Life After Theft

by Aprilynne Pike

Overview

Aprilynne Pike, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Wings series, shines in this stand-alone novel that offers a humorous twist on ghosts and is perfect for fans of Ally Carter, Rachel Hawkins, and Kiersten White.

Kimberlee Schaffer thinks she's doomed to an afterlife of boredom, stuck haunting the halls of her high school for eternity . . . until the day she meets Jeff. He's the only person who's ever been able to see Kimberlee, so she needs him to help with her unfinished business. When she was alive, Kimberlee wasn't just a mean girl; she was also a complete kleptomaniac. If Jeff wants to avoid being haunted until graduation, he'll have to help her return everything she stole. But Jeff soon discovers that it's much easier to steal something than it is to bring it back.

Paying for your mistakes takes on a whole new meaning in this clever and exhilarating modern retelling of The Scarlet Pimpernel. Kirkus Reviews called Life After Theft "a brisk, down-to-earth thriller," and School Library Journal proclaimed it a "whirlwind adventure full of secrets, lies, unlikely friendships, and romance." This paperback edition also contains an excerpt from Aprilynne Pike's next novel: Sleep No More.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780061999024
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	04/29/2014
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	368
Product dimensions:	7.80(w) x 5.20(h) x 1.00(d)
Lexile:	HL650L (what's this?)
Age Range:	13 - 17 Years

About the Author

Aprilynne Pike has been spinning stories since she was a child with a hyperactive imagination. She completed her BA in creative writing at the age of twenty at Lewis-Clark State College in Lewiston, Idaho. Aprilynne currently lives with her husband and children in Arizona.

What People are Saying About This

Claudia Gray

“The greatest part: the WINGS series reaches the perfect ending. The worst part: it has to end!”

Carrie Jones

“SPELLS is brilliant and lovely. Aprilynne Pike’s talent just continues to bloom and I am almost afraid to see how awesome her next book will be.”

Lisa McMann

Who knew faeries could be this cool? ILLUSIONS has it all. It’s fascinating, rich, and romantic, and weaves a great new tapestry of thrilling fantasy.”

Editorial Reviews

PRAISE FOR THE WINGS SERIES: “WINGS is a remarkable debut; the ingenuity of the mythology is matched only by the startling loveliness with which the story unfolds.

Stephenie Meyer

Jeff’s journey to real empathy takes on issues crucial and relevant to teens: the price of popularity, the importance of being true to one’s beliefs, and the need to stand up for others.

ALA Booklist

Mixing a little bit of Harry Potter and a lot of Twilight, Pike has hit on a winning combination. Yet it is her own graceful take on life inside Avalon that adds a shimmering patina sure to enthrall readers.

Booklist (starred review)

SPELLS is brilliant and lovely. Aprilynne Pike’s talent just continues to bloom and I am almost afraid to see how awesome her next book will be.

Carrie Jones

Who knew faeries could be this cool? ILLUSIONS has it all. It’s fascinating, rich, and romantic, and weaves a great new tapestry of thrilling fantasy.

Lisa McMann

Pike’s clever and innovative way of reinventing fairy tales and myths to make them her own is wonderful...[The] story is rich in vivid details, action, adventure, and romance.

Romantic Times (Top Pick)

The series is action-packed, and the final chapters of the story are no exception. A thrilling page-turner, many readers will read the book cover-to-cover, barely daring to breath.

Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA) (starred review)

The greatest part: the Wings series reaches the perfect ending. The worst part: it has to end!

Claudia Gray

The greatest part: the Wings series reaches the perfect ending. The worst part: it has to end!” %COMM_CONTRIB%Claudia Gray

The series is action-packed, and the final chapters of the story are no exception. A thrilling page-turner, many readers will read the book cover-to-cover, barely daring to breath.

Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA) (Starred Review)

Pike’s clever and innovative way of reinventing fairy tales and myths to make them her own is wonderful...[The] story is rich in vivid details, action, adventure, and romance.

Romantic Times

Mixing a little bit of Harry Potter and a lot of Twilight, Pike has hit on a winning combination. Yet it is her own graceful take on life inside Avalon that adds a shimmering patina sure to enthrall readers."

Booklist

"There's something about having a fight with a ghost that makes you paranoid in the morning." On his first day at an exclusive private high school in Santa Monica, freshman Jeff Clayson discovers that he is being stalked by the ghost of a former student who drowned two years earlier. Jeff can see and hear Kimberlee Schaffer loud and clear, but to everyone else she is invisible. Apart from disappearing through walls when it suits her, she behaves like any other kleptomaniac teenage brat. Kimberlee has a mission for Jeff. She wants him to help her atone for her past sins so that she can move on to the place with bright lights where she believes the peaceful dead end up. It takes Jeff a while to realize what a bizarre drama he has let himself get involved in. Finding the love of his dreams, who, it turns out, has played a significant role in Kimberlee's criminal past, only complicates matters further. In a refreshing departure from her plant-based paranormal-romance series (Destined, 2012, etc.), Pike develops the pleasantly fractious relationship between Jeff and Kimberlee in Jeff's earthy, humorous first-person as he only initially reluctantly takes the high road to help her. Aside from its heavenly premise, this brisk, down-to-earth thriller should appeal equally to male and female readers. (Paranormal mystery. 12 & up)

Kirkus Reviews