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If your vision asked you to risk your life to save others, would you have the courage?
When Samantha McGregor tells her friend Detective Ebony Hamilton of her disturbing visions of a brutal murder at a high school, Ebony asks her to go undercover to help identify the shooter before it’s too late. The stakes are raised when Ebony discovers that the potential crime may be connected to a larger terrorism threat!
Meanwhile, Samantha realizes that her mother’s new boyfriend is a little too good to be true. Her unsettling visions, combined with Ebony’s investigation of Steven’s past, reveal him to be more interested in her mother’s money than her heart.
To make matters worse, Samantha has been having visions of an unknown boy who is mercilessly being bullied by his peers. Who is this teen? Can she help him?
This fourth and final installment in The Secret Life of Samantha McGregor series brings Samantha her biggest challenges yet, as she works against the clock to stop a mass murder, help a troubled youth, and save her mother from making a terrible mistake!
221 pages, Paperback
First published February 19, 2008
6 people are currently reading
333 people want to read
About the author
Melody Carlson
421 books3,152 followersMelody Carlson is the award-winning author of over two hundred books, several of them Christmas novellas from Revell, including her much-loved and bestselling book, The Christmas Bus.
She also writes many teen books, including the Diary of a Teenage Girl series, the TrueColors series, and the Carter House Girls series.
Melody was nominated for a Romantic Times Career Achievement Award in the inspirational market for her books, including the Notes from a Spinning Planet series and Finding Alice, which is in production as a Lifetime Television movie. She and her husband serve on the Young Life adult committee in central Oregon.
She also writes many teen books, including the Diary of a Teenage Girl series, the TrueColors series, and the Carter House Girls series.
Melody was nominated for a Romantic Times Career Achievement Award in the inspirational market for her books, including the Notes from a Spinning Planet series and Finding Alice, which is in production as a Lifetime Television movie. She and her husband serve on the Young Life adult committee in central Oregon.
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
August 23, 2017
About this book:
“If your vision asked you to risk your life to save others, would you have the courage?
When Samantha McGregor tells her friend Detective Ebony Hamilton of her disturbing visions of a brutal murder at a high school, Ebony asks her to go undercover to help identify the shooter before it’s too late. The stakes are raised when Ebony discovers that the potential crime may be connected to a larger terrorism threat!
Meanwhile, Samantha realizes that her mother’s new boyfriend is a little too good to be true. Her unsettling visions, combined with Ebony’s investigation of Steven’s past, reveal him to be more interested in her mother’s money than her heart.
To make matters worse, Samantha has been having visions of an unknown boy who is mercilessly being bullied by his peers. Who is this teen? Can she help him?”
Series: Book #4 (of four) in “The Secret Life of Samantha McGregor”. (Book #1 review, Here! Book #2 review, Here! and Book #3 review, Here!)
Spiritual Content- Joel 2:27-29 at the beginning; All about Samantha’s gift of visions from God; Many, many prayers & thanking God; A couple Scriptures are mentioned; Many, many, many talks about God, Jesus, His will, His help, gifts, peace, & forgiving; ‘H’s are capital when referring to God; Sam’s mom is still mad at God *Spoiler* *End of Spoiler*; Many, many mentions of prayers, praying, & prayer chains; Mentions of Christians & witnessing; Mentions of church & youth group; Mentions of sermons & judging; Mentions of Bibles; Mentions of Heaven; A few mentions of miracles.
Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a girl is called ‘a dog’, an ‘idiot’, a ‘shut up’, a ‘TGIF’, two ‘butt out’s, two ‘duh’s, seven ‘crud’s, and fourteen forms of ‘stupid’; Mentions of curses (said, not written); Sarcasm & Eye rolling; All About mentions of a school shooting, threats, terrorism, deaths, pain, & blood/bleeding (semi-detailed); All About mentions of bullies, hitting, kicking, & blood/bleeding (semi-detailed); Many mentions of blood/bleeding, being shot & killed (up to semi-detailed); Many mentions of kidnappings, frauds, & wanted criminals; Mentions of murders & deaths: Mentions of suicides; Mentions of gunfire in video games; Mentions of alcohol, drinking, getting wasted, & parties; Mentions of drugs, rehab, & jail; Mentions of smoking & cigarettes; Mentions of wanting to have/give revenge/payback; Mentions of vomiting; Mentions of cheating; A couple mentions of divorces.
