Review of Like My Mother Before Me
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Thais Susana
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Review of Like My Mother Before Me
[Following is a volunteer review of "Like My Mother Before Me" by Naley Gonzalez.]
Alizé thought her only problems during the sophomore year would be her grades, the volleyball team, and maybe a boy here and there, but life proved her wrong. One night she enters her father's office looking for him only to find a woman in front of his desk. At first, she tries to talk to her thinking that maybe her widower workaholic father finally got a girlfriend, that is until the woman turns around to face her. The woman's skin was so translucid you could see her skeleton, her hair was long and dark and now a pair of black sockets with golden irises were staring at her. Alizé screams in panic and terror making the ghost disappear quickly into thin air. Her father rushes her into his arms and tries to calm her down suggesting this was just a nightmare and she was probably sleepwalking. For Alizé that was a reasonable explanation and hopefully the end of the story, or so she thought. This starts a chain of events that turn her world upside down: the meeting of a new love interest, the risk of being kicked off her team and losing a scholarship, the negligence of her friendship, discovering secrets related to her mother's death, oh!... and a demon that is haunting their house. Be ready for a rollercoaster of emotions and adrenaline filled with drama, action, and mystery in Like My Mother Before Me by Naley Gonzalez.
I loved this book, especially the richness of the characters. At first, I was not impressed with the main characters, I thought they were going to be like any other teen drama you see nowadays, but oh my, was I wrong. The author does an incredible job portraying their emotions and frustrations, that I found myself crying, laughing, blushing, and even panicking along with the characters of the book. The story is original in its own way by introducing a variety of Hispanic slang and culture that makes it even more realistic.
At first, I was not engaged with the narrative as some expressions were very repetitive and contained too many metaphors for my taste, but before I realized it, the story was entangling me in a way that I was not able to put the book down. Certainly Like My Mother Before Me has extraordinary storytelling however, I would have liked for some parts to be more simple in regards to the descriptions and actions.
I would rate this book 3 out of 4 stars. The book is excellent and original, has great character development, and a very well-balanced amount of drama and plot twists that make the story so relatable that you could think this could actually happen to you. The book didn't have any mistakes, so it's professionally edited however, please be warned that the book contains strong foul language, attempted rape, domestic abuse, and other violent scenes that may be sensitive for some audiences.
Overall, I recommend this piece for those of you who like a good Young Adult story with drama, mystery, action, and slight romance. If you're a person that appreciates a story that not only focuses on the main protagonist but provides an equal amount of importance and richness to the secondary characters as well, you will be very satisfied with this book. Life My Mother Before Me by Naley Gonzalez is a definite read for us out there hunting for a fresh and unique YA story and can't wait to read her next work.
******
Like My Mother Before Me
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on iTunes
Alizé thought her only problems during the sophomore year would be her grades, the volleyball team, and maybe a boy here and there, but life proved her wrong. One night she enters her father's office looking for him only to find a woman in front of his desk. At first, she tries to talk to her thinking that maybe her widower workaholic father finally got a girlfriend, that is until the woman turns around to face her. The woman's skin was so translucid you could see her skeleton, her hair was long and dark and now a pair of black sockets with golden irises were staring at her. Alizé screams in panic and terror making the ghost disappear quickly into thin air. Her father rushes her into his arms and tries to calm her down suggesting this was just a nightmare and she was probably sleepwalking. For Alizé that was a reasonable explanation and hopefully the end of the story, or so she thought. This starts a chain of events that turn her world upside down: the meeting of a new love interest, the risk of being kicked off her team and losing a scholarship, the negligence of her friendship, discovering secrets related to her mother's death, oh!... and a demon that is haunting their house. Be ready for a rollercoaster of emotions and adrenaline filled with drama, action, and mystery in Like My Mother Before Me by Naley Gonzalez.
I loved this book, especially the richness of the characters. At first, I was not impressed with the main characters, I thought they were going to be like any other teen drama you see nowadays, but oh my, was I wrong. The author does an incredible job portraying their emotions and frustrations, that I found myself crying, laughing, blushing, and even panicking along with the characters of the book. The story is original in its own way by introducing a variety of Hispanic slang and culture that makes it even more realistic.
At first, I was not engaged with the narrative as some expressions were very repetitive and contained too many metaphors for my taste, but before I realized it, the story was entangling me in a way that I was not able to put the book down. Certainly Like My Mother Before Me has extraordinary storytelling however, I would have liked for some parts to be more simple in regards to the descriptions and actions.
I would rate this book 3 out of 4 stars. The book is excellent and original, has great character development, and a very well-balanced amount of drama and plot twists that make the story so relatable that you could think this could actually happen to you. The book didn't have any mistakes, so it's professionally edited however, please be warned that the book contains strong foul language, attempted rape, domestic abuse, and other violent scenes that may be sensitive for some audiences.
Overall, I recommend this piece for those of you who like a good Young Adult story with drama, mystery, action, and slight romance. If you're a person that appreciates a story that not only focuses on the main protagonist but provides an equal amount of importance and richness to the secondary characters as well, you will be very satisfied with this book. Life My Mother Before Me by Naley Gonzalez is a definite read for us out there hunting for a fresh and unique YA story and can't wait to read her next work.
******
Like My Mother Before Me
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on iTunes
Latest Review: Duplicity by Fin C Gray
