Cute, adorable,fun!! I loved this weird/cute take on the afterlife. It sucked me in right away with a very strong and sassy voice. It wasn’t perfect and took some twists and turns that I didn’t love, but I always loved the characters and feel of this book. It was definitely a “me” book— plus, it’s set at THE MALL. Where is better to spend an afterlife? Or a reading experience? ( )

Erring on the side of four stars because I think I just don't really like YA. I enjoyed this one more than most. I wish there had been a little more humor, though. I mean, the title is hilarious, and the Mall of America being the afterlife is also funny. But it was sort of not funny outside of that. ( )

I Woke Up Dead at the Mall has a wonderful premise, teenagers from New York that are murdered or can't move on in the afterlife, end up at the Mall of America in Minnesota. Nobody there notices them because the mall is so noisy and busy. Sarah wakes up in the ugly bridesmaid's dress that she was wearing when she died at her father's wedding. She doesn't understand why she is there until Bertha, the death coach, explains to her that she has been murdered and can't move on until she "lets go" of her past life. The rest of the story is about her interactions with some of the other dead teenagers, including a cute boy named Nick, and trying to find out who murdered her and why.
I really enjoyed this story; it had me laughing and crying in equal amounts. The stories the teenagers tell about their deaths tugs at the heartstrings, but it's Sarah's no nonsense attitude and her sarcastic wit that elevates this book to something special. ( )

teen fiction (dead teens in the afterlife suspense/murder mystery romance?). This was sort of "ghost" meets "breakfast club," but actually a fun read. ( )

First of all, I have to talk about the concept of this book. As soon as I saw the title I had a feeling I was going to enjoy it. The mall? As purgatory?! Genius. The varying ideas and concepts in the story, such as the mall walkers and the spa, really developed an amazing setting for the plot to take place and creates an amazing picture for the reader. Honestly, I give an A for the concept and setting.

Moving along, I will say that I really enjoyed the main plot of the book. A dead teen must figure out why she was murdered and attempt to save her father who is also in danger. Definitely a solid read for my taste! It actually went a lot deeper than I expected it to. The Boy and the Boy-Girl were very interesting additions to the story and I loved their characterization. They really added another element to the book for me to enjoy.

However, just because I enjoyed the main aspects of the book doesn't mean the book in its entirety was all smooth sailing.

It's really hard to truly love a book when you're not a fan of the main character. I didn't necessarily hate Sarah, but I didn't like her all that much either. I didn't mind her in the beginning of the book (where I believe the story was most solid), but she was truly getting on my nerves near the end. I also really disliked the insta-love. While the scenario does provide an almost realistic situation where two kids could fall in love quickly in the afterlife, that's not how it's written. The love story is written in a manner that didn't make me ship the two characters, but rather roll my eyes. I feel like I may have liked the two characters better had they developed a slow romance or maybe even only hinted at the possibility till the end. It would've given the story more room to expand upon the main plot in addition to making it seem more realistic.

In truth, I don't actually feel like the story even needed romance in it at all. It's central plot is enough to carry the story and the part that made the book enjoyable for me personally. Overall, I would give this book 3 stars! ( )