Revived
By Cat Patrick
336 Pages
Published by Little, Brown BFYR
Publication Date: May 8, 2012
Source: Library
From Goodreads:
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.
I was initially iffy on reading this one but I saw so many good reviews that I decided to go ahead and do it. I’m glad I did. I thought it was a well-written and unique addition to the YA genre. And it’s a standalone! Nothing against series, but sometimes it’s refreshing to just see a story that begins and ends in one novel.
As far as characters go, I found Daisy to be nothing out of the ordinary. She’s kind of detached from life at the beginning of the book and I didn’t feel like she had a particularly strong personality even after shit started to go down. The supporting characters, on the other hand, were great – particularly Audrey and Megan. Audrey is just far more awesome than she has any right to be considering her life circumstances (no spoilers) and Megan is a hoot. And she’s also transgender. YAY FOR HAVING A TRANSGENDER CHARACTER IN YA. And even better yet, it’s treated as no big deal. She just is. No big explanations, no reasoning. Refreshing.
I also found the book surprisingly touching and poignant in parts. I was expecting straight sci-fi/mystery/whatevs but there was some real life stuff in there as well as Daisy learned to grow attachments to people and places and friends. And huzzah for an epilogue! Nothing I love in a book more than an epilogue.
That said, I would have liked to know more about the Revive program itself. What was the purpose? How did it come about and why? How did it go so off the rails?
This was my first Cat Patrick novel and it won’t be my last.
4/5 Stars
Brittany
/ July 26, 2012Ooh great to know! This has been on my radar but I was iffy on it as well. I’m glad you enjoyed it!
attackthestacks
/ July 26, 2012Yeah, I wasn’t sure I even wanted to read it at first but I ended up picking it up at the library. I think what finally pushed me to do it was that it’s a stand alone.
Brittany
/ July 26, 2012I really like that it’s a stand alone! Kind of refreshing.
Autumn @The Autumn Review
/ July 26, 2012I’m a bit unsure of this one. Glad you liked it though. Maybe I’ll give it a shot!
attackthestacks
/ July 26, 2012If you do I can’t wait to see what you think!
elena
/ July 26, 2012It really is refreshing to see a standalone novel! I hate waiting for the next book, haha. I’ve heard mixed reviews about this one but I’m glad you liked it. Poignant and touching are two things I like to hear about a book. 🙂
Heather@ The Flyleaf Review
/ July 26, 2012I won a copy of this book but haven’t read it yet so it’s good to see you responded positively! And I agree, love reading a standalone these days! And I’m very intrigued now about this epilogue:)
Molli
/ July 26, 2012Wow, what a great review! I’m super glad you enjoyed this one. I think it’s awesome that there were some touching parts, and I agree with you, stand-alones are SO refreshing sometimes! 🙂
Andrea @ The Bookish Babe
/ July 26, 2012I’m so glad you read Revived! I really enjoyed it too. I liked the BF, but dude, I can’t even remember his name! And Audrey & Megan were great. I wondered about the Revive project, too.
Great review, lady!