Until I Die

June 1, 2012

Gr 9 Up-This sequel to Die for Me (HarperTeen, 2011) will be an enormous success with established fans. The historical elements and the magic evoked by the Parisian setting work to paint a full landscape that has a deep otherworldly connection while remaining entirely ordinary in the very best way. Seventeen-year-old Kate has been welcomed into Vincent's circle of revenants, supernatural beings that die over and over again after rescuing humans, and with this acceptance comes new responsibility. She and Vincent are both hoping that he can overcome the revenant compulsion to die, a need for him that is "more enticing and powerful than a drug addiction," and thereby allow them some semblance of a normal life together. While Kate searches for a cure for his "immortal problems" (his need to die), he's out on his own secret mission and trying to make sense of a prophecy that means he might be the "Champion" of his people. Numa, the revenants' supernatural enemies, are an ever-present threat. The story's twists and turns are well paced and will have readers captivated. Plum does an excellent job of giving depth and substance to her secondary characters. Although the beginning chapters are a bit rocky and the incorporation of backstory will have readers wishing that they'd just finished the first book so they would have an easier time following along, this title is otherwise as romantic and intriguing as its predecessor.-Genevieve Gallagher, Charlottesville High School, VA

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