ARC Review- DEAD TO YOU.

Releases Feb 7th, 2012 from Simon Pulse. Thanks to the publisher for providing me with a physical ARC in exchange for an honest review!


Ethan was abducted from his front yard when he was just seven years old. Now, at sixteen, he has returned to his family. It's a miracle... at first. Then the tensions start to build. His reintroduction to his old life isn't going smoothly, and his family is tearing apart all over again. If only Ethan could remember something, anything, about his life before, he'd be able to put the pieces back together. But there's something that's keeping his memory blocked. Something unspeakable...


My Thoughts:
I have always been a fan of Lisa McMann's work. She's one of those authors that, no matter how different her novel concepts are, I can always tell when it's got her flair. The simple but effective writing style is one that I don't typically get into, but somehow, when it's one of Lisa's books I always get sucked right in! 

I've read all of this author's other YA books, (Wake series, Cryer's Cross) and you guys...she's got a deliciously twisted mind. In DEAD TO YOU, there is some seriously chilling stuff going on beneath the surface. With simple narrative and quick wit as always, (the characters in her books always crack me up) McMann did a rockin' job of pulling me into the main character Ethan's head. 

• After returning home years later from being abducted from him front lawn as a child, Ethan has a hard time settling back in, just as anyone would. The other characters in his family, especially the younger sister Gracie, are all done super well. Gracie is super adorable and she is the glue that holds this book together, if you ask me. She is the sweet relief in all of the drama! 
• I can't review this one like I would others, for super secret plot reasons, so I will just gush over my love for how Lisa McMann writes, because its just so simple and quick. You can read through this book in a few hours if you're fast, I did, but you don't feel like you've missed anything the entire way through. You feel like you've been emerged into an emotional world that pulls you through the ringer and spits you right back out in just a short time, and when you're done reading, you lay in bed thinking about it all night. (I have circles under my eyes right now. Really, I do!!!) 
• I wish I could give away what happens in this book. There are things that make Ethan feel super off. His younger brother, Blake, doesn't get along with him at all. There's a girl named Cami across the street, one whose character is sweet and caring and done very well, who helps Ethan settle back into his life with his family, but as the book goes on, things just get increasingly unsettling. 
• If you like creepy without being entirely creeped out, or if you want to like creepy books, but are too scared to pick one up, this book is perfect for you. It's chilling in a psychological way, but one that I think tons of people can handle. As all of the authors' other YA books, DEAD TO YOU is what I like to think of as a slow burn of events leading up to a super explosive ending...one that leaves you breathless and makes you think "holy balls I wish this wasn't a single-title book!" 

So! Bravo, Lisa McMann. I'm totally honored to have a few signed copies of your books on my shelves, and I cannot wait to see what else comes out from you in the future! You pack a punch with every book...and also, you bring chocolate to your book signings. How could I not be a fan?? 


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