Reviews

Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver

shils's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging emotional inspiring reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

demilee1369's review against another edition

Go to review page

2.0

So I have been trying things outta my usual genre and have found books I really like and ones I really hated this is the first one to be a hmmmmm book for me. I am not sure if I liked this book or really, really hated it.

lorilaws's review against another edition

Go to review page

5.0

Samantha Kingston has everything! Awesome friends. A hot boyfriend and popularity that some of us can only imagine.There's just one big problem. She died. After treating everyone like crap for years, she now has to come face to face with the consequences.

I honestly don't know where to start. This book was like a train wreck. In a good way. You knew it was hurtling out of control but you just had to keep reading. The concept is extraordinary Sam dies in the first 60 pages or so of the book but the next morning she wakes up in her bed. She soon realizes that she is living the day she died all over again. In all she lives this day through 7 times. Can she change anything? Can she become a better person? You will just have to read to find out!

Sam is a bitch. There's no if's and's of but's about it. I was warned before hand. There was note in the book when I received it from Lauren(which I think is awesome by the way!)that said that Sam is a little unlikable at first. She was not exaggerating. I wanted to slap her! Shake her! Call her a bitch! I think that is a testament to Oliver's outstanding writing. We have all read books where you feel nothing for the characters. You are just reading their story to pass the time. That is definitely not the case with Before I Fall. I went through a roller coaster of emotions with all these characters. Anger, pity, sadness, love. I felt it all.

Lauren Oliver is a new talent in the Young Adult world that you need to watch out for! Her expert writing and finely crafted characters make this book a definite stand out! I loved it and I think you will too.

betka_s's review against another edition

Go to review page

3.0

Rozhodně příjemné překvapení... Ale něco tomu chybělo :-)

http://listarna.blogspot.cz/2013/08/kdyz-sedmkrat-prozijes-svuj-posledni-den.html

tillyy_yy's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

I liked that it was from the mean girls perspective but it was black and white nor did she have a tragic backstory. It felt very real

chicleeblair's review against another edition

Go to review page

5.0

I loved this book. The voice was strong, and Sam, the narrator, really pulled me in. I think in some cases there were gratuitous details, but I also understand why they were there: to create a life for this girl. A life like any other life.

What I learned from it wasn't as much about craft as it was about me. Reviewers on GoodReads said they believed at the beginning of the boom Sam "deserved to die". Her actions, or the actions of her peers that she went along with, made it okay. They had no sympathy for her at the beginning.

But I did.

I was never, ever a popular girl. I was on the outskirts, not made fun of but not a part of it. I heard about the parties after they happened. But I knew what it was like to go along with a joke without analysing it. I attached myself to friends with strong personalities, went along with what they said without thinking. At some point, we've all found ourselves in a position to do something Sam did. Do we deserve to die for that? No. Does any seventeen-year-old? Not in my view.

Other thoughts, The Groundhog Day-esque repetition of Sam's DeathDay could have been mind-numbing, but it wasn't. Some times I wanted to see more thought behind her motives. The day she steals her mom's credit card, for instance, I understood her motives but would have liked them to be addressed a little more.

The best part of the book, for me, was that it showed how very, very different each day can be with a few tweaks. A few other choices, and a little more knowledge. Pay attention, it seems to say, to the point where Sam's mission matters less, and the message matters more.

Which is good, because in the end, someone has to die.

sapphireginger's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

I'm so sad, and yet somewhat satisfied.

I would give 5 stars but, it left me confused. I don't understand the reliving the same day 7 times. So I love the book, but am lost at the same time. Still a must read.

le_vicieux's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

Remember when i dnf-ed this book 3 times, and then i decided to give it one last chance? Well, I’m glad i did.
This book was really good.

saraisreading95's review against another edition

Go to review page

2.0

Maybe more like 2,5... I'm not sure yet. I wasn't really enjoying it until the last 150 pages. I think it wasn't very original and I could tell what was going to happen since the very first page. Moreover, the characters were way too annoying??? I'm glad that at least some of them changed by the end of the book.

iyareadsalot's review against another edition

Go to review page

3.0

The movie was better. This one is way too long.