Death and the Girl Next Door ARC Review

Title: Death and the Girl Next Door
Author: Darynda Jones
Expected Publication date: October 2nd, 2012
Book rating: 5 stars
Cover rating: 4 stars

Darynda Jones, author of The New York Times bestselling series that began with First Grave on the Right, brings us Death and the Girl Next Door, a thrilling Young Adult novel garnering high praise and early buzz from major authors
Ten years ago, Lorelei's parents disappeared without a trace. Raised by her grandparents and leaning on the support of her best friends, Lorelei is finally beginning to accept the fact that her parents are never coming home. For Lorelei, life goes on.
High school is not quite as painful as she thinks it will be, and things are as normal as they can be. Until the day the school's designated loner, Cameron Lusk, begins to stalk her, turning up where she least expects it, standing outside her house in the dark, night after night. Things get even more complicated when a new guy—terrifying, tough, sexy Jared Kovach—comes to school. Cameron and Jared instantly despise each other and Lorelei seems to be the reason for their animosity. What does Jared know about her parents? Why does Cameron tell Jared he can't have Lorelei? And what will any of them do when Death comes knocking for real? Thrilling, sassy, sexy, and inventive, Darynda Jones's first foray into the world of teens will leave readers eager for the next installment.

Where do I start? I loved this book so much! The characters, the plot, the everything! 

Lorelei/Lor ~ I absolutely adored Lorelei, I loved how stubborn she was. When she wanted something she wasn't afraid to go after it. What she lacked in height she definitely made up for with her feisty personality! I really hated how everyone tried to keep things from her. I feel like everything they kept from her was who she truly was yet no one thought it was appropriate to tell her about anything. Even though she had no clue what was going on or why her world turned upside down after she met Jared she still pushed forward and found the answers she wanted and needed to know. I also love how she didn't put up with any of Cameron and Jared's crap. They're literally giants compared to her but she some how got them to behave, funniest thing ever! Boys, I would be scared of her shine kicks if I were you.  

Jared ~ Oh, Jared. Let me love you and your swoon worthy self. I honestly can't say too much about Jared without giving things away but I will say I really did enjoy Jared as a character and it wasn't just because he's drop dead sexy! Even though he definitely has some issues, for lack of better wording, he was a really sweet guy and I loved the relationship he had with Lorelei. I'm so excited to see what's going to happen to him in the next book and I can't wait to see how Lorelei and Jared's relationship develops. 

Cameron ~ Cameron, Cameron, Cameron. Oh how I loved him even though he could be a big jerk. I felt so bad for him, he's like this tough rugged guy on the outside but on the inside he's truly just a lost little boy. I wanted to crawl into the book and hug him so many times or just tell him everything would be okay. I loved how he was towards Brooke. I hope they get a happy ever after because they're so perfect for each other. I think she's sort of like his calm, she's perfect to keep him grounded and help him keep it together. So I'm also really excited to see where their relationship goes in the next book.

Brooke/Brooklyn ~ Brooke is one of Lorelei's bestfriend and she is such a great one! She is always there for Lorelei throughout the book and even when Lorelei asks if she can help with something that's really sketchy she doesn't hesitate to help in anyway she can. She's also hilarious and has a sassy attitude that went perfect with Lorelei's! I love how she always picked on Glitch, the third of the three musketeers. I also love how instead of her just having the hots for Cameron in the book she truly cared about him. It's so cute how the two bestfriends had it for the two bad boys. 

Glitch/Casey ~ I loved Glitch so much. I think I laughed the most when he was talking. He is hilarious and also one of the greatest best friends ever. Even when he had his doubts about what Lorelei said he didn't hesitate to help her any way he could, just like Brooke. Whenever he had his little 'nerd' moments I cracked up, he was just a really cute likable character.

Lorelei's Grandparents ~ I adored Lorelei's Grandma and Grandpa so much. I love how they were so willing to trust Lorelei and supported her throughout the book even when they didn't really know what was going on. I didn't like how they kept things from her past a secret but I know it was out of love and they only wanted what's best for her.

After about getting 3/4 into this book I honestly thought I had figured out what was going on and who was who but I was completely wrong and I loved that. I was really afraid that this was going to be really similar to the Fallen series by Lauren Kate and I'm really happy it wasn't. Darynda took elements that are used a lot in YA today and made it her own! I definitely recommend you all read this book when it comes out. I'm really excited for the next book in the trilogy to come out.



Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a copy to read and review!

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