Life After Theft
Author: Aprilynne Pike
Publisher: Harper Teen
Publication Date: April 30, 2013
Pages: 352
Source: e-galley from Edelweiss.
Prequel e-novella: One More Day
About the Book: Moving to a new high school sucks. Especially a rich-kid private school. With uniforms. But nothing is worse than finding out the first girl you meet is dead. And a klepto.
No one can see or hear Kimberlee except Jeff, so–in hopes of bringing an end to the snarkiest haunting in history–he agrees to help her complete her “unfinished business.” But when the enmity between Kimberlee and Jeff’s new crush, Sera, manages to continue posthumously, Jeff wonders if he’s made the right choice.
Clash meets sass in this uproarious modern-day retelling of Baroness Orczy’s The Scarlet Pimpernel. (goodreads)
My Thoughts: I’m a fan of Aprilynne’s Wings series so I was super excited when I saw Life After Theft available on Edelweiss. I downloaded it to my nook and started it at the gym that night. Life After Theft was the perfect workout read! Fun and well paced. I finished it in two days (with adding to my elliptical time and just a little cheating by reading at home!)
One of the things I most enjoyed about this book is the male narrator. Judging by the cover I totally expected a girl (and, unfortunately I think this cover will turn away my middle school boys who would really enjoy the story!) I was pleasantly surprised to meet Jeff. And yes, I know the description talks about Jeff but I didn’t read it right before starting the book and apparently forgot.
Back on topic… Jeff. He was so fun! I liked his humor and his commentary on his new school and classmates. The snarky way that he and Kimberlee interact and needle each other kept me smiling (even through my workout!) As a middle school teacher I would say he is a great representation of a teenaged boy!
The story itself was interesting. I had no familiarity with The Scarlet Pimpernel until after I re-read the book summary and looked it up. I can definitely see the connections! I liked that there were some more serious undertones to the story that the reader discovers as we learn more about Kimberlee and her past. On that note, the prequel novella One More Day gives the reader an even greater look in to what makes Kimberlee tick. I didn’t read it until after Life After Theft and am actually glad I waited. It’s not spoilery but I liked how it made me reflect on the book as well.
Humor, a bit of romance, a klepto ghost and a male narrator make Life After Theft a great read. It’s exactly what I was looking for.
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