Not Quite Dead Yet by Holly Jackson

The quick cut: A 27 year old woman is attacked and left counting the days until the damage left behind kills her. She spends her remaining time trying to find her attacker.

A real review:

We all would like to think that we have plenty of time, but the reality is that we rarely know when our time is up. For Jet, that time is quickly passing by after she's left with a brain aneurysm post-attack.

Jet has spent her life trying to live up to the memory of her sister who died years ago. With a mother who blames Jet, she's spent her life trying to make up for that loss. So when she's attacked on Halloween and left with the shocking diagnosis of a brain aneurysm that can't be fixed, she's given merely days to live. Can she find who attacked her?

This book has so immaculately wrecked me emotionally in only a way that Holly Jackson can. How dare she get me so attached to a character and then give me that ending?!?! It is so messed up in a way that is going to stick with me (in a great way).

Jet has been living in a way that I think many people do: she assumed she had time to be happy. Sometimes we get so caught up in daily life that we forget to do what brings us joy. Are you living life for yourself or somebody else? This is something that she is forced to face and that journey completely changes her. It makes me want to live my life authentically. These are the types of characters that change you and I love Jet so much for it.

The plot here is so intricate and complex right to the end. The way the details that don't make sense come together in the end will wreck you. Seeing that ending play out in the way it did really made my eyes bug out and re-read the pages. It's shocking, horrifying, and somehow also fitting.

The brain aneurysm mention is really just as the plot is being setup, but the way it's approached is realistic and well done. It's clear that the author did her due diligence to ensure that it was written accurately.

A thrilling story that will leave you emotional.

My rating: 5 out of 5