Bibliographic info
Pike, A. (2013). Life After Theft. HarperTeen:USA. ISBN: 978-0061999000
Libby Scale
4 out of 5
Genre
Crime, Fantasy, Romance, Urban
Reading Level/Interest Age
Ages 12-16
Plot Summary
“Moving to a new high school sucks. Especially a rich-kid private school. With uniforms. But nothing is worse than finding out the first girl you meet is dead. And a klepto.
No one can see or hear Kimberlee except Jeff, so–in hopes of bringing an end to the snarkiest haunting in history–he agrees to help her complete her “unfinished business.” But when the enmity between Kimberlee and Jeff’s new crush, Sera, manages to continue posthumously, Jeff wonders if he’s made the right choice.” (Amazon.com)
Critical Evaluation
[Note: Sadly this review was written after quite a bit of time had passed, so I don’t remember most details fresh. 😦 ]
Firstly, I want to say it is refreshing to see a YA romance book written from the male perspective. The book gets at least half a star just for that!
In a nutshell Kimberlee died and is unable to move beyond because she was a kleptomaniac and stole a bunch of stuff from, well everyone. So she is doomed to roam as a ghost that no one can see for all eternity. That is, until Jeff moves into town. She is ecstatic that someone can see her and Jeff pretty much is left questioning his sanity for seeing a ghost. I’m unsure why exactly Jeff can see her when no one else has been able to for over a year. Perhaps because he is a complete outsider to Kimberlee and her hijinks while she was alive? Maybe there’s just something special about him? [It’s possible this is revealed in the book, but I don’t remember.]
Kimberlee doesn’t waste much time asking Jeff to help her with her “unfinished business” so she can finally move on. She explains that she stole “a few things” from people and she’s positive if they’re returned she’ll finally be able to cross over. Being a good guy, Jeff agrees and then he sees her stockpile of stuff hidden in a cave. There are items from just about every person and place that she ever was in contact with. Seeing as there are hundreds of boxes, he knows he is going to need more than a few days to complete this mission. He starts returning things in a secret Santa type fashion, but quickly gets questioned when he is found to have items that people have been missing for years. Insert drama here leading up to character development, etc.
During the process, he begins to fall for a girl at school (Sera), who turned out to be one of Kimberlee’s biggest enemies at the time of her death. This causes some trouble as he feels conflicted to be helping someone Sera clearly hated. At least there wasn’t a weird love triangle between a boy, a girl, and a ghost.
I found myself often getting annoyed at how bitchy Kimberlee was. I suppose she was a “rich snob” in life, but I thought she should be more grateful to Jeff. There were more than a couple times when I wanted him to just walk away from her and let her be stuck on Earth forever. Even though she wasn’t always likeable, I found myself so overjoyed and almost sad when she finally moved on at the end of the book. Thinking back, I remember enjoying the book more than I thought I would, but at the same time not loving it.
About the Author
“Aprilynne Pike is the critically acclaimed, internationally and #1 New York Times best-selling author of the Wings series. She has been spinning stories since she was a child with a hyper-active imagination. At the age of twenty she received her BA in Creative Writing from Lewis-Clark State College in Lewiston, Idaho. Since then she has worked as a waitress, a restaurant manager, a slush-pile reader, an editor, a childbirth educator, and a doula.” (Amazon.com)
Challenge Issues
Some people may find issue with the main female being a ghost. While it is lightly paranormal, it is still within that realm of things. There are also a few sexual innuendo comments, a scene towards the end where teens do have sex, and also a scene with Jeff’s parents about “the talk”. The book also discusses thievery and bullying. Finally, some parents of younger kids may not appreciate the “snarky” tone Kimberlee tends to take on.
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