Review: Revived by Cat Patrick
Revived
Author: Cat Patrick
Publication Date: May 8th 2012
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Genre: Science Fiction
Synopsis:
As a little girl, Daisy Appleby was killed in a school bus crash. Moments after the accident, she was brought back to life.
A secret government agency has developed a drug called Revive that can bring people back from the dead, and Daisy Appleby, a test subject, has been Revived five times in fifteen years. Daisy takes extraordinary risks, knowing that she can beat death, but each new death also means a new name, a new city, and a new life. When she meets Matt McKean, Daisy begins to question the moral implications of Revive, and as she discovers the agency's true goals, she realizes she's at the center of something much larger -- and more sinister -- than she ever imagined
My Thoughts: Hmm, a sci fi. Well at least that's what I'm categorizing it under, what else could it be with a drug that brings you back from the dead? This books was a very nice change from all of the dystopia I have been reading lately and I really enjoyed it. It did take a little bit to get into though, I think it was around 80 pages in where I suddenly couldn't put it down. Also,
Revived has made me cry more than any other book I have read lately. There was a good 30 pages where I was almost consistently crying. It might have even upgraded to chin wobbling sobbing. I had to put the book down to compose myself. This is a good thing, because that lets me know that I was really into the story and connecting with the characters. So hats off to Cat Patrick for making me have a good cry. That's the sign of a well written book right there. I also love the cover! The colour is really great and I love how she is peaking out. It definitely stood out to me and made me look more closely at the book.
Revived revolves around Daisy and is told in a first person point of view. Daisy has been involved in the Revive program since she was four years old. She did in a bus accident, Revive brought her back. She has been Revived five times in her life and every time she dies she has to uproot her life, move and get a new last name. The book actually starts with Daisy dying, which I found to be a great intro before the story slowed down a bit to give a bit of background. So Daisy ends up in Omaha and for the first time in her life, she makes an actual friend of someone not involved in the program. this friend even has a super cute brother that Daisy finds herself falling for. Everything is finally perfect, but things never stay perfect for Daisy and soon her world is falling apart.
I found Daisy to be a fairly strong character, at least when it comes to death. I mean, how can she be afraid of it when she knows that there is a drug that can bring her back to life. So in a way it does cause Daisy to be a little over confident, but I still liked her all the same. Deep down she just wants to be a normal teenager with normal friends and crushes. Daisy seems like a very caring and loyal friend, connecting with Audrey quickly and soon they are almost inseparable. She just seems so normal, even though she is basically a human lab rat and has intensive testing every year. I found her to be a very like able character who I easily connected to.
There is a love interest in Revived. His name is Matt and he is Audrey's brother. Matt is a very caring brother, I wish my brothers cared as much. He is close with his sister and *gasp* has feelings for Daisy! Watching their romance blossom and hit snags was fun, sometimes. They do fight a bit and then things begin to come between them, so the romance somewhat disappears. It is very cute romance though.
Overall, I found Revived to be a very heartfelt story. As I said before, I cried, a lot. It's a good thing my baby was napping when I was reading all the heartbreak because she probably would have been concerned as to why mommy is crying so much. But it wasn't a bad thing. I mean, you know going in that the plot revolves around death. Cat Patrick is an amazing writer who puts a lot of feelings into her writing. I'm definitely going to recommend this book because it's just such a great read. If you're not into sci fi, I still recommend it, it's not heavy sci fi, the drug is like the only thing that I would consider sci fi. It's more like a mix between that and contemporary. So definitely read it, it is a pretty great book.
Thank you to HBG Canada for the review copy!!
I LOOOVE books that can make me cry. I wasn't sure if I was going to read this one, but now I'll probably have to give it a chance. Thanks for the review!
ReplyDeleteI had no idea it was going to make me cry so much. Maybe it is just my insane emotions after having a baby, but it was so sad. I hope if you decide to read it that you'll enjoy it!
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