ARC Review: 18 Truths by Jamie Ayres

Title: 18 Truths
Author: Jamie Ayres
Publication Date: January 28, 2014
Publisher: Curiosity Quills Press
Format: ARC
Links: Goodreads - Barnes & Noble - Amazon
Synopsis: Lying is unbearable, betrayal is inevitable, and choosing which path to take is impossible.

Olga Gay Worontzoff ended her senior year as an eighteen-year-old girl totally in love with Nate, enjoying their new romance and about to attend the university of her dreams. Now she’s spending her summer in the weird subculture of the Underworld, with charmingly witty and powerful angels, and problematic demons, trying to rescue Connor, the best friend and secret crush she was unable to save during a freak accident.

But Nate has other things on his mind, mainly Grace. She’s their first assignment as joint spirit guides, and Olga’s feeling hurt and jealous. His mysterious behavior has Olga questioning everything she believed about him and now she must decide whether to stick to their plan, or follow her heart. Unfortunately, a series of mistakes threatens everyone around her and plants Olga in the center of cosmic events much larger than she ever imagined.

Only one thing is certain: the chilling truths uncovered during her journey will leave no one untouched. (via Goodreads)

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My Review

I received an Advance Reader Copy of 18 Truths from Curiosity Quills Press via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

18 Truths by Jamie Ayres starts of where 18 Things ended. If you haven't read 18 things yet, I'd suggest that you stop reading here and go read that one first!

Olga and Nate are coping with the whole fact that the last year of their lives was simply an illusion. Oh, and the fact that they've been dead the whole time. Together, they decide to spend their post-death lives (haha) as spirit guides, helping other misguided folks like themselves find their way to heaven. Their first mission, Grace, proves harder than Olga thought, especially since Nate seems more invested in their little project than he is in her. And what happens when Olga finds out that Conner, the boy she spent the entire last year getting over, is just a few dimensions away? I guess you'll just have to read to find out!

Seriously, though. Read this book. Just do it. Jamie Ayres is a wonderful author and that is evident in how beautifully written this book is. Not only are the characters well rounded and relatable, but the world that Ayres created is hauntingly beautiful. No matter what your beliefs about the afterlife is, Jamie Ayres' version of the afterlife is comforting and imaginative. 

In my review of 18 Things, I touched on how I enjoyed the religious aspect of the book and that has not changed with 18 Truths. I am a religious person and the touch of religion is extremely comforting to me. Even with the hints of religion, I don't think that mentions of it are overwhelming or preachy. No matter what your spiritual beliefs are, I'm sure that you could enjoy this book. Personally, though, I did like the various bouts of scripture placed throughout the book. I'll be honest, I kept my own set of scriptures next to me as I was reading the entire time so that I could look up and highlight the scriptures as they were presented.

Speaking of highlighting things, I think I did more highlighting and note taking in this book than I have in a really long time! Once again, this book was just beautifully written. I didn't want to miss a thing!

And now, let's talk characters. In general, Ayres does a great job with her characters. They're all fairly well rounded and relatable, but I felt myself relating 100% with Olga throughout the book. 

Olga is level-headed and smart. And, just like most teenaged girls, love makes her do crazy things. I felt just as conflicted as Olga did as she went through her whole love triangle business. Seriously, that totally hit home for me…I could feel what Olga felt as she pondered the idea of the two guys that she loved more than anything. Her decisions and realizations even gave me some realizations of my own, so thanks Olga! I don't know that I would have made some of the decisions that Olga makes throughout the book, but a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do! Also, the book would have been super boring if Olga made the decisions I would have made :P!

As for her two guys, I couldn't help but compare them to the two guys I've been lucky enough to love in my life. What?! I couldn't help it! I promise! Anyway, I adored both Nate and Conner for different reasons (true to real life, of course). Conner is Olga's charming best friend and first love, that stuff does not die easily…let me tell you! And Nate is the one who held Olga up through everything that happened in the previous year, they've got an unbreakable bond. The relationships between Olga and her two leading men were realistic, beautiful, and, at times, absolutely heartbreaking. I loved it!

