ask students to write an ending to it, pretending that their isn't another book. He/she could also have students write what they think will happen in the next book. This is great for practicing making predictions!
February 3, 2011
In book 2 of the Chasing Yesterday Trilogy, J.D. and Daniel go on the run when J.D. is able to fling a bully to a wall and knock them out--just by thinking about it. When they go back to the center, there is a woman who tells everyone she is J.D.'s mother. They go to a house, her mother told her she lived there her whole life. Now her mother says she must see this Dr. Sykes to try to piece together what is happening to her, but J.D. alternately hates, fears, likes this man and she doesn't know why. She is also dreaming about the explosion and also about some other person who dies in a fiery accident. The book is called Betrayal for 2 reasons- J.D. leaves Daniel behind even though they vowed to stick together and unknowingly, Daniel gets J.D. apprehended and returned to this place where she will be monitored very closely. Very tense, good and evil vie constantly, and poor J.D. can't make any sense of what is going on--music plays and she gets very calm, she goes off to places and can't remember what she did and she becomes friendly with the other girls at this "place" where she lives.
April 29, 2008
Reviewed by Carrie Spellman for TeensReadToo.com
J.D. and Daniel are on the run. They're running from the people that are after J.D., which seems to be just about everyone. They're running from the visions in J.D.'s head that might be the past, might be the future, or might just be hallucinations. And J.D. is running from the guilt that she is probably responsible for the death of the woman who, falsely, claimed to be her mother.
The only thing either of them knows for sure is that finding out the answers to J.D.'s past is the only hope they have for future survival. If they can find everything out fast enough, they may even be able to turn the tables on whoever it is that's chasing them. If they can stay alive, and free, long enough.
This book picks up right where the last one, AWAKENING, left off. It is a whirlwind adventure from beginning to end. If you liked the last one, this one won't give you a second to slide to the back of your chair. And the end will keep you there, waiting for the next chapter in J.D.'s story.
J.D. and Daniel are on the run. They're running from the people that are after J.D., which seems to be just about everyone. They're running from the visions in J.D.'s head that might be the past, might be the future, or might just be hallucinations. And J.D. is running from the guilt that she is probably responsible for the death of the woman who, falsely, claimed to be her mother.
The only thing either of them knows for sure is that finding out the answers to J.D.'s past is the only hope they have for future survival. If they can find everything out fast enough, they may even be able to turn the tables on whoever it is that's chasing them. If they can stay alive, and free, long enough.
This book picks up right where the last one, AWAKENING, left off. It is a whirlwind adventure from beginning to end. If you liked the last one, this one won't give you a second to slide to the back of your chair. And the end will keep you there, waiting for the next chapter in J.D.'s story.
August 22, 2016
I like this because at first I thought J.D's best friend Daniel would leave her because the title said Chasing Yesterday #2 Betrayal and I kept thinking that he might leave her but instead she left him when these other people was living in a abandon house.When J.D let Daniel leave other people to go eat she was thinking of leaving so when they came back she waited till every fell asleep, and then she she left.Once, she left she didn't know where to hide or no place to go because everyone was looking fir her the officers and the enemies. One day, she was walking at a park and saw these girls hanging like they were each others sister and a few minutes past, and they looked at J.D and said "what you looking at FREAK!?!" but all J.D wanted is to be like them everything is normal have friends, new clothes, family, house and people that can really trust.
I like this book a lot because its about a girl and boy so what and I was thinking that they might fall in love with each other and all, and how its about a girl a girl without a past that she doesn't remember anything.
I like this book a lot because its about a girl and boy so what and I was thinking that they might fall in love with each other and all, and how its about a girl a girl without a past that she doesn't remember anything.
October 22, 2009
I hated this sequal.
The only reason I kept reading, was because I wanted to know what happened to Daniel and J.D.
I care about the characters, but J.D. was being to much of an independent brat wallowing in self pity throughout this book, and then Daniel 'turns on her,' as if he's evil. I like Daniel though! He's not evil! how can anyone think that! he's just trying to help!
Now I'm anti-J.D. is it good to be against the protagonist? no.
I must admit, it did suck me in like the last one, and I'm reading the last book, because I will go crazy if I never know what happened to my favorite Dannyboy16.
The only reason I kept reading, was because I wanted to know what happened to Daniel and J.D.
I care about the characters, but J.D. was being to much of an independent brat wallowing in self pity throughout this book, and then Daniel 'turns on her,' as if he's evil. I like Daniel though! He's not evil! how can anyone think that! he's just trying to help!
Now I'm anti-J.D. is it good to be against the protagonist? no.
