The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold: Susie Salmon was murdered at age 14 in the early 1970s. Susie herself narrates this story as she looks down from heaven, starting with her death and following her family over the next decade. My feelings about this book are fairly tepid. It’s well-written but a little heavy on the grief and family drama. While this is understandable given the circumstances, I felt like I was reading a cross between “Cold Case Files” and “The Wonder Years,” with a dash of “Seventh Heaven” thrown in. I also felt like the author couldn’t decide between supernatural fantasy and gritty realism, never quite reaching a happy medium either. A decent read, but don’t go into it expecting a murder mystery. It’s a touching family drama through and through.

Also posted on BookCrossing.