Book Review: Afterlife Academy by Jaimie Admans

Genre: Young Adult (Paranormal)

Date Published: March 15, 2013
Publisher: Self

The Blurb:

Even being dead isn’t enough to get you out of math class.

Dying wasn't on sixteen-year-old Riley Richardson's to-do list. And now, not only is she dead, but she's stuck in a perpetual high school nightmare. Worse still, she's stuck there with the geekiest, most annoying boy in the history of the world, ever. In a school where the geeks are popular and just about everything is wrong, Riley has become an outcast. She begins a desperate quest to get back to her perfect life, but her once-perfect life starts to unravel into something not nearly as perfect as she thought it was.
And maybe death isn’t really that bad after all...

Welcome to Afterlife Academy, where horns are the norm, the microwave is more intelligent than the teachers, and the pumpkins have a taste for blood.

My Review:
Afterlife Academy by Jaimie Admans was a unique and entertaining read. I had a hard time truly getting into the story though, because I didn't like the main character, Riley Richerdson, at all. I tried and tried, but I couldn't find anything redeeming about her. She was selfish, superficial, and not nice. She kept these attitudes through most of the book. Once she got a taste of her own medicine, I thought she'd come around, but I really don't think she did. She said and did too many things that led me to believe she really didn't change that much. She followed a pattern. For example, she'd feel bad about how she treated Anthony when they were alive in one moment, and the next moment she'd be thinking about how much of a dork he is and how embarrassed she was associating with him. Then she'd go back to feeling bad again. To me she seemed like a mean girl trying to be a good person, and failing miserably. In the end, I just wasn't convinced.

This was a very hard book to rate, as I enjoyed the story and its ideas quite a bit. It was very entertaining. The premise sure was a unique one. I liked the idea of school age kids and teenagers finishing up their educations even after death. The idea of therapy and grief counseling for those not only still living, but for those who've died as well was a great idea. There is a whole world that is hidden within this book. I'm not sure if there are plans for it to be a series, as the ending wraps things up nicely, but I could see the potential for something fun and unique. I absolutely LOVE the cover!

Afterlife Academy by Jaimie Admans was provided to me by the author for review. The opinions are my own.

About the Author:
Jaimie is a 27-year-old English-sounding Welsh girl with an awkward-to-spell name. She lives in South Wales and enjoys writing, gardening, drinking tea and watching horror movies. She hates spiders and cheese & onion crisps.

She has been writing for years, but has never before plucked up the courage to tell people. She writes mostly chick-lit and young adult. Kismetology is her first novel and there are plenty more on the way!


To learn more about Jaimie Admans and her books, visit her website.You can also find her on Goodreads, Facebook and Twitter.