Book Review: Before I Fall

Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver is another book I've had my eye on for a while. The idea that you can come back and live your last day alive over and over until you get it right is intriguing. But it's also one of those ideas that can go very wrong if you don't do it right. Ms. Oliver did it right. (I also love the cover!)

According to the book's blurb:

What if you had only one day to live? What would you do? Who would you kiss? And how far would you go to save your own life?
Samantha Kingston has it all: the world's most crush-worthy boyfriend, three amazing best friends, and first pick of everything at Thomas Jefferson High--from the best table in the cafeteria to the choicest parking spot. Friday, February 12, should be just another day in her charmed life.
Instead, it turns out to be her last.
Then she gets a second chance. Seven chances, in fact. Reliving her last day during one miraculous week, she will untangle the mystery surrounding her death--and discover the true value of everything she is in danger of losing.

First off, Ms. Oliver can WRITE. Lordy, can she write. Everything felt fresh, and so true to a self-concerned high school girl's perspective. The shallowness of the MC wasn't overdone to the point where I wanted to smack her (or myself) but had just the right tone. In fact, Samantha seems very aware of how mean-girlish she can be and, for some reason, I liked that better than an MC who was completely clueless or even an MC who was on the other end of the spectrum (being the object of the cruelty). This was an MC with the potential to change. But would she?

I read this book in one day. Yep. That's how much I loved it. How much it absorbed me. I kept hoping that Sam would find a way to make everything right. I winced at her almost successes and understood the times when she just let it all go and did something crazy. This felt real to me, true to me, and something that I, if given the chance, could see myself doing.

I don't want to ruin the experience of discovering this story for yourself, but I will say that the end...shocked me. Made me cry. Not a happy ending, but not necessarily a sad one. If anything, a very, very fitting one. The ONLY one, I think. This is a book I not only recommend, but believe MUST be read.

Rating (out of five stars): 5 stars (amazing!)