Marked By Books: Review of Before I Wake by Rachel Vincent

Internet, I bring to you some disturbing news. This book is pink. And not just a pink pink, but a PINK. I find it to be most terrifying. It is seriously sticking out like a sore thumb on my bookshelf. It almost hurts to look at it. See what I mean?

I died on a Thursday-killed by a monster intent on stealing my soul.

The good news? He didn't get it.

The bad news? Turns out not even death will get you out of high school...

Covering up her own murder was one thing, but faking life is much harder than Kaylee Cavanaugh expected. After weeks spent "recovering," she's back in school, fighting to stay visible to the human world, struggling to fit in with her friends and planning time alone with her new reaper boyfriend. But to earn her keep in the human world, Kaylee must reclaim stolen souls, and when her first assignment brings her face-to-face with an old foe, she knows the game has changed. Her immortal status won't keep her safe. And this time Kaylee isn't just gambling with her own life....

This book is…. something. I'm not quite sure what that something is just yet. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely loved it. Before I Wake dragged me onto an emotional roller coaster that left me a little shaken up. I must have literary vertigo. Yeah, that's it.

As always, this book was beautifully written without seeming to be too formal. As a reader, it's very important to me that each of the characters have a "voice." This sort of mental tenor I hear every time they speak, or in Kaylee's case, throughout the entire narration. The twisted mess that is my brain needs this as an anchor to tie the entire story together because without it, nothing seems real enough for me to believe it.

Each of the characters needs to be so defined that they create their own person. Someone that I can count on to maybe not always make the right decision, but one that makes sense for them. They have to be able to surprise me without making me feel skeptical, and they definitely have to make me miss them when they're gone.

Before I Wake had all of this and more: it was an entire whirlwind of craziness. It made me laugh so often that I was sore, and it made my heart swell with pride during those "awwwww…." moments. But I was so in shock throughout the entire thing that I don't think I fully came to terms with all that had come to pass until long after I reached the last page.

And that's when I broke down into tears.

Everything was kicked up another level from where things stood after If I Die. The stakes are higher, rules are broken, and suddenly everything is on the line because no one is safe anymore. All hell is about to break loose. Literally.