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Dead, Actually (2012)

by Kaz Delaney(Favorite Author)

3.62 of 5 Votes: 3

languge

English

genre

Paranormal Fantasy

publisher

Allen & Unwin

review 1: Dead Actually by Kaz Delaney ****4.5 Stars****I must admit to being a genre-traitor at the moment. Normally I go for Vampire, Werewolves and Zombies (Oh, My!) but some recent releases in the YA fiction market have had me reading more ‘girly’ books (ugh, I hate the fact that YA fiction if often divided down gender lines...) For me this book had the trifecta of elements that lead to me reading something outside my normal genres:Awesome cover-art (shallow I know but it needs to grab my eye)Interesting sounding title (I have a theory, if an author cannot come up with an interesting title chances are that the contents will leave something to be desired)Solid opening paragraph/ blubWillow Cartwright is not popular nor does she want to be. Her best friend Macey is a social ju... morestice blogger with retro fashion sense (and an older brother that makes Willow swoon) plus her parents are recovering addicts with a guru and the desire to spread the word of God. So, not your normal family set-up, especially when the guru is less ‘man-of-God’ and more slimly creep. But Willow’s life takes a turn for the strange when she finds the body of the school’s Queen Bee, JoJo Grayson. Not only first on the scene of the crash, Willow was also the last person to speak to JoJo (she took her order at a fast food drive-thru). So it kind of makes sense that when JoJo appears as a ghost in Willow’s room. Despite death not making her a nicer person JoJo is convinced her death was no accident and she is willing to make Willow’s life very uncomfortable until she investigates.But the deeper Willow digs the more mysteries she discovers, JoJo’s missing phone, dirty secrets and someone using blackmail to pull the strings behind the scenes. Everyone is hiding something, everyone has a motive and someone is trying to frame Willow. Who is behind it? Will Willow get the boy of her dreams? And when will the author’s next book be out?I greatly enjoyed this book, I read it in one sitting (with breaks to make coffee), it did make me a bit sleepy the next day (on account of having to stay awake to finish it) but I would say it was worth it. Well plotted, written with easy prose and likeable characters (although Willow does swoon a bit to much for my liking – at least there was no love triangle) I would recommend this book to fans of Sara Shepard’s Pretty Little Liars and Lying Game series. The supernatural element in this novel is actually pretty downplayed so it reads more like a mystery than typical supernatural fiction which makes for a nice change. Now is a fantastic time to be a Young Adult mystery fan.In short this book is not a prize winner, it’s not great literature, it’s not even life changing. What it is, is something just as precious, a well crafted piece of escapism that blocks out the surrounding world and allows your imagination to work overtime.
review 2: Random ebook from library.I enjoyed this story even though it feels like a YA book.This was like watching Gossip Girl with a splash of Ghost Whisperer.One of the beautiful people, at the high school, where Willow goes is killed in a tragic accident.Willow is the first to find her...But then finds that she is being haunted by Jojo - who claims she was murdered.Who would want to kill a teenager?then Willow is asked to attend a wake for Jojo and a yacht trip but these people are not being friendly...they all want something...then people start getting messages from Jojo... what is going on??...Willow asks for her friend, Macey's help and there is Willow's secret crush Seth (Macey's brother)in the end the beautiful people are all shown to be flawed There is an interesting inter-family story between Willow and her parents - a former drug addict and alcoholic who are having trouble realising that their daughter grew up without them and now they do not know how to be parents.... but they do exactly the right thing in the end. I will be looking for more by Kaz D:) less

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