Sexual Content- A barely-above-not-detailed kiss; All About Proms; A bit of Noticing;
Three ‘hot’s; Mentions of overhearing about guys booking hotel rooms after prom, being rewarded with sex, & the girl still being a virgin; Mentions of crushes, dates, dating, boyfriends & girlfriends; A few mentions of a rumor of a woman being sold as a sex slave (not true); A couple hints of a girl visiting a guy’s place; A couple mentions of hormones;
*Note: A mention of wanting a prom dress with no cleavage showing; A mention of Marilyn Monroe.
-Samantha McGregor, age 17
1st person P.O.V. of Sam
2216 pages
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Pre Teens- One Star
New Teens- One Star
Early High School Teens- Three Stars
Older High School Teens- Four Stars
My personal Rating- Three Stars (and a half)
{Add a star for girls in Public School}
Final book in “The Secret Life of Samantha McGregor” series and “Payback” finishes it out with another big plot. Lots of intense topics and moments with tons of Spiritual Content gave me goosebumps! I still personally think that this is one of Melody Carlson’s best series yet! :)
Link to review:
https://booksforchristiangirls.blogsp...
*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.
“If your vision asked you to risk your life to save others, would you have the courage?
When Samantha McGregor tells her friend Detective Ebony Hamilton of her disturbing visions of a brutal murder at a high school, Ebony asks her to go undercover to help identify the shooter before it’s too late. The stakes are raised when Ebony discovers that the potential crime may be connected to a larger terrorism threat!
Meanwhile, Samantha realizes that her mother’s new boyfriend is a little too good to be true. Her unsettling visions, combined with Ebony’s investigation of Steven’s past, reveal him to be more interested in her mother’s money than her heart.
To make matters worse, Samantha has been having visions of an unknown boy who is mercilessly being bullied by his peers. Who is this teen? Can she help him?”
Series: Book #4 (of four) in “The Secret Life of Samantha McGregor”. (Book #1 review, Here! Book #2 review, Here! and Book #3 review, Here!)
Spiritual Content- Joel 2:27-29 at the beginning; All about Samantha’s gift of visions from God; Many, many prayers & thanking God; A couple Scriptures are mentioned; Many, many, many talks about God, Jesus, His will, His help, gifts, peace, & forgiving; ‘H’s are capital when referring to God; Sam’s mom is still mad at God *Spoiler* *End of Spoiler*; Many, many mentions of prayers, praying, & prayer chains; Mentions of Christians & witnessing; Mentions of church & youth group; Mentions of sermons & judging; Mentions of Bibles; Mentions of Heaven; A few mentions of miracles.
Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a girl is called ‘a dog’, an ‘idiot’, a ‘shut up’, a ‘TGIF’, two ‘butt out’s, two ‘duh’s, seven ‘crud’s, and fourteen forms of ‘stupid’; Mentions of curses (said, not written); Sarcasm & Eye rolling; All About mentions of a school shooting, threats, terrorism, deaths, pain, & blood/bleeding (semi-detailed); All About mentions of bullies, hitting, kicking, & blood/bleeding (semi-detailed); Many mentions of blood/bleeding, being shot & killed (up to semi-detailed); Many mentions of kidnappings, frauds, & wanted criminals; Mentions of murders & deaths: Mentions of suicides; Mentions of gunfire in video games; Mentions of alcohol, drinking, getting wasted, & parties; Mentions of drugs, rehab, & jail; Mentions of smoking & cigarettes; Mentions of wanting to have/give revenge/payback; Mentions of vomiting; Mentions of cheating; A couple mentions of divorces.
