Firstlife by Gena Showalter

Blurb

ONE CHOICE.

TWO REALMS.

NO SECOND CHANCE.

Tenley “Ten” Lockwood is an average seventeen-year-old girl…who has spent the past thirteen months locked inside the Prynne Asylum. The reason? Not her obsession with numbers, but her refusal to let her parents choose where she’ll live—after she dies.

There is an eternal truth most of the world has come to accept: Firstlife is merely a dress rehearsal, and real life begins after death.

In the Everlife, two realms are in power: Troika and Myriad, longtime enemies and deadly rivals. Both will do anything to recruit Ten, including sending their top Laborers to lure her to their side. Soon, Ten finds herself on the run, caught in a wild tug-of-war between the two realms who will do anything to win the right to her soul. Who can she trust? And what if the realm she’s drawn to isn’t home to the boy she’s falling for? She just has to stay alive long enough to make a decision…

My Review - 5 EPIC STARS!!!

Okay, wow. First off let me say that while I do enjoy reading YA books, I am EXTREMELY picky when it comes to them. I love romance books, I love the buildup, the emotions, the passion, and yes, the smexy times. It has got to be the perfect balance for me. I need, no require, my YA reads to have a great plot, strong characters and (here comes the hard part) the perfect amount of romance. Yes, I'm aware that can be a little more difficult when it comes to YA. You have to keep it PG but still be able to see the chemistry between the main characters. I mean, they are 17 -19 years old, not 12. I want to see the attraction build. Well, I'm happy to say that Gena hit every point in Firstlife for me!

This has got to be the most complex and unique world that I have ever read. The idea of your "firstlife" being the trial run for your afterlife was intriguing to say the least. I do want to address the idea of this being a religious themed book because I know how sensitive some people can be on the subject. Yes, there are a some similarities, the idea of an afterlife with a Heaven and Hell but by NO MEANS is this book trying to push any kind of religious agenda on you so please do not pass up this amazing book if you are worried that it might be an issue. READ IT!

Tenley is sent to Prynne Asylum because she refuses to be pressured into committing herself to one of the afterlife realms, Trioka or Myriad. She is worried about choosing the wrong side because once you sign, that's it, there is no going back and so she is determined to not give in no matter what atrocities are done to her. Both Trioka and Myriad know that Ten is going to be a major player in whatever realm she commits to and they are determined to win her over. They each send their top Laborer (aka recruiter) to Prynne to convince her that they are the better side to choose. Now this is where the story starts rolling. Trioka sends Archer (smart mouth hottie) and Myriad sends Killian (swoonworthy badass) Yep, here comes my inner cougar out to play. *rawr* I LOVE these dudes! Both are perfect representations of their factions. Archer is from Trioka, the light side. You are responsible for your own actions, make the right choices because there are no do overs and everyone is equal.  Killian is from Myriad, the dark side. They are all about fate, fight first and ask questions later. They respect strength and believe that you will be born again (fused) after your second death. 

Ten was an amazing heroine, despite the horrors that she endured she stays strong and remains compassionate to others. She has an obsession with numbers that I found fascinating and I loved her poems. I'll admit that I was on the same page as Archer at first when it came to Ten. Was she going to be all doom and gloom? Had she given up all hope? Was she a tad cray-cray? And then I read the first poem.

The grave is the end
And I will never accept that
I have been set free from the chains that bind me.
I know
"Death has lost its victory"
Is a lie, because there is no greater truth than this:
"Life is hopeless"

Seems hopeless and bleak huh? Now read it backwards... Okay, now that is just freaking amazing! Firstlife is a fantastic book that is full of surprising twists and turns. You will laugh, you will cry and you will swoon (Killian will ensure this happens). Surprising alliances, deadly betrayals and shocking deaths occur and when I say shocking I mean no one is safe in Firstlife or the Everlife. Gena does not pull her punches in this one. Firstlife will make you think about your actions and the consequences and it will make you wonder "what if?" When you crack open this book be prepared to be sucked into an absolutely riveting story, I can't think of another book that I have ever read and then turned around and immediately read again! I loved it that much. I need more of this story. I'm seriously addicted and now I'm going to be reduced to stalking Gena online until I can get my next fix of her incredible Everlife world. Buy the book. Read the book. You will love the book. 

*I received a copy from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Purchase Links
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Meet the author

Gena Showalter is the New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author of the spellbinding Lords of the Underworld series, two young adult series--Everlife and the White Rabbit Chronicles--and the highly addictive Original Heartbreakers series. In addition to being a National Reader's Choice and two time RITA nominee, her romance novels have appeared in Cosmopolitan and Seventeen magazine, she's been mentioned in Orange is the New Black--if you ask her about it, she'll talk for hours--and her books have been translated in multiple languages. She's hard at work on her next novel, a tale featuring an alpha male with a dark side and the strong woman who brings him to his knees. You can learn more about Gena, her menagerie of rescue dogs, and all her upcoming book at genashowalter.com