Level 2

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Seventeen-year-old Felicia Ward is dead and spending her time in the hive reliving her happy memories--but when Julian, a dark memory from her past, breaks into the hive and demands that she come with him, she discovers that even the afterlife is more complicated and dangerous then she dreamed.

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Squandered promise submitted by wampishing on June 24, 2013, 1:35pm Felicia Ward is dead, but she's still living, after a fashion. Trapped in the strange "level 2," where the deceased endlessly rewatch the memories of their lives, Felicia soon learns she's integral to both the plans of the dark and dissatisfied angels called the "Morati," and those of the rebellion. Rescued by Julian, an ex with unfortunate connections to her life on Earth, all Felicia wants is to reunite with the boy she loves. Instead, she's throw into a war between heaven and Level 2.

The text spent in the stark white world of the after-life tends toward exposition, with Felicia mostly learning about the world passively, as members of the resistance tell her about the realm that has trapped her with memory-addiction. The memories Felica re-experiences, out of order, throughout the story prove somewhat more active, but likewise do not flesh out the cast enough. The mix of technology and Christianity, somewhat at odds, could raise interesting questions, but remains unaddressd. The book meanders through the majority of the story, slowly revealing pieces of Felicia's life, and the rebellion's plans for her, before throwing out several abrupt twists all at once in the last chapters. Text on the cover and word from the author indicates this to be the first of a series, which may explain why several plot points remain unresolved, but the climax seems very close-ended, raising the question as to how the author intends to hook readers for the next installment. Overall, the books suffers from a lack of clarity of purpose, and the underdeveloped world and relationships reduce the impact of this unique take on life-after-death.