Book Review
Title: Things I’d Rather Do Than Die
Author: Christine Hurley Deriso
Genre: YA/Romance
Rating: ***
Review: So, the premise of this novel is quite basic, two people who have ideas about the other are locked in a room together and are forced to confront their prejudices and each other. The opening to Things I’d Rather Do Than Die was great, we are introduced to Jade who is sick from what I gather and work at a gym as a part-time job while being in school. Jade seems to be an outlier and doesn’t really fit in anywhere but she doesn’t stand out either. We are also introduced to Ethan who is the kind of guy you sit up and take notice of thanks to his good genes and charming personality.
Neither teenager really knows much about the other, but they are thrown together when the gym is robbed, and they end up getting trapped in a room together by the robber. Being locked in together with no way out until tomorrow morning when the manager returns Jade and Ethan decide to get to know each other but it starts with them basically trading insults and apologies for a while, but I have a feeling things are going to get much deeper as the novel progresses. As we approach the ¼ mark in the novel, I was under the impression that the whole novel would be set during the lock-in but by 3am the pair have been rescued by the police thanks to Brianne, Ethan’s girlfriend and now they have to return to their “normal” lives but after their conversations I don’t think that is going to be possible.
As we cross the ¼ mark in the novel, Jade is struggling with her life as it turns out it is her father that is ill not Jade and that he has cancer. It is obvious that Jade was in denial but after her own brush with death, she can’t think that way anymore. Ethan, on the other hand, takes his conversations with Jade to heart and begins questioning his relationship and his religion.
As we approach the halfway mark in the novel, it is clear to see something is growing between Jade and Ethan I am not sure what it is yet, but Brianne isn’t happy about it and Ethan doesn’t like her behaviour towards Jade. One of the best scene by far is watching Jade get drunk for what I assume is the first time and rush to Ethan’s defence when his father tries making him feel bad. It is strange to see two characters who have a lot in common in terms of their home life as Ethan’s dad is a drunk and Jade’s birth mother abandoned them when they were little so they both understand what is it like to only have one parent but Jade does have her step-mother.
As we cross into the second half of the novel, I don’t know what happened. One minute the budding relationship between the kind and devote Ethan and the cool and cynical Jade seemed so cute but now it seems so toxic. Between Brianne’s jealously and Jade’s coolness Ethan is questioning everything that he is but one thing they have in common is both feel more alone than ever before, Ethan because he is questioning his religion and Jade because her only friend is becoming more social and is leaving her behind.
As we approach the ¾ mark in the novel, Ethan and Brianne finally break up when she kisses another boy while they’re still dating even after Ethan has tried his damn hardest to make their relationship work. Meanwhile, Jade isn’t happy with her relationship with Rob either, but she is still hung up on Ethan even if she can’t or won’t admit it to herself.
As we cross into the final section of the novel, I honestly felt the book would have been 100x better if all the back and forth between Ethan and Brianne was scraped, Ethan and Jade got together earlier and the epilogue was extended so we actually got to see the real impact her father’s illness had on Jade and her newfound relationship with Ethan.
Buy it here:
Paperback/Hardcover: amazon.co.uk amazon.com
Kindle Edition: amazon.co.uk amazon.com
I received this review copy from NetGalley
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