Could you imagine being stuck in the same house you died in? That’s exactly what happens to Elle in Natalie Pearce’s Don’t Fade Away. This quirky book was pretty enjoyable to read and a little emotional. Here’s my review.
Elle is the protagonist of the story, but she’s already dead. Having died 4 years prior due to a nasty fall down the stairs, she’s stuck as a ghost doomed to roam the halls of her rundown rental property. Elle’s been living with Dean for years until he gets a new roommate, Ethan. While Dean has always been unaware of Elle’s presence, Ethan appears to have a sixth sense and it’s the first time Elle feels truly alive.
Elle is a likeable character. She’s quirky, witty, and you can feel how bored she is sitting in the house all day. I will say that she’s a little outspoken to the point that some of the quips she makes sound a little harsh, but I wrote that off as a girl who had nothing for entertainment. Besides, she’s had no human interaction for years so I guess I could give her a pass. She does seem to grow up a little when she finally figures out how to communicate with the male lead, Ethan.
Ethan is a ball of nerves when he shows up. There’s anxiety oozing from every pore of that man, but eventually, he finds the courage to explore his ability. He ends up using his skills to help Elle which leads to them figuring out why she doesn’t remember her death. And with each chapter, these two get closer and closer.
The plot was interesting enough, but I felt the pacing of the book was a little slow. The author did a great job with describing each emotion that each character was feeling but after a while it became repetitive. There was a lot of staring and blushing that I thought could’ve been dialed down because it didn’t add much to the plot. It almost made the characters sound like they were standing around doing nothing most of the time. It even stalled the dialogue flow between characters to the point that I was a little frustrated while reading. To say, the least, it was somewhat excessive, but once I was past most of that, I was able to get back to the meat of the book.
I wouldn’t say this book is necessarily a romance, although I could see where there might be some appeal. To me, it was more of a paranormal mystery and I was completely okay with that. It was pretty obvious what was going on from the beginning with Elle’s death, but the author did a good job keeping my interest in the relationship of the characters with one another. Overall, I’d recommend this to anyone looking for a feel-good ghost story.
If you like a mystery and the paranormal, this might be a book you want to check out. If you do, don’t forget to leave the author a review. As always, happy reading!
Author Lauren Eason 