Grace has always been the funny, daring girl who leads her pack of friends. After she experiences what feels like a near-death experience while performing a dare, her life rapidly degrades and she no longer seems to be herself. No-one knows what to do with her…
And how does everyone not notice anything wrong with her? If she looks like a junkie, why is she not being sent more sternly to a hospital? To a counsellor? Even if she refuses to go, the fact that her self-preservation is completely out of whack doesn’t explain why people are blind, deaf and dumb.
OK, so it might be considered ‘creepy and thrilling’, but I’m not buying it was ‘brilliant’ or ‘poignant’. The author dragged me along, thinking that there was some fantastical supernatural something at work, but instead… And it was all a dream. Or actually, all a hallucinogenic/schizophrenic mess. Or maybe not. Who even knows? Grace doesn’t, and neither does the reader.
The is nothing wrong with the writing, the characterisation or the style of this novel. Unfortunately the storyline became more and more confused (both for the reader and Grace) and just ended up making me feel unsatisfied. And why on earth does she forgive Amber? Like hello, didn’t she just get you into that prank where you thought you were going to die?
I feel like I have read something similar before, with someone having hallucinations that could be explained away rationally, but I cannot remember the name of the novel at all. Anyone have any suggestions?
2 stars from me. I finished reading it, but I felt cheated. Towards the end, I started getting bad feelings and then the conclusion sealed the nail in its coffin. I’m not going to be recommending this novel.
Text Publishing | 29th May 2017 | AU$19.99 | paperback
