A Reading Daydreamer: undeadly

Hi guys!! Today I am participating in the Undeadly blog tour, hosted by Shane at Itching For Books! I was very fortunate to be able to read the book in advance, and write a review for it! I also chose one of my favorite scenes to share with you guys. PLUS THERE'S A GIVEAWAY. Yep, you guys will have the opportunity to win a copy of the book, signed!! Be sure to check out the rest of the tour here! Well, without further ado, let's get on with it!

Review

Name: Undeadly

Author: Michele Vail

Publisher: HarlequinTEEN

Release Date: November 20, 2012 (US)

Pages: 272, Paperback

Source: For Review for blog tour

Rating: 4 Teacups

The day I turned 16, my boyfriend-to-be died. I brought him back to life. Then things got a little weird...
Molly Bartolucci wants to blend in, date hottie Rick and keep her zombie-raising abilities on the down-low. Then the god Anubis chooses her to become a reaper-and she accidentally undoes the work of another reaper, Rath. Within days, she’s shipped off to the Nekyia Academy, an elite school that trains the best necromancers in the world. And her personal reaping tutor? Rath. Who seems to hate her guts.
Rath will be watching closely to be sure she completes her first assignment-reaping Rick, the boy who should have died. The boy she still wants to be with. To make matters worse, students at the academy start turning up catatonic, and accusations fly-against Molly. The only way out of this mess? To go through hell. Literally.

[summary taken from Goodreads]

Jen's Review

Necromancy, zombies, ghosts, reaping, and ghouls?! What more could you ask for? Undeadly was a funny paranormal read that has a very sarcastic main character, plenty of laugh out loud moments, and great creativity. Undeadly was overall a very enjoyable read.

The concept--er, concepts--were very well done. The paranormal creatures were all dead in some way, and I don't think it was disorganized at all! Each supernatural element complemented the other very well! At first it was a bit confusing but Vail is able to ease the reader in comfortably. Plot-wise, it could have had more variation; the entire book was pretty evenly-paced, but it's definitely acceptable.

Goodness, the humor had to be my favorite part in the entire novel! Molly's voice is just so humorous and sarcastic, I fell in love with her character instantly. It definitely kept the story light while the ideas and conflicts of the novel were more dark and serious. It was a great balance! While Molly was a great character herself, I found that her relationships with the other characters in the story were weak. For example, there was definitely romance involved, but there was so little of it after the beginning that I found myself wondering if it's really necessary at all. This totally could have just been a paranormal YA novel…

But awkward character relationships aside, Undeadly is a fun dead-paranormal-creatures read with a hilarious main character that you won't want to miss! I certainly had a great time reading it. Highly recommended!

4 Teacups for Undeadly!

*Thanks to Michele and Shane for providing me with a copy to review!*

Excerpt Time!

*This excerpt was taken from an advance reader copy. Text is not final.*

"Mina and I are over. I don't want her or her poison." He drew me into his arms, right there in front of everyone (including Mina… nyah, nyah), and leaned down. "I like you, okay?"

I nodded.

Don't You (Forget About Me) by Simple Minds started to play. Dad! He'd gotten that damned song into the mix, after all. Rick smiled. "Wow. This is old school, Mol."

He held me closer and I lay my head on his shoulder as we swayed to the music. Someone turned off the living room lights. The lamps on the end tables were on, but their muted glow barely pierced the darkness.

Still, I could see Rick lean down, his nose almost touching mine. I'd brushed my teeth twice and refrained from food and drink. Because I wanted our first kiss to be perfect--you know, without the Doritos taint. (63.)

His lips ghosted across mine. My belly pulled tight with excitement. I was chest to chest with him. Oh, gawd.

"Sweet Molly," he murmured. He angled his mouth against mine and I opened for him. My eyes fluttered closed. Tentative, I met the gentle thrust of the tongue. I felt electrified. I clung to him, completely unsure about what I was doing.

He drew away, just a little, took a shuddering breath, and returned. I was pressed so close to him that I could feel how his heartbeat matched the ferocity of mine. I felt awkward and amazed and--

The lights snapped on. I opened my eyes, blinking, horrified that Dad might have come down to checkup on us crazy teenagers and freaked to see me lip-locked with Rick.

"Mina! No!" Rick tried to push me out of the way, but he ended up projecting me right into Mina's path.

The full contents of the punch bowl showered me. Red liquid splattered my face, hair, and clothes. Ice cubes fell down my shirt and spun off my toes. Some of the sticky sweet drink dribbled into my mouth. Shocked beyond words, I could only stand there like an idiot. (64).