If you're hoping to go into this novel blind, I recommend stopping here and reading the book instead. During said meet-up, there's a terrible accident, and this becomes the catalyst for the remainder of the novel. Sister Bea (fond nickname from her friends as she's the goody-two-shoes of the story) has just received a text from one of her old friends, however, and as Jim's 'suicide' was closed up relatively fast, Beatrice wants to grill her friends for answers under the guise of catching up and acting normal.

We find out in the first chapter that her boyfriend Jim died during their senior year, and as the enigmatic leader of the group of friends, everyone has split and started living their own lives. In the beginning, there was Beatrice, and the past year has been a rough go of it, if you know what I mean. A little astonishing that a book that I had initially marked DNF ended up being a 5 star read, huh? I guess that's just the beauty of reading, and how each experience is different for every person. Initially, I had attempted to listen to this via Audible, and I was having trouble connecting, so I put it on hold until just recently.

I'll admit, I was nervous going in I adore Night Film and I had seen some vastly differing opinions surrounding this one, so I wasn't quite sure where I would land. Gossamer Madwick, The Dark House at Elsewhere Bendīe still my heart Marisha Pessl has done it again! I'm amazed at how she can take such varying genres and subject matter and manage to grasp my attention so thoroughly no matter what she writes about. Otherwise, the plot was thought-provoking and unique, the characters were interesting and well-developed, and I had a fantastic time reading it. I was not totally blown away by the ending and there were certain reveals that felt unrealistic. I don’t have many critiques for Neverworld Wake. It was bizarre, yet easy to understand and engaging all the same. It reads like a typical mystery – other than the fact that the characters must solve it through the same 11-or-so hour period every day.

I expected this novel to have a much higher level of science fiction influence than it did, which I think helped me to enjoy the book more. I really enjoyed the world of Neverworld Wake. Neverworld Wake does retain a similar air of mystery to Night Film, but other than that, the story is entirely different. If you’re going into this book expected a young adult rendition of Night Film, don’t pick this one up. A great first young adult novel from Marisha Pessl! I really enjoyed this book! I managed to remain intrigued throughout the entire story.

Neverworld wake book