Slide

Review Time! Slide by Jill Hathaway is a 2012 YA Debut published by HarperCollins Australia in March. Jill was one of my 2012 debutantes and Slide was one of the books that I was really looking forward to reading. Again, I planned to read this back earlier on but books just keep getting pushed back! You can purchase a copy of Slide from Fishpond | The Nile | Booktopia | Dymocks | Angus and Robertson. Thanks to HarperCollins for the review copy!

(Goodreads) Vee Bell is certain of one irrefutable truth--her sister's friend Sophie didn't kill herself. She was murdered.

Vee knows this because she was there. Everyone believes Vee is narcoleptic, but she doesn't actually fall asleep during these episodes: When she passes out, she slides into somebody else's mind and experiences the world through that person's eyes. She's slid into her sister as she cheated on a math test, into a teacher sneaking a drink before class. She learned the worst about a supposed "friend" when she slid into her during a school dance. But nothing could have prepared Vee for what happens one October night when she slides into the mind of someone holding a bloody knife, standing over Sophie's slashed body.
Vee desperately wishes she could share her secret, but who would believe her? It sounds so crazy that she can't bring herself to tell her best friend, Rollins, let alone the police. Even if she could confide in Rollins, he has been acting distant lately, especially now that she's been spending more time with Zane.

Enmeshed in a terrifying web of secrets, lies, and danger and with no one to turn to, Vee must find a way to unmask the killer before he or she strikes again.

The Short Story? - Jill Hathaway's YA thriller was a solid debut with an supernatural twist to a quite predictable murder mystery. I really enjoyed aspects of Slide especially the writing and the characterisation. A good ending and a great romance tagline, Hathaway is definitely not afraid to take risks with her plots. Overall a solid debut that will appeal to both contemporary and paranormal readers, this murder mystery is highly entertaining!

The Long Story? - While reading Slide, I spent some time on Goodreads reading the reviews and upon finishing the novel I found that I agreed with selective points that other reviewers talked about. I enjoyed Slide and I definitely think it's a book that lots of people will enjoy. In terms of murder mysteries, Slide is not as draining to read and this is probably because the ending was a little bit predictable. Hathaway did try to put a spin on the novel and but it kind of fell flat, nevertheless, Slide was entertaining and I *did* enjoy it. The romance tagline was very cute, there was a build up and the love story was really mushy which really fitted with the plot because this novel would have been downright depressing without a little bit cuteness. The ending though predictable still held some element of surprise, I don't want to spoil the ending but I thought that it was very brave of Hathaway to do what she did ( ha! vague!). Solid debut, Slide was very enjoyable.

The characterisation was probably my favourite aspect of the novel. I really enjoyed Vee as a protagonist, she was unique and not just because of her special sliding ability but because of her personality as well. I love characters that understand the importance of family and it was obvious that Vee really cared for her sister despite the fact that they're very different. I liked what I saw of Rollins although I do wish he played a bigger role in the novel since I love friendships in YA as well. The characterisation was very much just based on Vee and that was okay but variety is always good! Zane, was rather quickly developed but I could connect with Zane, he went through so much and I didn't think he deserved the ending that he got but I accepted it and it was somewhat fitting. Overall a great characterisation and I'm looking forward to see how all the characters with grow in the sequel.

Originally I thought Slide was a standalone novel because it wrapped up really nicely but after checking Goodreads, it seems as if there will be a sequel coming out next year. I will definitely be reading Imposter because I'm curious to see where Hathaway takes Vee and her ability next. Slide was a solid debut that was highly entertaining, if you're looking for a YA thriller that isn't too draining but at the same time still enjoyable, I would highly recommend for you all to read Slide!

What's it Worth? - Squeeze into the Budget/ Hand Over the Paycheck

Badass Bookie xx