Review: The Body Finder

Book: The Body Finder
Author: Kimberly Derting
Release Date: March 16, 2010
Publisher: HarperTeen
Pages: 336
Source: KPL
Stars: 4/5

Violet Ambrose is grappling with two major issues: Jay Heaton and her morbid secret ability. While the sixteen-year-old is confused by her new feelings for her best friend since childhood, she is more disturbed by her "power" to sense dead bodies—or at least those that have been murdered. Since she was a little girl, she has felt the echoes that the dead leave behind in the world... and the imprints that attach to their killers.

Violet has never considered her strange talent to be a gift; it mostly just led her to find the dead birds her cat had tired of playing with. But now that a serial killer has begun terrorizing her small town, and the echoes of the local girls he's claimed haunt her daily, she realizes she might be the only person who can stop him.

Despite his fierce protectiveness over her, Jay reluctantly agrees to help Violet on her quest to find the murderer—and Violet is unnerved to find herself hoping that Jay's intentions are much more than friendly. But even as she's falling intensely in love, Violet is getting closer and closer to discovering a killer... and becoming his prey herself.

(summary taken from Goodreads)

MY THOUGHTS: 

A warning before reading this book: you will not be able to put it down until you finish it! I made the mistake of starting before I went to bed, and I ended up reading into the early hours of the next morning. I was too hooked to fall asleep!

Not only was the third-person narrative very well done — which is sometimes hard to do — but the mystery aspect of this novel was captivating. Even though Kimberly Derting wrote some scenes in the creepy mind of the killer, I still stayed on the edge of my seat waiting for them to catch the culprit. And there were definitely twists that I just didn't expect.

The relationship between Jay and Violet was pure awesomeness. It was so easy to see why these two best friends would fall for each other, because Jay made you want to swoon off your feet just so he could catch you, and Violet was the unflinching, brave, and somewhat reckless heroine needed in a mystery story.

A great mix of mystery, suspense, romance, and a completely original ability to sense bodies of those who've been murdered (including animals), The Body Finder was an awesome first book in what I can only guess will be a great series! 

BUY or BORROW?: I borrowed this book, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't go out to the bookstore right now to get it! :)

-Mimi