nemerith's review against another edition
3.0
About half way through the book I thought about giving up, but I persevered and ended up really enjoying it!
World-building was good, it takes place in modern day and age with the exception that a small amount of people have powers. All scenes and environments were well written and clear.
Character development was good. Jesse is, I wouldn't say broken, but very afraid of letting people get close to her since she's afraid to end up like Rachel, in a mental hospital, when her lot of death replacements are over and her brain can't take the damage anymore. It really doesn't help when she starts seeing an angel, who (of course) only she can see and talk to.
While some reviewers mentioned that the love triangle bothered them, it didn't for me. It is part of who Jesse is, of her choices in life and her fears. While she doesn't always make the "right" decision, it still fits her profile.
The support cast were good, Ally and even Lane were worked out sufficiently and felt real. Brinkley felt like the glue that kept it all together and kept the story moving forward.
Pacing and flow were decent. There is a good amount of conversation, and well... since this is the first book of the series that is to be expected, though the balance is pretty even between all the talking and action.
As I've said earlier on, halfway through the book there was a lull in the story, it crawled forward and at the time of reading I felt impatient for the story to continue. Things picked up not long after though and it was smooth sailing till the end :)
The book in itself is well written, some little errors here and there, but nothing that bothered me.
There is sex in this book, though not described (if that is important to you).
All in all it was a nice surprise! It was more than I have thought it would be, so yeah, I will be reading the next in the series :)
World-building was good, it takes place in modern day and age with the exception that a small amount of people have powers. All scenes and environments were well written and clear.
Character development was good. Jesse is, I wouldn't say broken, but very afraid of letting people get close to her since she's afraid to end up like Rachel, in a mental hospital, when her lot of death replacements are over and her brain can't take the damage anymore. It really doesn't help when she starts seeing an angel, who (of course) only she can see and talk to.
While some reviewers mentioned that the love triangle bothered them, it didn't for me. It is part of who Jesse is, of her choices in life and her fears. While she doesn't always make the "right" decision, it still fits her profile.
The support cast were good, Ally and even Lane were worked out sufficiently and felt real. Brinkley felt like the glue that kept it all together and kept the story moving forward.
Pacing and flow were decent. There is a good amount of conversation, and well... since this is the first book of the series that is to be expected, though the balance is pretty even between all the talking and action.
As I've said earlier on, halfway through the book there was a lull in the story, it crawled forward and at the time of reading I felt impatient for the story to continue. Things picked up not long after though and it was smooth sailing till the end :)
The book in itself is well written, some little errors here and there, but nothing that bothered me.
There is sex in this book, though not described (if that is important to you).
All in all it was a nice surprise! It was more than I have thought it would be, so yeah, I will be reading the next in the series :)
pixelateddragon's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Blood, Death, Alcohol, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, and Medical content
Moderate: Murder, Pedophilia, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual assault, Self harm, Rape, Religious bigotry, and Suicide
Minor: Torture, Gun violence, and Child abuse
emeraldreverie's review against another edition
4.0
Really fascinating spin on the zombie idea. Great writing, had me hooked the entire time. I immediately and constantly wanted to know more about the world building and the characters and the plot. Definitely reading the next.
apatrick's review against another edition
3.0
The plot was pretty good, an imaginative, but the writing just isn't that great. I enjoyed it okay, but not enough to read the second book in the series.
neilsef's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
While having an interesting premise as the major plot point, people who can detect death happening in a person and then somehow take that into themselves so that that person survives while they die and reanimate in a day or so, this turned out to be enjoyable but not particularly engaging.
I liked the characters and the interaction between them all, plus the plot was intriguing with a little bit of mystery and nicely paced.
It's not a series I am likely to continue with, at least not in the foreseeable future, but I may pick it up again one day.
I liked the characters and the interaction between them all, plus the plot was intriguing with a little bit of mystery and nicely paced.
It's not a series I am likely to continue with, at least not in the foreseeable future, but I may pick it up again one day.
jobatkin's review against another edition
2.0
I was interested by the story outline for this but didn't realise it was a YA novel, so ended up being disappointed. The dialogue was constantly immature, and the motives and actions of Jesse, the main character, were confusing and inconsistent. I didn't think it flowed well or even made a lot of sense at times and I definitely didn't identify with any of the characters. Granted, I'm definitely not the target audience for the book but I wish that YA novels in general had more depth and less sassy-ness. The story idea of a mutation in humanity that allows some people to regenerate after dying and take the place of those without this mutation by dying on their behalf was original and interesting enough to keep me reading until the end, but I won't be reading the rest of the series.
donnagrayce's review against another edition
3.0
Dying for others--what an interesting new idea in an increasingly clicheed genre of urban fantasy. Good research and actually exploring what might be going on emotionally/biochemically in a death/rebirth situation. (Not actually scientifically convincing--still just "and then something unexplained and medical-mumbo-jumbo happens", but at least one feels the author has pondered some of this on a medical level.) What left me not willing to continue the series was character development that didn't have the same research/thought and just devolved into two-dimensional clichees, such as the love triangle (yawn), and the silly sister who was more of a plot device than a person.
Better concept than lots of the read-one-read-them-all urban fantasies proliferating currently. I wish there was better character development.
Better concept than lots of the read-one-read-them-all urban fantasies proliferating currently. I wish there was better character development.
chllybrd's review against another edition
4.0
I gave it 3.5/5 stars
I can't even begin to imagine what it would really be like to live in a world where you can hire people to die for you. Jesse makes a living by dying in other people's place because she's a Necronite and comes back to life. The whole Necronite condition was both interesting and creepy. The author did a great job of explaining it and making it real for the reader.
I had a hard time connecting to a few of the characters in DYING FOR A LIVING. I didn't care for Lane in the least and the love triangle just annoyed me, but thankfully I did really like Jesse so it was easy to look past that. There is a lot going on in the book and lots of strings left at the end so I'm interested in reading more.
* This book was provided free of charge from the author in exchange for an honest review.
I can't even begin to imagine what it would really be like to live in a world where you can hire people to die for you. Jesse makes a living by dying in other people's place because she's a Necronite and comes back to life. The whole Necronite condition was both interesting and creepy. The author did a great job of explaining it and making it real for the reader.
I had a hard time connecting to a few of the characters in DYING FOR A LIVING. I didn't care for Lane in the least and the love triangle just annoyed me, but thankfully I did really like Jesse so it was easy to look past that. There is a lot going on in the book and lots of strings left at the end so I'm interested in reading more.
* This book was provided free of charge from the author in exchange for an honest review.