Hello Everyone! Today's special post will be for It's a Wonderful Death blog tour hosted by YA Bound Book Tours.
I will be doing a honest review. I was also provided with a ebook copy
from the publisher, however that does not affect my views on this book. Also don't forget to check out the giveaway at the bottom of this post.
About the Book
Author: Sarah J. Schmitt
Pages: 302 pages
Release Date: October, 2015
Release Date: October, 2015
Synopsis: "Seventeen-year-old RJ
always gets what she wants. So when her soul is accidentally collected
by a distracted Grim Reaper, somebody in the afterlife better figure out
a way to send her back from the dead or heads will roll. But in her
quest for mortality, she becomes a pawn in a power struggle between an
overzealous archangel and Death Himself. The tribunal presents her with
two options: she can remain in the lobby, where souls wait to be
processed, until her original lifeline expires, or she can replay three
moments in her life in an effort to make choices that will result in a
future deemed worthy of being saved. It sounds like a no-brainer. She’ll
take a walk down memory lane. How hard can changing her future be?...(More)Add to Goodreads
If I am being honest I have no idea where to start this review. This book was absolutely stunning and beat all my expectations I had before I started the book. It was beautifully written and never once as a reader was I lost or confused as to what was taking place. The story was absolutely brilliant and the characters where even better; if that's even possible. When I first decided to sign up for this blog tour, the synopsis had intrigued me, however I never intended liking this book so much.
One of my favourite things about this book was the story. When I was looking at other people's reviews to get a grasp on how this story was going to go, I had come across a couple reviews that had mentioned this novel was like a spin-off of the classic Christmas Carol Story, but ten times better. With reading this information I became a little worried, as a kid I believe I had seen and read enough adaptations of the classic "Christmas Carol", however this book demolished all my worries within the first couple of chapters. It immediately pulled me in from the start, and not a second went by when I didn't want to stop reading this book. I did end up finishing this book within 6 or 7 hours straight, I believe in the end I only took two forced breaks. The story was always there, no part ever lagged and it was just so interesting that it always left you wanting more. The premise was compelling and I believe you could take out a couple of life lessons from this book as well. I also enjoyed reading all of the main characters memories (even the more horrid, saddening ones), it helped show the progress of where this novel was going.
I am going to share two of my absolutely favorite quotes from this book. It was hard to narrow it down to two, but I had to share at least something. Note that the first one has some spoilage details retained around the ending, so highlight the text at your own risk. If you wish not to look at it till after you have read the book, that is also completely fine as well.
"You could look at it like this: while your old timeline offered you many years, it was a wasted life void of true friendship, compassion, and accomplishments, whereas your new life, though shorter, was full of putting the needs of others before yourself and thus leaving the world a better place. You literally changed people's lives."
And my next favourite quote:
"To you, mostly. And the world. You were intended to be a supernova. To burn brightly and powerfully and then to suddenly burst, leaving a legacy behind."
Also I must mention that the ending was so brilliant. I am giving a hundred and more high-fives to Sarah as an author.
Next, the characters. My favourite wasn't actually the main character RJ, it was actually Death himself. He appeared as important times throughout the story and each and every single time he brought some humor along with him. Also he was the prefect mastermind for this story. Now for the character that this book revolved around, RJ was the prefect main character. She showed her weaknesses and strengths. They may have been at different times but nonetheless they were there. Another neat thing was that you really got to see her character development. It wasn't too sudden or too fast, it happened gradually but was still noticeable. I could go on forever mentioning all the characters that made this book so amazing, however this would end up being a very long review and why not just let you guys read it for yourselves and experience it firsthand.
In conclusion, this book was worth the read. I ended up picking it up sort of last minute, but finsihing it on time because it flowed nicely and the story was captivating. I hope that everyone gets to experience the laughter, sadness, and joy this book brought to me. I highly recommend this book, and I can't wait to see what Sarah J. Schmitt produces in the future.
Prior to immersing herself in the world of the written word, Sarah earned her
Masters of Science in Higher Education Administration and Student Affairs from
Indiana University where she worked with first year college students as they
acclimated to college life. Sarah lives outside of Indianapolis with her
husband, two kidlets and a cat who might actually be a secret agent. She is an
active member of SCBWI, ALA and the Indiana Library Federation and is a regular
participant at the Midwest Writer's Workshop. Her debut novel, IT'S A WONDERFUL
DEATH, comes out Fall 2015 from Sky Pony Press.
This book deserves a 10 out of 10 rating
If I am being honest I have no idea where to start this review. This book was absolutely stunning and beat all my expectations I had before I started the book. It was beautifully written and never once as a reader was I lost or confused as to what was taking place. The story was absolutely brilliant and the characters where even better; if that's even possible. When I first decided to sign up for this blog tour, the synopsis had intrigued me, however I never intended liking this book so much.
One of my favourite things about this book was the story. When I was looking at other people's reviews to get a grasp on how this story was going to go, I had come across a couple reviews that had mentioned this novel was like a spin-off of the classic Christmas Carol Story, but ten times better. With reading this information I became a little worried, as a kid I believe I had seen and read enough adaptations of the classic "Christmas Carol", however this book demolished all my worries within the first couple of chapters. It immediately pulled me in from the start, and not a second went by when I didn't want to stop reading this book. I did end up finishing this book within 6 or 7 hours straight, I believe in the end I only took two forced breaks. The story was always there, no part ever lagged and it was just so interesting that it always left you wanting more. The premise was compelling and I believe you could take out a couple of life lessons from this book as well. I also enjoyed reading all of the main characters memories (even the more horrid, saddening ones), it helped show the progress of where this novel was going.
I am going to share two of my absolutely favorite quotes from this book. It was hard to narrow it down to two, but I had to share at least something. Note that the first one has some spoilage details retained around the ending, so highlight the text at your own risk. If you wish not to look at it till after you have read the book, that is also completely fine as well.
"You could look at it like this: while your old timeline offered you many years, it was a wasted life void of true friendship, compassion, and accomplishments, whereas your new life, though shorter, was full of putting the needs of others before yourself and thus leaving the world a better place. You literally changed people's lives."
And my next favourite quote:
"To you, mostly. And the world. You were intended to be a supernova. To burn brightly and powerfully and then to suddenly burst, leaving a legacy behind."
Also I must mention that the ending was so brilliant. I am giving a hundred and more high-fives to Sarah as an author.
Next, the characters. My favourite wasn't actually the main character RJ, it was actually Death himself. He appeared as important times throughout the story and each and every single time he brought some humor along with him. Also he was the prefect mastermind for this story. Now for the character that this book revolved around, RJ was the prefect main character. She showed her weaknesses and strengths. They may have been at different times but nonetheless they were there. Another neat thing was that you really got to see her character development. It wasn't too sudden or too fast, it happened gradually but was still noticeable. I could go on forever mentioning all the characters that made this book so amazing, however this would end up being a very long review and why not just let you guys read it for yourselves and experience it firsthand.
In conclusion, this book was worth the read. I ended up picking it up sort of last minute, but finsihing it on time because it flowed nicely and the story was captivating. I hope that everyone gets to experience the laughter, sadness, and joy this book brought to me. I highly recommend this book, and I can't wait to see what Sarah J. Schmitt produces in the future.
About the Author
Sarah J. Schmitt
is a K-8 school librarian and Youth Service Professional for Teens at a public
library who, in addition to planning a variety of events, enjoys opening up the
world of books to reluctant readers. She runs a teen writing program that
combines Skype visits from well-known authors and screenwriters and critique
group style feedback.
Author Links:
Giveaway
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