Review Detail

After sixteen-year-old Mari dies, she finds herself in a place that isn't the stereotypical version of heaven. Seems that she's in a place that requires all souls to do endless self-motivation projects to prepare to 'ascend' to whatever is next. When she dies, she finds her roommate is her dead mother, who had her own issues. Add to all this are rumors that some souls are going missing. But where? And why doesn't anyone like it when she questions what's happening?

What worked: The Good Place meets an afterlife filled with conspiracies. The humor is dark and filled with pop culture and social media references. There's even computers and self-help gurus. Youga is a hilarious attempt at yoga that focuses on you!

Mari is the girl who tries so hard to get ahead, even when her flaky mother seems oblivious to anyone besides herself. So when Mari dies and finds the very person she tried not to be around is now her roommate, that causes more than a little friction.

The social media cues are sprinkled throughout this fast-paced paranormal story that has a wicked twist on the whole 'pearly gates of heaven.' Seems the troubles and issues you had while alive follow you in the next life.

I liked how the author doesn't make Faye the villain but rather more multi-dimensional. She has a good heart but isn't perfect. But who is?

Mari's attempts to find out more about the missing souls lead to her self-reflection. When it's mentioned that she was a hero before her death, Mari questions that. The paparazzi are also part of the hereafter with their half-truths. Plus, some are part of a rebellion to unveil what's really going on and why some souls are just 'disappearing.'

Intriguing concept of a hereafter that isn't the typical angels and endless choirs singing hallelujah. This is a story of a teen who searches for the why behind her death and the truth behind mysterious disappearances.