“Once Dead, Twice Shy” by Kim Harrison is the first book in Harrison’s series about 17 year old Madison Avery. Madison is hardly you average teenager, she is dead and still walking the earth in her body trying to live a normal life. Unfortunately, she never actually fit in even when she was alive. Always being known as the girl with purple hair, many people wouldn’t befriend her. They singled her out and would make fun of her.
Her prom night was not one that most people would hear about and it was definitely not the greatest night of her life either. Prom night was the last night of her life. Madison makes the mistake of leaving her date fore the mysterious and handsome Kairos, who ends up being a dark reaper. She ends up stepping into the grasp of death itself. Kairos takes her out that night, and they und up in a fatal car accident. But before she dies, she takes a powerful amulet from Kairos which allows her to still remain present in her life.
Madison has a guardian angel assigned to her to help her keep her secret from her family and the people around her. Barnabas, her guardian, tries to train Madison on how to use her amulet, but there is something strange about the amulet that neither Barnabas nor Madison can figure out. Not only it being the only thing that keeps her here but also that she can’t grasp the knowledge of controlling her amulet the way Barnabas tells her she should be able to do.
With her guardian angel and Josh, her former prom date, she fights to get revenge for the life taken from her. Learning the truth behind her amulet and where she got it is going to take her on a much bumpier and dangerous road than she intended. While fighting for her soul and her ability to stay on earth, Madison enters a new world and path of destiny that will bring her the truth that lies beneath her death.
This book was a casual read. But it did not grasp my attention like other books in this genre. I read it when I had spare time, it wasn’t one of those “I can’t put it down,” type of books because of its slow start. Overall, I did enjoy this book, but lacked the attention grabbing characters and details that paranormal romances need. It is also easy to get lost in the sequence of things because the plot line jumps around a bit. If a little more time was on characters, back story, and transitions, the potential could have been better realized.
Overall, I would recommend this book to people that enjoy a casual read. The novel does have action, angels and crazy twists. But, for those readers who want a book that will give them that “edge of your seat” feeling, you might want to read something else.