Listen to a sample
The Sweet Dead Life
- Author
- Joy Preble
- Narrator
- Madeleine Lambert
- Publisher
- Blackstone Publishing
- Publish Date
- 14 May 2013
- Run Time
- 6 hours 7 minutes
- Format
- Audiobook
What to expect
"I found out two things today: One, I think I'm dying. And two, my brother is a perv."
So begins the diary of fourteen-year-old Jenna Samuels, who is having a very bad eighth-grade year. Her single mother spends all day in bed. Dad vanished when she was eight. Her sixteen-year-old brother, Casey, tries to hold together what's left of the family by working two after-school jobs—difficult, as he's stoned all the time. To make matters worse, Jenna is sick. When she collapses one day, Casey tries to race her to the hospital in their beat-up Prius and crashes instead.
Jenna wakes up in the ER to find Casey beside her. Beatified. Literally. The flab and zits? Gone. Before long, Jenna figures out that Casey didn't survive the accident at all. He's an "A-word" (she can't bring herself to utter the truth). Soon they discover that Jenna isn't just dying; she's being poisoned. And Casey has been sent back to help solve the mystery that not only holds the key to her survival, but also to their mother's mysterious depression and father's disappearance.
Critics Review
-
“A smart, sassy, supernatural mystery chock-full of heart, hope, and fun.”
Cynthia Leitich Smith, New York Times bestselling author
-
“A snarky, sarcastic murder mystery that I absolutely couldn’t put down!”
Jack and Jill Magazine
-
“Jenna’s sarcastic and sassy tone will easily resonate with readers, and her keen observations are derisive and laugh-out-loud funny.”
Kirkus Reviews
-
“There’s a whole lot going on here: poisonings, blackmail, sibling relationships, romance, and abandonment, in addition to angels, but the unifying thread is Jenna’s clever, bitter, self-aware, and loving voice…Preble’s lively descriptions and unusually well-drawn, caring sibling relationship (a topic not usually explored in teen fiction) are especially noteworthy.”
Booklist
See more reviews See fewer reviews
-
“Bizarre? Yes, very. Fun to read? Yes, very.”
Examiner
-
“The Sweet Dead Life is mischief and mayhem, zippy one-liners, mystery and a tiny bit of tragedy. A-word: Awesome.”
E. Lockhart, author of The Boyfriend List
User Reviews
No reviews yet.
Details
- Author
- Joy Preble
- Narrator
- Madeleine Lambert
- Duration
- 6 hours 7 minutes
- Release Date
- 14 May 2013
- ISBN
- 9781482100631
- Format
- Audiobook
- Publisher
- Blackstone Publishing
- Genre
- Children’s / Teenage fiction: Horror and ghost stories, chillers, Children’s / Teenage fiction: Crime and mystery fiction, Children’s / Teenage fiction: Fantasy, Children’s / Teenage general interest: Mysteries and the unexplained
Synopsis
"I found out two things today: One, I think I'm dying. And two, my brother is a perv." So begins the diary of fourteen-year-old Jenna Samuels, who is having a very bad eighth-grade year. Her single mother spends all day in bed. Dad vanished when she was eight. Her sixteen-year-old brother, Casey, tries to hold together what's left of the family by working two after-school jobs—difficult, as he's stoned all the time. To make matters worse, Jenna is sick. When she collapses one day, Casey tries to race her to the hospital in their beat-up Prius and crashes instead. Jenna wakes up in the ER to find Casey beside her. Beatified. Literally. The flab and zits? Gone. Before long, Jenna figures out that Casey didn't survive the accident at all. He's an "A-word" (she can't bring herself to utter the truth). Soon they discover that Jenna isn't just dying; she's being poisoned. And Casey has been sent back to help solve the mystery that not only holds the key to her survival, but also to their mother's mysterious depression and father's disappearance.
About xigxag
xigxag is an independent, UK-based audiobook platform and the UK's only B Corp certified audiobook company. We offer nearly 150,000 audiobooks, all with professional human narration. No AI-generated voices. xigxag is rated an Ethical Consumer Best Buy for audiobooks and a top-rated ethical bookshop.
There is no subscription. You buy the audiobooks you want, you own them permanently, and prices start at $13.95. The more you listen over the year, the less you pay per book, and there is always a selection in Listen for Less from $7.95. You can also send audiobooks as gifts using our audiobook gift cards or in-app gifting.
Every audiobook on xigxag has honest reviews covering both the book and the narration, and our community features make it easy to share what you are listening to, discover what others recommend, and find your next listen.
Download or stream on iOS, Android, or in your browser. Browse the full catalogue at xigxag.co.uk.