Review: Forever, Again by Victoria Laurie

Book Blurb:

Lily Bennett is less than thrilled to be the new kid as she starts her junior year in high school.

But soon after classes begin, she meets a classmate, Cole Drepeau, with whom she forms an immediate and intimate bond. As Cole and Lily grow closer, Lily learns about the murder that divided the town more than thirty years before. In 1985, graduating senior Amber Greeley snapped, killing her boyfriend Ben—Cole’s uncle—and taking her own life.

Lily feels inexplicably linked to Amber, and she can’t help but think that there’s more to the girl’s story. Determined to investigate the truth about Cole’s uncle’s death, Lily and Cole are pulled into a dark mystery—one that shakes the constraints of the world they’ve always believed in.

Masterfully told by best-selling author Victoria Laurie, this novel alternates voices between Lily and Amber, a generation apart, as decades of dark family secrets and treacherous betrayals are woven into the most epic of love stories.

My Review:

3 Out Of 5 Stars

Genre: Mystery, Romance, Supernatural, Teen--

Told through alternating chapters, the story of Lily in present time and the story of Amber in the 1980s occurs, leaving Lily (and the reader) wondering what the connection is between the girls.

​I have read lots of other books by this author, both adult paranormal mysteries and teen paranormal mysteries and I have enjoyed her books. I was excited when I saw she had another story out and jumped at the chance to read it even when I was not sure what it was about. I glanced on Gooodreads before I started reading the book, which I probably should not have done, and I was surprised to see the book had kind of blah reviews. So I started reading the story expecting it to be awful, but I surprisingly found myself enjoying it. No, this was not my favorite book by this author, but it was not a bad story. The author does a great job of creating real, likeable characters and she used that skill here. The mystery plot at the end of the story was a not the best twist or even very surprising, but I was invested in seeing how everything played out for Lily and even Amber.

This review will be vague because I don’t want to give anything away. I have so many more specific things to say, but then I realized that it might ruin everything for those who don’t like spoilers (you crazy people, you). This was a paranormal mystery, where the reader wants to know what is going on with Lily while at the same time trying to piece together the past and what happened to Amber. I liked that the book alternated from each girl’s view point, two completely distinct voices. I also found it interesting that Lily’s story was told in a consistent linear fashion, where as Amber’s is told with the ending first and then small clues dropped along the way. As a side note, the paranormal aspect of the book was a very cool concept that I am very interested in and honestly I don’t see it used very often (or at least well) in books. I like that the author can put a different spin on things (probably using her own psychic life experiences).

Overall I thought this was an interesting read with solid writing making the story flow. I look forward to more from this author and her unique perspective.

I received this title from the publisher in return for my honest review.