With a head full of superstitions, a degenerated wishing fountain, a pack of Jason Donovans and a cheap crappy locket, Anna, the ever-present sidekick to the beautiful and shinning Rebecca, is for the first time in her life going to be the star of her own story.

Despite her mother's warnings against ghosts, Anna manages to attract the ghost of a good looking boy. The only problem, besides his annoying eighties attitude, is that no one else can see him and girls who are seen to talk to themselves are soon labelled a little crazy.

After making a promise to reunite her ghost boy with his true love Rebecca, Anna discovers there is more to this love story then first appears. A prelife, a prelove, will bring understanding and new life to a girl trapped by the actions of the past and closure for a boy trapped in the future.

Preloved is a story of a ghost trapped in time in search of his lost love, a story of a girl who is all but invisible to the world, a story of love, heartache and forgiveness. Packed full of ghostly superstitions, eighties references, witty confrontations and unrequited love this charming story is an enjoyable read. ( )

When I found out that Preloved involved ghosts, I immediately wondered what I’d gotten myself into because ghosts and I just don’t get along. If a movie with ghosts is in the theaters and my friends want to go see it, my face starts to have this weird twitch and then my voice raises a few octaves. "Oh that one? Oh, I've heard it is, like, TERRIBLE. Like worse than that Adam Sandler movie where he plays a guy and a girl. Worse than the worst Lifetime movie ever was. No I'm not just saying that because it has ghosts in it!" (that last bit is because they know I am saying it solely because it has ghosts in it.) As it turns out, I will have to carve out an exception in section of my ghost hatred for Preloved. Here's a very scientific chart to explain my interest in literary and/or cinematic ghosts:



If I was being completely accurate, I'd add a few ghosts or pseudo-ghosts from history that I find marginally entertaining: Kevin Costner's dad in Field of Dreams, Marley & Marley from Muppet Christmas Carol (ONLY the Muppet one), Slimer from Ghostbusters, whatever it is going on in The Sixth Sense, and the ghosts from Heart and Souls with Robert Downey, Jr. And now I like them in Preloved.

Whether or not you are familiar with Marr's debut novel, [b:Fury|8159643|Fury |Shirley Marr|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1330971889s/8159643.jpg|13002023], doesn't matter one iota going into this book because it reads in an entirely different way. Say Shirley Marr's books are Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Fury would be at the serious level of a big fight scene. Preloved is like reading a book about Willow meeting a ghost from the 1980s, if Willow were Chinese with a superstitious mother who ran an antique shop. Amy Lee, the protagonist, is someone who would be the "wacky best friend" or "forgotten girl" in most other stories and television shows. Her best friend is always overshadowing her, she isn't really exceptional in any way, and guys seem to look right through her. On a costume day at school, she finds a locket that makes Amy the only person able to see a boy from the 1980s. The plot follows Amy on her quest to figure out who Logan is and why she is the only person who can see him.

Overall, I liked the campy tone and the numerous pop culture references. I liked being reminded of just how far technology has come in such a short time. And honestly, I don't know if there is such a thing as too many movie references in a book for me, especially when it comes to The Princess Bride and Labyrinth. Another highlight throughout the book was Amy's mother, who peppered the story with her little anecdotes about ways to avoid ghosts or other superstitions. I wish Marr dug deeper into the emotional elements in the story--the moments with Amy and her mother were lovely, but I wish there was more development of their relationship. Preloved moved very quickly, which is fun, but it was to the detriment of the story. Near the end of the book, there is quite a surprise, at least it was surprise to me, and the book takes a more serious turn. I'm not going to say I wish it hadn't done that. It was refreshing to be surprised, even if I felt a bit foolish to not see it earlier, but I still think the resolution was too hurried. All in all, the book could've used about twenty more pages of emotional depth. I have a lot of unanswered questions.

I think readers who enjoy humorous YA will eat this one up. It is a fast read with entertaining characters and I learned a thing or two about Chinese culture. Don't forget to enter to win a copy from us (and Walker Books!) and visit Shirley on her blog tour stops starting next week. There will be tons of fun information to be had, for sure.

3.5/5 stars ( )

Adorable. Veronica read it first and thought it was very like [a:Sarah Dessen|2987|Sarah Dessen|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1208460253p2/2987.jpg], and I agree. Amy Lee is sixteen, living with her mother after the divorce in a second-hand shop, hanging with her best and only friend Rebecca. And then she finds a locket, meets a ghost and everything is changed.

Well, of course I loved the extensive references to the 80s: the music, the movies, the clothes. Fun stuff. And I loved the relationships: Amy's devotion to Rebecca, her interactions with other Asians at her school, her closeness with her mum (despite the lack of hugging). But even more than that, I loved the skeptical approach she takes toward the new ghost in her life. I love that her friends and her mum seeing her going through a weird phrase and do something about it, I love that she questions the existence and motives of the ghost as much as Hamlet does.

There is charm here, and the sweetness of daily life, and the difficulties, and an ending that doesn't try to tie up everything in a bow. I didn't actually get to blow out any candles, but for my birthday wish I want a new book by Marr every year. ( )

Adorable. Veronica read it first and thought it was very like [a:Sarah Dessen|2987|Sarah Dessen|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1208460253p2/2987.jpg], and I agree. Amy Lee is sixteen, living with her mother after the divorce in a second-hand shop, hanging with her best and only friend Rebecca. And then she finds a locket, meets a ghost and everything is changed.

Well, of course I loved the extensive references to the 80s: the music, the movies, the clothes. Fun stuff. And I loved the relationships: Amy's devotion to Rebecca, her interactions with other Asians at her school, her closeness with her mum (despite the lack of hugging). But even more than that, I loved the skeptical approach she takes toward the new ghost in her life. I love that her friends and her mum seeing her going through a weird phrase and do something about it, I love that she questions the existence and motives of the ghost as much as Hamlet does.

There is charm here, and the sweetness of daily life, and the difficulties, and an ending that doesn't try to tie up everything in a bow. I didn't actually get to blow out any candles, but for my birthday wish I want a new book by Marr every year. ( )