Gr 9 Up—When her boyfriend dies in a car accident, Wren is so inconsolable that she uses her budding supernatural gifts to raise Danny from the dead. He waits patiently for her nightly visits to their little nest in the loft above her neighbor's garage, and she endures his cold kiss. Wren slowly realizes that she made a mistake, and that the boy she loved is gone though his reanimated body remains. Then Gabriel arrives at school, and he seems to know more about Wren's mysterious powers than she does. She feels an undeniable attraction to Gabriel, who can see into her mind, where he discovers what she's done. Danny, meanwhile, grows restless as he remembers more about the night he died, and he escapes from the garage to find answers. Suddenly, he's more than a gruesome secret-he's a danger to Wren and Gabriel. Because he is already undead at the beginning of the book, and the courtship is relayed through Wren's memories, readers miss out on many of the qualities that made the prickly teen fall so hard for Danny, and the narrative lacks emotional intensity. Nonetheless, this novel succeeds on many levels, especially as a cautionary tale about the all-consuming power of first love and the need to move on after it ends.—Amy Pickett, Ridley High School, Folsom, PA
Adult romance writer Garvey makes her YA debut with an introspective paranormal story about holding on when one should let go. Seventeen-year-old Wren has inherited her family's ability to tap into the energy of the world to make magical things happen. She's never been one to think things through, but has outdone herself by raising her boyfriend from the dead after he is killed in a drunk-driving accident. As Wren becomes less certain about how to deal with what she's done, the reanimated Danny (who isn't exactly the boyfriend she remembers) is recovering his memories and becoming more difficult to control. Wren is thrown even further off-balance when new student Gabriel, who has supernatural abilities of his own, uncovers her secret. After more lies tumble together and escalate, Wren confronts her attraction to Gabriel, the reality of her inadvertent cruelty, and her failing relationships with friends and family. Garvey sidesteps zombie tropes by keeping the focus on Wren's emotional state and the consequences of her actions, painting a delicate portrait of first love, loss, and a "girl who thought love came with ownership papers." Ages 13–up. (Sept.)
Fast-paced and achingly real, this fresh tale hints at the danger that lurks beneath Wren’s spell without veering into the macabre. Wren is not a traditional heroine, but her character is ultimately redeemed by her decision to make things right no matter the cost. A provocative romance.” — Kirkus Reviews
“Garvey could easily have told a cautionary tale about being careful what you wish for; instead, this is a story of the redemption possible in taking responsibility for mistakes and the comfort found in sharing burdens.” — Horn Book Magazine
“Beautiful and haunting. Every page tore me apart—and I loved it.” — Lauren Kate, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Fallen and Torment
“The writing heightens the sense of tragedy and hopelessness and makes us care. While the supernatural elements are an essential hook, it is the pain of first love lost, that longing for the person who is irretrievably gone, that is the crux of Garvey’s gripping first novel for young adults.” — Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA)
“Fans of Shiver will appreciate the nuanced, more bitter than sweet portrayal of star-crossed supernatural love in this promising debut novel.” — Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
The writing heightens the sense of tragedy and hopelessness and makes us care. While the supernatural elements are an essential hook, it is the pain of first love lost, that longing for the person who is irretrievably gone, that is the crux of Garvey’s gripping first novel for young adults.
Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA)
Garvey could easily have told a cautionary tale about being careful what you wish for; instead, this is a story of the redemption possible in taking responsibility for mistakes and the comfort found in sharing burdens.
Beautiful and haunting. Every page tore me apart—and I loved it.
Fans of Shiver will appreciate the nuanced, more bitter than sweet portrayal of star-crossed supernatural love in this promising debut novel.
Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
Fans of Shiver will appreciate the nuanced, more bitter than sweet portrayal of star-crossed supernatural love in this promising debut novel.
Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
Fans of Shiver will appreciate the nuanced, more bitter than sweet portrayal of star-crossed supernatural love in this promising debut novel.
The Bulletin for the Center for Children's Books
To what lengths is it acceptable to go to hold on to someone you love?
Devastated by the premature death of her boyfriend, Wren enlists her natural magical abilities to bring him back—although even Wren has to admit that the Danny she has brought back is only a shadow of what he was in life. Desperate to keep what she has done a secret, Wren is forced to live a double life. She must keep one foot firmly planted in teenage reality: attending classes, dealing with friends and ducking her mother's questions. Her other foot is planted in her secret, as she struggles to keep a boy who is more her puppet than her former boyfriend hidden. Her plans are slowly unraveling when she meets Gabriel, a new boy who can read her thoughts and guesses her dark secret. As Danny becomes more difficult for Wren to handle, she begins to see that not only is he not the boy she once knew, but he might actually be dangerous. In the end, it is Danny's own words that help Wren the most. Fast-paced and achingly real, this fresh tale hints at the danger that lurks beneath Wren's spell without veering into the macabre. Driven by her selfish desires both to keep Danny and then to be rid of him, Wren is not a traditional heroine, but her character is ultimately redeemed by her decision to make things right no matter the cost.
A provocative romance rises above zombie conventions. (Fiction. 14 & up)
