Everlost

by Neal Shusterman

A crash, flight through a dark tunnel, landing, sleep.
Nick and Allie are each in one of the cars involved in a head-on collision, and when they wake they’ve been forgotten in the nearby woods, but they’re still alive. Or are they?
When they meet a boy with no name, they are told that they have entered the world of Everlost and become Afterlights. Would you believe that if someone told you? Neither do Allie and Nick...until no one seems to see them and a bus passes right through Allie.
The two decide to make their ways towards home, to see whether their family members survived. Attacked by a gang of bullies along the way, the companions find refuge in the Everlost versions of the Twin Towers, a dead-spot that has become an Afterlight haven.
But soon Allie notices the pleasant way of life is strangely repetitive, and she knows she must find out why. Throw in a underhanded age-old six-year-old called the Haunter, who can actually lift and move living objects, and a legendary Everlost monster called the McGill (who reminded me of Disney’s Davy Jones), and you’ve got one adventurous and original book.

Everlost played almost like a movie in my head, and there is, in fact, a movie scheduled for adaptation with a 2009 release. The author created a very unique afterlife, the plot is well paced—with some unexpected twists—and the characters change believably throughout the story. However there were several unexplained questions that came up that I wish had been answered, like why don’t many animals cross into Everlost? And why do things such as Everlost balls sink into the ground of the living, while the boats of Everlost don’t sink through living water?
Overall, Everlost was really good and I’d recommend it to anyone. I wouldn’t say it was amazing, but then again I’m very selective about books.