Grunge Gods and Graveyards by Kimberly G. Giarratano

Grunge Gods and Graveyards by Kimberly G. Giarratano
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Parted by death. Tethered by love.

Lainey Bloom’s high school senior year is a complete disaster. The popular clique, led by mean girl Wynter Woods, bullies her constantly. The principal threatens not to let her graduate with the class of 1997 unless she completes a major research project. And everyone blames her for the death of Wynter’s boyfriend, Danny Obregon.

Danny, a gorgeous musician, stole Lainey’s heart when he stole a kiss at a concert. But a week later, he was run down on a dangerous stretch of road. When he dies in her arms, she fears she’ll never know if he really would have broken up with Wynter to be with her.

Then his ghost shows up, begging her to solve his murder. Horrified by the dismal fate that awaits him if he never crosses over, Lainey seeks the dark truth amidst small town secrets, family strife, and divided loyalties. But every step she takes toward discovering what really happened the night Danny died pulls her further away from the beautiful boy she can never touch again.

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Lainey was a girl that I could really relate to. When she grieved, I empathized with her pain and when she was frustrated, angry, or in despair, I was as well. I laughed, I cried, I cheered for her and I had the strangest conviction that I understood her as a person and everything she'd been through in her life. I got to know everyone in Ash well... to the point that reaching the end of the book felt like saying goodbye to old friends. For me, this was a story where they all jumped off the page as living, breathing people.

The author described the town of Ash with the woods, cemeteries, and the high school in such detail that it was nothing at all to imagine myself there for a visit. The setting was creepy, hauntingly beautiful, and in it's own way had a certain charm.

The elements of the plot were woven together flawlessly, which was not something I'd expect from a debut at all. Actually, I still find it hard to believe that this is Kimberly Giarratano's first novel.

Teens and adults who enjoy a good mystery will love 'Grunge Gods' but I think only those who were young in the 90's can truly appreciate it for what it is. The tech, fashion, the music... it brought back so many good and bad memories and made me feel like I was 13 years old again!

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