Sexual Content- A barely-above-not-detailed kiss; All About Proms; A bit of Noticing;
Three ‘hot’s; Mentions of overhearing about guys booking hotel rooms after prom, being rewarded with sex, & the girl still being a virgin; Mentions of crushes, dates, dating, boyfriends & girlfriends; A few mentions of a rumor of a woman being sold as a sex slave (not true); A couple hints of a girl visiting a guy’s place; A couple mentions of hormones;
*Note: A mention of wanting a prom dress with no cleavage showing; A mention of Marilyn Monroe.
-Samantha McGregor, age 17
1st person P.O.V. of Sam
2216 pages
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Pre Teens- One Star
New Teens- One Star
Early High School Teens- Three Stars
Older High School Teens- Four Stars
My personal Rating- Three Stars (and a half)
{Add a star for girls in Public School}
Final book in “The Secret Life of Samantha McGregor” series and “Payback” finishes it out with another big plot. Lots of intense topics and moments with tons of Spiritual Content gave me goosebumps! I still personally think that this is one of Melody Carlson’s best series yet! :)
Link to review:
https://booksforchristiangirls.blogsp...
*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.
March 4, 2008
Final book in Samantha McGregor series. Sam gets visions of school shooting.
August 28, 2020
EEEEK! This book was so good!! I do not want to give to much of the book away in my review, but if you are a girl who loves God and a good mystery, you will love this book. This whole series is extremely well written and you will grow to love Ebony, Samantha, Olivia, and even Zach. A must read but I recommend this book for teen audiences due to the topics chosen and some of the scenes in this book.
May 23, 2019
This is a really good book. It is a really dramatic and exciting end to the series. I really wish that the series had more books, but that is okay. This is probably the most exciting book in the series if you are looking for an exciting book. Otherwise I would recommend one of the other books in the series.
October 19, 2018
Very satisfying ending to the series
December 26, 2008
Review by Gigi Hoffman
Finally, the fourth and final book in Melody Carlson’s The Secret Life of Samantha McGregor series is available! In Payback, Samantha faces her toughest challenges yet.
Sam has a dream of a brutal massacre at a high school. Because she’s in high school and is the only one who can recognize the students in her dream, Detective Ebony Hamilton has Samantha go undercover to discover the shooter. As more details arise, she must uncover if the massacre is related to a terrorist threat.
Samantha also deals with major family issues. Zach is back in rehab and their mom has a new boyfriend. Sam feels pushed aside, plus she’s getting weird vibes about her mom’s boyfriend, like he’s after her money and not her heart. Sam’s assumptions turn out to be true; in fact, her mom’s boyfriend is not at all who he says he is.
If that weren’t enough, Samantha keeps having visions about a kid getting bullied. Who is he? How can Samantha help him?
Samantha finds herself with more questions than answers and uncertain about what to do. She must put total faith and trust in God to keep her life safe, as well as the lives of many people around her.
This book is gripping; I stayed up all night to read it. Samantha seems like such a real person, someone I’d love to be friends with. This book wraps everything up, but that didn’t keep me from wishing for a fifth book. I could keep hanging out with Samantha and being a part of her life. I highly recommend this!
Finally, the fourth and final book in Melody Carlson’s The Secret Life of Samantha McGregor series is available! In Payback, Samantha faces her toughest challenges yet.
Sam has a dream of a brutal massacre at a high school. Because she’s in high school and is the only one who can recognize the students in her dream, Detective Ebony Hamilton has Samantha go undercover to discover the shooter. As more details arise, she must uncover if the massacre is related to a terrorist threat.
Samantha also deals with major family issues. Zach is back in rehab and their mom has a new boyfriend. Sam feels pushed aside, plus she’s getting weird vibes about her mom’s boyfriend, like he’s after her money and not her heart. Sam’s assumptions turn out to be true; in fact, her mom’s boyfriend is not at all who he says he is.
If that weren’t enough, Samantha keeps having visions about a kid getting bullied. Who is he? How can Samantha help him?
Samantha finds herself with more questions than answers and uncertain about what to do. She must put total faith and trust in God to keep her life safe, as well as the lives of many people around her.
This book is gripping; I stayed up all night to read it. Samantha seems like such a real person, someone I’d love to be friends with. This book wraps everything up, but that didn’t keep me from wishing for a fifth book. I could keep hanging out with Samantha and being a part of her life. I highly recommend this!
