Who I Am Hates Who I've Been - Relient K

Here Lies Bridget

Author: Paige Harbison
Pages: 219
ARC Acquired From: Harlequin Teen via NetGalley

Brief Summary:
Bridget Duke is the queen bee of her high school. She has pretty much everything she wants, except for her mother (who died), her boyfriend (who broke up with her) and her father (who's a popular sports announcer and rarely home). Still, she has friends, a nice house, throws great parties and is totally hot and idolized by everyone. Everything starts going downhill though when a new girl arrives at school. The new girl is a genuinely sweet person and everyone likes her better. And of course once one thing goes wrong, other things tend to follow until your whole life is completely ruined and maybe even over.

Review:
The opening section of Here Lies Bridget is definitely an attention grabber. Bridget is driving recklessly, thinking of how everyone might react should she die. Awful and sad those these sentiments are, they are all the more powerful for being something most high schoolers can relate to (although many probably don't act on their macabre fantasies). The second chapter goes back to explain what brought Bridget, the most notorious girl in school to the contemplation of suicide. The framework definitely sucks the reader into the plot, curious to find out what exactly she did.

About at the halfway point, the plot catches up to the opening and the real point of the story arrives. Bridget, through some aspect of the crash, ends up in some place where she is being judged for her ways in a very Christmas Carol-y way. Only, she just goes to the past and sees her behavior through the eyes of others. This part was pretty cool and did a good job of getting the point across without taking too much time or repetition. The plot is entirely straight forward, but still nifty.

The fantasy aspect of the story was definitely my favorite, but I am a bit confused/puzzled/stymied/bothered by what happened. It just doesn't make sense. What in the world transpired here? I think that perhaps some additional pages spent in the denouement might have helped. The ending was rather abrupt, at least in the galley version which I read.

This is a good, super quick read. The story is predictable, but a good message and not like many of the other books I have read recently. If you're looking for something quick, fun and a little bit quirky, give this a try!

"Stop right there.
That's exactly where I lost it.
See that line.
Well I never should have crossed it.
Stop right there.
Well I never should have said
That it's the very moment that I wish that I could take back.

I'm sorry for the person I became.
I'm sorry that it took so long for me to change.
I'm ready to be sure I never become that way again
'Cause who I am hates who I've been.
Who I am hates who I've been."