I started this book expecting a simple romance or a light contemporary fiction read, but was surprised and delighted to find so much more. Bring Me to Life is an in-depth portrait of one woman’s journey as she deals with the grieving process (her best friend committed suicide one year ago), her fear of intimacy and vulnerability, and her struggle to come to terms with herself and face up to her actions, some of which she’s end up ashamed of and running from. The main character, Lou, could be any average young woman of today, trying to figure herself out and discover what she wants in life, and this is exactly where the power of the book is found. By getting a glimpse into Lou’s turmoil as she makes certain choices, and then has to deal with the consequences of those choices, we learn about ourselves, and how human suffering is universal in a way. When it comes down to it, many of us are fighting very similar demons and Lou’s story points this out in an illuminating and thought-provoking way.
I also just plain got sucked into the story. It’s a great read and one of those books that keeps you turning pages no matter how many distractions are going on around you. I loved the main character, Lou, because she was intelligent and independent, as well as grounded and real, but I also loved all the other characters, in particular Lou’s sister and a photographer who shows up in the story, because they added such depth to the character studies overall. The author did a phenomenal job of drawing characters who are as fully rounded and complex as real people. I felt like any one of the characters could be someone I would know in real life, they all seemed so multi-faceted and interesting.
And although I really wasn’t sure how the end would turn out, I ended up satisfied with the way events unfolded. Just as the characters came across so realistically, so did the plot. I could tell this author is a sharp observer of life and human nature. Every situation—and the way it was resolved—was portrayed with such nuance and attention to emotion and realistic detail that, again, I felt I could be watching real people as they went through real situations.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves contemporary fiction, romance, New Adult fiction, and literary fiction. It’s a gem.
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