Review: Alive by Chandler Baker

Friday 12 June 2015


 Title: Alive

Author: Chandler Baker

Release Date: June 9th, 2015

Standalone

Rating:

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Stella Cross has spent years on the transplant list and is finally getting a new heart. Being given a second chance pushes Stella to live her life differently. She wants to be different from the old Stella and say yes to things she normally would have said no to. Unfortunately her ambitious plans are marred with hallucinations and a recurring pain at the same minute of every day. Then the new boy at school, Levi, turns up and Stella becomes drawn to him in a way that she isn't to anyone else. But things aren't as they seem and Stella has to quickly decide who she can trust.

I really liked the premise of this book but sadly it didn't live up to my expectations. The main problem I had was Stella. I just couldn't sympathise or connect with her because she is so annoying. She is ridiculously unfair and rude towards her family and her small circle of friends. She is one of those girls who completely ditches her friends and acts horribly to them as soon as a boy comes into the picture. Including the boy, Henry, she has been friends with for years who almost became more than a friend before her transplant. I get that feelings change, that's perfectly fine, but the way she handled it wasn't all that great. And of course her feelings haven't really changed anyway it's just the hot-boy-showing-interest-in-me effect. I really liked Henry and was totally rooting for him throughout the book.

I will say that the last 30% of the book does salvage this somewhat. I enjoyed this section where the truth starts to come out, mysteries start to unravel and Stella starts to act like a better person. It's not made entirely obvious in the blurb for this book but it's actually paranormal. The paranormal genre tends to be a little hit and miss with me but I did quite like that element to this. It's something different that you don't always see in this type of storyline. I think with a more likable character it would have been even better.

If you are a fan of paranormal then I would definitely still give this book a try. It reminded me of The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer in places. It is fast-paced and I found the descriptions very well done. In the end it just wasn't for me.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

2 comments:

  1. Oh no :( I can't stand rude, self-centered characters and I'm reading this book next.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ugh I know, it makes it so hard to enjoy the story when you just don't like the main character.

      Delete

 
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