Book Review: I Swear.

"You see clearly for the first time what made the terrible things so frightening in the first place: You didn't think you'd survive. But you do."

Author: Lane Davis.
Release Date: September 4th, 2012.
Description: 288 pages, Paperback.
Availability: Amazon, $10,36.
Genre: YA, Drama.
Rating: 4 Stars.

Resume: Leslie Gatlin killed herself. Suddenly, her former bullies are in hot water; Leslie's parents filed a wrongful death lawsuit against them. The ringleader in Leslie's bullying, the cruel Macie Merrick, is gathering her troupes to make sure that she won't be blamed for the girl's death. Now Beth, Jillian and Katherine must decides if they'll go along with Macie's story or expose themselves and reveal the truth about what happened to Leslie. And Jake, Jillian's twin brother, the one who claimed to be in love with Leslie, is he really as innocent as he says he is?

Review: This novel is alternating between the POV's of the four main characters; Beth, Katherine, Jillian and Jake. I thought it was interesting that this book is written from the point-of-view of the bullies instead of the victim. That's something that we don't get a lot from YA novels. The book is divided in short and effective chapters which contain flashbacks of Leslie's bullying before her tragic death. The subject; bullying and suicide, isn't an easy one to tackle and Davis does it pretty well.

The characters are somewhat stereotyped and lack depths. Macie Merrick is a one-dimensional mean girl. We only get to see her hard, cold and shiny armor but not what's inside. She's a mix of Courtney Shayne (From the movie Jawbreaker) and Blair Waldorf (From the series Gossip Girl) She is just as mean and cruel as Shayne and as manipulative and power-driven as Waldorf. We get chapters from all of Leslie's bullies, except Macie, which I thought was a shame because she probably would have been the most interesting and gripping to read. Jillian, the girl who was friends with Leslie once but who turned her back on her, is described has a pushover who's been under Macie's thumb since they were kids. Davis painted her as a shallow person who lacks empathy towards other people. She seemed to care little about Leslie's suicide and more about her well-being. Beth is this fragile and guilt-driven character who has an interesting back story. However, Davis didn't have to make her break down and sob uncontrollably every other pages to make us understand that she felt guilty. Katherine is a strong character and the only one that I could really connect with throughout I Swear. She is a head-strong girl who, willingly entered the bullying circle to benefit her pageant career. Katherine is also the only one who admits that she did something wrong very early on in the novel. And finally, there's Jake. I don't know where to start with Jake. For the most part, I liked him. He is the boy who was in love with Leslie, but he is also the one who knew about the abuse Leslie endured and who didn't do anything to save her from it. Outside of him loving Leslie, Davis doesn't give us much on Jake. The character development is really lacking from this book.

The tone of the book is dark and humorless as it should be. There is a few effective twists in the novel that will keep you interested and on your toes.

I had a problem with the ending which I really didn't like. It was a realistic ending, that's not why I disliked it. It was more because it felt rushed and that it was about everything but Leslie. I, personally, would have liked Jake to close the book instead of Jillian.

Overall, I liked I Swear. That book will help you put the way you threat people in perspective. The bullied to death subject has been explored by other novels and movies before, but I think it's still worth it to read I Swear. It's a book that should be read by teens and their parents to help them understand the consequences of their actions, not only socially but emotionally. Throughout the novel, Davis made me care about Leslie and successfully made the readers feel her pain and despair. I would recommend it without thinking twice.