Of course, if there's anything that I learned from 18 Things, it's that Jamie Ayres loves a good plot twist (am I right?! ha). It was absolutely no different in 18 Truths. No worries, though, I love a good plot twist, too, and this one certainly didn't disappoint! But alas, you'll just have to read the book to find out what it is. I promise you won't be disappointed.

18 Truths is a wonderful story! It's not just a continuation of Olga and Nate's story, but also of Olga and Conner's story and Dr. Judy's story. I was never bored, I wanted to keep reading forever. It was beautifully written and it's definitely a story that sticks with you even after you close the book. 18 Truths will be just the second book in 2014 that I'm giving a 5 out 5 Star rating too! AND I'm recommending it to all of my friends!

Now, if only I could make time speed up so that I could read the next book already!

Book Review: 18 Things by Jamie Ayres

Title: 18 Things
Author: Jamie Ayres
Publication Date: January 24, 2013
Publisher: Curiosity Quills Press
Format: e-book
Links: GoodReads - Barnes & Noble - Amazon
Synopsis: Can eighteen things save a life? 

Olga Gay Worontzoff thinks her biggest problems are an awful name (after her grandmothers of course) and not attending prom with Conner, her best friend and secret crush since kindergarten. 

Then Conner is killed in a freak boating accident and Olga feels responsible. When she downs an entire bottle of pills to deal with the emotional pain, her parents force her into counseling. There, her therapist writes a prescription in the form of a life list titled 18 Things. Eighteen quests to complete the year of her eighteenth birthday. 

All she has to do is fire-walk, try out for the cheerleading squad, break a world record, and err . . . go on her first date. Good thing Nate, a new hottie in town, enters her life with perfect timing. He brings the fun factor to her list and helps her discover the beauty and strength inside herself, then complicates things by falling in love with her. 

But there's more to Olga’s quests than meets the eye and when her therapist reveals a terrifying secret, her world is shaken. 

There’s only one thing she knows for certain: her choices won’t just affect her future, but all eternity. (via GoodReads)

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My Review

18 Things is a solemn tale of death, grief, and acceptance. Jamie Ayres touches on a few darker themes throughout the novel-namely death and moving on when someone close to you passes on with a few other dark tones scattered throughout.

Olga and Conner are best friends-they always have been. Unfortunately, their friendship is cut short when they're out sailing one day when a lightening storm arrives and lightening strikes Conner. In mere moments, Olga loses her best friend and the love of her life. The story follows Olga as she tries to move on. Her therapist suggests that she write down 18 "bucket list" items, so to speak, that can help her cope and eventually move on. With the help of her friends, she completes these bucket list items over the course of a year. 

While the book was a little slow for me at some points, I thought the story was very well written. Dealing with loss and grief is not an easy thing, but the process was represented well. I, like Olga, have lost someone close to me so I could relate well to the different things that Olga was feeling. I felt her pain as she lost her best friend and I feel like I went through all the steps of the grieving process with her.

For the most part, the characters were well written. I sometimes wondered how Olga and her friends actually became friends because they seem so different, but they all fit together in a weird way. My only qualm was the way that the teenagers spoke to one another. I honestly don't know any teenagers who use such loose vernacular (I can't think of any specifics right now but "Oh My Gawd" was used a lot)…I don't know, maybe I just don't know a lot of teenagers!

I also loved that the big touched on the religious aspect of death and loss. I am a religious person, though, so touching on religion was relatable for me. 

Another thing that I enjoyed were the quotes and focus questions that could be found at the end of the chapters. It might be the teacher in me, but I enjoy a good focus question and being able to reflect on what happened in the book. 

Overall, the book was very well written and dealt with very heavy topics. I cried and cried throughout the book. It's been a long time since a book has touched me enough to make me cry! As far as the plot twist at the end, I just have one word: WOW. I would suggest this book for an older audience as it is pretty heavy, but it's definitely worth the read.