Chasing Brooklyn by Lisa Schroeder

Publishing House: Simon Pulse
Release Date: January 5, 2010
Pages: 412
Rating: A+

Summary: Brooklyn can't sleep. Her boyfriend, Lucca, died only a year ago, and now her friend Gabe has just died of and overdose. Every time she closes her eyes, Gabe's ghost is there waiting for her. She has no idea what he wants, or why it isn't Lucca visiting her dreams.

Nico can't stop. He's always running, trying to escape the pain of losing his brother, Lucca. But when Lucca's ghost begins leaving messages telling Nico to help Brooklyn, emotions come crashing to the surface.

At the nightmares escalate and the messages becomes relentless, Nico reaches out to Brooklyn. But neither of them can admit that they're being haunted. Until they learn to let each other in, not one soul will be able to meet.

Review: I know I said that my next book review would be Ballad by Maggie Stiefvater but ever since Chasing Brooklyn arrived I have been itching to read it. I am definitely very happy that I finally did give in; Chasing Brooklyn was seriously a new favourite of mine. I can easily say its in the top running (along with Let it Snow, Shiver, and Looking for Alaska) for my favourite book of all time!

This book is set up, instead of prose, in poems; it's not usually the type of book I read because it's this way so, if I wouldn't have won it, I probably wouldn't have picked it up. Chasing Brooklyn has definitely made me realize that I had judged these types of books way too soon, and as soon as I can, I will be buying Lisa's first two books, Far From You and I Heart You, You Haunt Me. I also don't usually go for ghost stories; but again, this book has made me realize that you can't be quick to judge.

I finished this book in about 4 hours (not consecutively but all together) and last night it was very hard for me to go to bed because I only had about 60 pages left and I was dying to know what was going to happen with the two main characters, Nico and Brooklyn. It was very rare to find myself not smiling at something that was going on.

All in all, Chasing Brooklyn was a really good book; if you like books that aren't all about love and happiness (even if you like all that), I think you would really enjoy this book. Lisa puts in just enough sorrow, happy, suspense, and love to make this one fantastic novel!

Next to Read: Ballad by Maggie Stiefvater (for real this time)