I must admit, it did suck me in like the last one, and I'm reading the last book, because I will go crazy if I never know what happened to my favorite Dannyboy16.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 5, 2011
Betrayal was such a quick read, just like the first book in this series. I like this series because JD doesn't know who she really is... JD stands for Jane Doe. She's trying to figure everything out. When she remembers things, she questions whether it was a real memory or if it was planted there. I was completely shocked when she was betrayed by someone so close to her! It would be an awful feeling to be betrayed like she was. However, I still question now as to what that person's intentions were. I love books that keep you thinking! Anyway, there is only one book left in this series, and I just can't imagine how all of these questions could be answered in one short book!
May 19, 2010
I love this one. Very good plot with some freaky almost-supernatural things. The human brain is a very interesting thing to tap into for power, apparently, because I love books like this. JD (Jane Doe) and her friend are running from the evil mastermind who has genetically alterred JD and given her some freaky abilities. Also, as she's running through the streets, JD is caught and brought back. You
MUST
read the rest of the series, especially the one after this. It enhances the book by 300%.
November 5, 2015
I really like this book! I like how J.D. and Daniel are living on the streets for a while and how we learn about that. I also like how J.D. depends on Daniel so much and he refuses to let her leave him. I thought it was really sad how J.D. has to give him up because she didn't want to hurt him and hated how she blamed him and was angry at him for being worried! It was so sad! He only wanted to help! I also really liked how J.D. figured out how to access her power and how she showed those bad guys!!! :D :D :D
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 25, 2009
J.D. and Daniel are on the run, because, after killing J.D.'s "mom" who turned out to be Dr. Styron's cronie, (surprise) Dr. Styron is after them. J.D.'s powers, meanwhile, are blossoming and become harder to control. J.D. decides that having Daniel traveling with her is endangering him, so she abandons him during the night. But, J.D. discovers that running from the badguys without Daniel by her side…is more difficult than she thought.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 10, 2011
Amazing follow up to Awakening. I really like Daniel in the series, his entire character speaks hard-core and knowledgeable as well as painful to remember past. They make such a perfect team. And I love the way he looks in the book cover. They should absolutely make a movie!
He sort of reminds me of po from the book Graceling (I'd check that out) and JD reminds me of Katniss from The Hunger Games (I'd check that out too)
He sort of reminds me of po from the book Graceling (I'd check that out) and JD reminds me of Katniss from The Hunger Games (I'd check that out too)
June 13, 2013
What are you willing to risk just to survive? J.D. has questions...a lot of them, and she wants answers, but her quest to survive each day without getting caught, clashes with her quest for answers. She relies heavily upon Daniel because he's lived this kind of life before, but what happens when the person you trust the most is running out of options? (I don't want to spoil the book, so I won't say anymore than that. Each book in this series is short...but still good)
January 29, 2016
This second book is building up the stage for the 3rd book. If confirmed the suspicions from the second book and gave more information. I think that the third one is probably going to be the best one because all this is rising action for the great climax. It was definitely kind of weird to see JD end somewhat hypnotized at the end after she goes to Dr. Styron. I'm ready to know how this trilogy is going to end.
October 22, 2010
Chasing Yesterday, book two.
J.D. has escaped the clutches of Dr. Styron with Daniel's help, but so many people are after her that she doesn't know who she can trust--or if she can even trust herself.
Desperate to find answers, J.D. is betrayed, once again, by someone she trusts.
Edge of your seat action.
J.D. has escaped the clutches of Dr. Styron with Daniel's help, but so many people are after her that she doesn't know who she can trust--or if she can even trust herself.
Desperate to find answers, J.D. is betrayed, once again, by someone she trusts.
Edge of your seat action.
August 4, 2008
dont read this one until you read #1 awakening!!!
then read #3
i love the chasing yesterday series by robin wasserman. she is a very talented writer.
in this book, Daniel and JD live homeless as the wander through new york city trying to find answers for JD. why does she have these powers? what was doctor doing to me? who really is he?
she finds her answers and even more in #3 truth.
then read #3
i love the chasing yesterday series by robin wasserman. she is a very talented writer.
in this book, Daniel and JD live homeless as the wander through new york city trying to find answers for JD. why does she have these powers? what was doctor doing to me? who really is he?
she finds her answers and even more in #3 truth.
November 28, 2008
ok, i'm not saying that this is a bad book, but I'm the kind of reader who like clear-cut books. the first one was great, and i thought that maybe the mystery of her identity would be solved in this book. however, it just leads to more betrayal and confusion and even more questions that i had before. i just want to know who she is and what happpened!!!???
Displaying 1 - 30 of 104 reviews