August 5, 2009
I really liked this book. This was my first Melody Carlson book and I love her. I like how she had strong faith based characters in her story and yes relgion was in the story but it flowed with the story and you felt like you were reading still a story and not a religious text. It made you aware of religion and beliefs without sounding preachy. I like how this girl completly trusts in God and that gave me something to work towards. I love how the relationship between Sam and her mother develope and I love the relationship between Sam and Olivia. I did find this book to be highly predicatble but still a great and quick read. I cannot wait to go back and read books 1,2,and 3 from the series.
April 24, 2009
These books might be aimed for teens, but that didn't even matter when I was reading them. Melody Carlson has to be one of my favorite authors at the moment. She is a Christian author and all of her books have that theme. Either the main character already has a relationship with God and she uses it in her life, or the main character has yet to find God, and realizes by the end how much she needs Him in her life.
In this particular series, Samantha already has a relationship with God, and a gift - she has visions.
While some find Melody Carlson's books too preachy, they always leave me with a peaceful feeling after reading them.
In this particular series, Samantha already has a relationship with God, and a gift - she has visions.
While some find Melody Carlson's books too preachy, they always leave me with a peaceful feeling after reading them.
February 17, 2010
This was my favorite of the Samantha McGregor series, although I did find it a bit unrealistic that nobody in the book made the connection from the murders to the kid who was bullied. I mean, turn on the news, remember Columbine?
The plot kept me moving and turning the pages and it was a good story. I didn't really latch on to any themes except the importance of loving people where they're at and trusting God to do the saving in his own time and not pushing your timetable on others. That is a good lesson to me and all believers.
The plot kept me moving and turning the pages and it was a good story. I didn't really latch on to any themes except the importance of loving people where they're at and trusting God to do the saving in his own time and not pushing your timetable on others. That is a good lesson to me and all believers.
February 19, 2013
I highly recommend anything by Melody Carlson! I'd say this particular book, Payback, was aimed at the tween & teen demographic but don't let that stop you from this fun read if you are not that age! Carlson brings the issue of bullying to light in this unique story and she does a great job writing in the voice of teens. She uses a bit of fantasy blended with a thought provoking use of faith to challenge readers to really contemplate God as well. I loved this book, you'll just have to read it to see why.
February 20, 2008
Melody Carlson does it again - another great book that will get teens talking about issues that they see on the news each night. The only problem I have with this series is that Samantha seems "too good to be true." I don't know any teenager who would have a faith as strong and unfailing as hers. But other than that, it was great.
October 26, 2009
Well, by the end of this series I did not feel that I had come to really know Sam in any meaningful way and none of the other characters ever really came alive for me.
The stories had potential, a lot, but for me they never lived up to it.
And Sam's religious life... Well, I still have issues about it, as put forth in my review of Bad Connection. I mean, really, lay back a little.
The stories had potential, a lot, but for me they never lived up to it.
And Sam's religious life... Well, I still have issues about it, as put forth in my review of Bad Connection. I mean, really, lay back a little.
September 18, 2009
I felt that this book was sort of the same as the other books just with a different crime/vision to solve. The ending was a little different as in her mom and her are closer and her brother is feeling better but Conrad still doesn't know any thing and everything is still the same.
Want to read
February 21, 2008i cannot wait to read this!!!!!
March 14, 2008
It reminded me of the importance of prayer and how much we need to rely on God.
October 6, 2008
Good. I think…okay I read this so long ago I'm not even sure what it was about. I read too much…
November 26, 2008
all the secret life of samantha mcgregor are realli good, kind of suspensful
February 10, 2009
another good book!!
Read
March 22, 2010F CAR slosm bk.4
February 13, 2013
YAY!!!
No more in the series!!!
No more in the series!!!
November 29, 2013
A review of the entire series is available at:
http://rwlreviews.blogspot.com/2013/0...
http://rwlreviews.blogspot.com/2013/0...
July 6, 2015
Awesome series.
January 30, 2014
LOVE LOVE LOVE this book series!!
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews