Book Review: Slide

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 off lately, more distant, 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.

When I stumbled across this book last year and read the summary, I was immediately intrigued and could not wait for this book to come out. I was thrilled when I found it at the library, but I must confess that it took me a little while to really sink my teeth into it. However, once I got through about the first 60 pages or so, I was into it and read the rest in one sitting.

Vee Bell can slide into other people's minds and body when she touches something they've "imprinted" on. Only no one knows about her ability. When she tried to explain it to her father, she sent her to a therapist. Instead, to explain her strange habit of passing out, everyone thinks she has narcolepsy. As frightening and strange as the ability is she's been able to work her way around it. Until she finds herself seeing through the eyes of a killer.

Overall, I found the story very refreshing. It's paranormal, but very much rooted in reality, which was a concept I really enjoyed recently while reading Fracture by Megan Miranda. It's actually something I would love to see more of in the genre.

I liked Vee. I found her easy to relate to. She certainly hasn't had it easy. Between her mother's death and her absentee father, she's charged with seeing to her younger sister, Mattie, and struggling with the rift that's developed between her and her best friend, Rollins. And that's just the tip of the iceberg.

I enjoyed the secondary characters as well, though I would have liked to have seen them develop a little more. Because Slide is the first in a series, I hope that will be remedied in future books.

As far as the plot goes, I think I was hoping for a bit more. It was a good mystery, and seeing random aspects through Vee's sliding added some interesting angles. However, it seemed to lack some of the urgency I would have expected since there was a murderer on the loose. Of course, Vee was the only one who truly knew this fact, but even so I think I just expected her to be a little more frantic.

Overall, I enjoyed the story, and I'm certainly curious to see where the sequel leads.