13 To Life by: Shannon Delany

13 To Life

by: Shannon Delany

Everything about Jessie Gillmansen’s life changed when her mother died. Now even her hometown of Junction is changing. Mysterious dark things are happening. All Jessie wants is to avoid more change. But showing a hot new guy around Junction High, she’s about to discover a whole new type of change. Pietr Rusakova is more than good looks and a fascinating accent—he’s a guy with a dangerous secret. And his very existence is sure to bring big trouble to Jessie’s small town. It seems change is the one thing Jessie can’t avoid…

Rating: B+

Review:

I wasn't sure what to expect from 13 To Life when I first picked it up. I don't normally read the trendy YA paranormal books (and recently since I have started I'm beginning to believe sometimes I'm missing out) but I like werewolves.

Plus, I just really love Russian accents.

From the very first page, I really loved Jessica and Pitre. Any scene where they were together I was more than happy. They just played off each other very well and I found their relationship to be easy, sweet and definitely entertaining.

I loved the plot and I found it to be engaging. You find hints to the storyline as you go along so you're guessing to what comes next and some things I found to be very clever. There was very good tension at times that had me flipping pages and the character development with the Rusakova family was good and well paced.

I really liked Jessie in this book because she didn't completely drop everything to be with Pietr. Her life is busy and he is not her only priority. I love her for that simply because it's not the typical reaction we read about in a book that is driven by love. Granted they enjoy each other's company and they go through some trials, but it is not the only focus of the book or for Jessie by any means. It was not a 'now that I've found you I need you 24/7 relationship.' That was refreshing and I loved it.

I wish that the events in Farthington and the Russian Mafia had been explained more clearly. I also wish that the end had been slowed a bit. I don't feel it came to a close, I still have so many questions to what happened, but I think both of these things are build ups for the series and will be explained more thoroughly later.

Overall I found 13 To Life to be a good enticing read. It will make any lover of paranormal romances very happy, and I can't wait to get the next book and read more about Jessie and Pietr!

-Christina