Review: Die For Me

Die for Me by Amy Plum

publisher: HarperTeen

release date: May 10, 2011

hardcover, 341 pages

intended audience: Young adult

rating:





source: through Netgalley for honest review

description: My life had always been blissfully, wonderfully normal. But it only took one moment to change everything.

Suddenly, my sister, Georgia, and I were orphans. We put our lives into storage and moved to Paris to live with my grandparents. And I knew my shattered heart, my shattered life, would never feel normal again. Then I met Vincent.

Mysterious, sexy, and unnervingly charming, Vincent Delacroix appeared out of nowhere and swept me off my feet. Just like that, I was in danger of losing my heart all over again. But I was ready to let it happen.

Of course, nothing is ever that easy. Because Vincent is no normal human. He has a terrifying destiny, one that puts his life at risk every day. He also has enemies . . . immortal, murderous enemies who are determined to destroy him and all of his kind.

While I'm fighting to piece together the remnants of my life, can I risk putting my heart—as well as my life and my family's—in jeopardy for a chance at love?

Review: I'm not a fan of the zombie trend going on right now in YA fiction. I'm the first to admit that as soon as I hear the word zombie, I will more than likely skip along to the next selection. Luckily, going into this book, I had no idea what the paranormal aspect was. Even more luckily, these were zombies like you've never imagined them before. :) As a matter of fact, even though they are referred to as such in the story, I wouldn't even consider them the same fantastical creature. No rotting flesh, no brain-feasting. Amy Plum has expertly created a whole new undead and reanimated being. These were zombies that even I could fall for.

Really enjoyed the character development. When we first meet Kate, she has been uprooted and moved to Paris with her sister, Georgia. After the death of their parents, she is pretty much drowning in grief, hesitant to rejoin the world just yet, while her sister deals with their loss in the opposite way---going out to party every night. It was interesting seeing Kate come out of her shell and, eventually, seeing Georgia learn some hard lessons. Then there is Vincent. It's not so much Vincent's supposed perfect looks that caught my attention---after all there is an overabundance of "beautiful, god-like, flawless" looking guys running rampant in YA novels. It was what he and his family did, the purpose of the Revenants. I won't spoil it, you need to read it to find out,...but their actions and reason for doing them is the thing that won me over. I also loved Charlotte, one of Vincent's "sisters". She is funny and sweet and a good friend to Kate.

This is a romantic story, and what made it even more so was being set against the fabulous backdrop of Paris. It played out like a breathtaking sightseeing tour, then made it even more beautiful and personal by the memories it sparked in Kate. We visit every corner, from the museums to the Seine, from the eerie catacombs to the Eiffel. Even the seedier dark corners of Paris play their parts.

Also worth a mention is the fact that, while we know this book is the first in a series, this book could have stood alone and been perfect. In a genre that is known for it's cliffhanger endings, Die For Me's ending was a breath of fresh air. Sure, now that I love the characters, I want more of them---but I don't feel like my satisfaction with the story relies on the sequel. It feels complete just on it's own and I love that.

While some points of this stories felt achingly familiar to other stories we've almost all read before, the imaginative and truly unique paranormal aspect of it, the amazing romance, and several intriguing twists and turns made this a story I easily fell in love with.

Visit Amy Plum's website here.

Purchase Die For Me at: Amazon • BN.com • BookDepository • Indiebound

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