Review: Die for Me by Amy Plum

Die for Me
by Amy Plum
Series: Revenants #1
Published: 10 May 2011
HarperTeen, Hardcover, 341 pages
Source: Library

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In the City of Lights, two star-crossed lovers battle a fate that is destined to tear them apart again and again for eternity.

When Kate Mercier’s parents die in a tragic car accident, she leaves her life–and memories–behind to live with her grandparents in Paris. For Kate, the only way to survive her pain is escaping into the world of books and Parisian art. Until she meets Vincent.

Mysterious, charming, and devastatingly handsome, Vincent threatens to melt the ice around Kate’s guarded heart with just his smile. As she begins to fall in love with Vincent, Kate discovers that he’s a revenant–an undead being whose fate forces him to sacrifice himself over and over again to save the lives of others. Vincent and those like him are bound in a centuries-old war against a group of evil revenants who exist only to murder and betray. Kate soon realizes that if she follows her heart, she may never be safe again.

Rating: ★★★½

First off, I really wanted to like this book. Paris, romance, zombies that don’t look gross or rot and a stunning cover, sounds pretty darn good to me. However, Die for Me was well, not good enough to die for (pun sort of intended). One huge let down for me was the romance. Insta-love. Shudder. Kate and Vincent’s relationship progressed way too fast and all that ‘I feel such a deep connection with him/her’ stuff was downright painful to read.

I’ve seen many reviewers praising the romance in this book, so maybe my expectations were a little high… But nonetheless, insta-love was obviously present because there were not enough evidence and events to support their great ‘love’. The protagonist, Kate, was quite a bland character and Vincent was just too perfect. So the characters could use some work.

Moreover, the story was really slow at the start with most of the action occurring only in the last few chapters. However, it wasn’t very bothersome as the slow start was kind of light and fluffy as it focused on Kate and Vincent’s budding relationship. Which makes me wonder why their romance still seem so undeveloped when a huge chunk of the book was dedicated to it.

But moving on from the bad to the good, the setting of the book was absolutely gorgeous. I literally felt transported to Paris. All the little cafés, museums, the river Seine and last but not least, the Eiffel Tower. I could see it all in my mind’s eye. It felt kind of like a mini vacation to Paris!

The paranormal aspect of the story was also very interesting. It was actually what urged me to continue reading this book when I got a little bored halfway through. I’ve never really been a fan of zombies due to all that rotting, so imagine how pleasantly surprised I was when I found out that the zombies in Die for Me were not decomposing corpses!

After I had finished Die for Me, it hit me that it reminded me a little of Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick, which I did not really like. Okay, that was an understatement. I didn’t like it at all. But the fact that Kate, despite her helplessness due to her normalcy and mortality, tried to help out and was willing to learn how to defend herself really set her apart from the damsel in distress of a protagonist in Hush, Hush. That definitely made me like Die for Me better.

In conclusion, Die for Me is a scenic and surprisingly fluffy book about zombies, I mean, Revenants. I wouldn’t recommend it to those with zero tolerance for insta-love nor those who like their zombies decaying and gruesome. However, I’m pretty sure this book would intrigue fans of YA paranormal with a big dose of fast paced romance.

Adelena