Thirteen Reasons Why

Title: Thirteen Reasons Why

Author: Jay Asher

Genre: Realistic Fiction, Contemporary YA 

Pages: 288

Stars: 3/5

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Clay Jensen knows that Hannah is dead.  He knows that his first real love killed herself.  But what he doesn't know is the thirteen reasons why. 

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I had pretty high expectations for this book, just because of the amount of recommendations I got for it, and I'm sorry to say it wasn't as good as I was hoping.  However, I did still enjoy it.  It was extraordinarily fascinating, meaning I found it very interesting.  

Hannah Baker recently killed herself, and nobody's sure why. Nobody, that is, except for a select few who receive a box of cassette tapes on their front doorsteps.  On the collection of 7 tapes are the thirteen reasons why Hannah Baker committed suicide. This book follows Clay Jensen, the ninth person to receive the tapes, and his thoughts and actions as he listens.  

I want to start off by saying I did enjoy this book.  It was interesting, it was fast paced, and it was certainly very profound and symbolic.  And the way Jay Asher finishes this book is absolutely phenomenal.  My only problem is that is lacked something.  I can't quite put my finger on it, to be honest, but I feel like I was expecting some major plot twist or suspenseful climax or something that just never happened.  It was lacking something.  And so I'm giving this three stars, because it was okay. It wasn't bad, but it was nothing amazing.  Perhaps my expectations were just too high.  

So should you read it?  If you want something that allows you to look into the mind of a suicidal teenager, or a novel with very deep, symbolic features, then yes.  It's certainly a page turner, and if you're looking for a fast paced novel, try picking this up.  But like I said, I'm neutral with this book, and it's not something I enjoyed as much as I was hoping.