Touching the Surface by Kimberly Sabatini was one of the most touching, beautiful books I have ever had the chance to read. It was marvelous in just about every way, and was a perfect debut from Kimberly Sabatini.

I loved Kimberly Sabatini's take on the afterlife. It was refreshing and new. Kimberly Sabatini managed to create this perfect balance in Touching the Surface - there were just the right amount of funny scenes to balance out the more serious, and it was such a treat to read. Kimberly S More...

TOUCHING THE SURFACE by Kimberly Sabatini (Simon Pulse - 9/4/12)

I am the lucky first from the Class of 2k12 debut writers group to read this beautifully written, highly anticipated ARC of Kimberly Sabatini’s TOUCHING THE SURFACE, about a teenage girl named Elliot’s death and her experience in the afterlife. Anyone’s death gives us cause to think about life, but the death of a teenager is especially tragic. I got this ARC in the mail a week ago, one day after I learned of the sudden death of an More...

One of my very favorite subgenres of fiction deals with stories about the afterlife. I spend a rather indecent amount of time considering what life after death might consist of and my only completed work of fiction dealt with that topic. Touching the Surface has been on my radar because of its subject matter, its beautiful cover (which looks like the work of my friend Annie and fits the book perfectly), and the author's participation in the Apocalypsies. As ever when embarking upon a book with h More...

This book was incredible! I loved it! Congratulations Kim on getting published! I am so glad to finally have gotten to read this, since my sister stole it from me... LOL. I loved nearly every aspect of the novel, from the writing to the setting- I mean, who couldn't be interested by the Obmil?- to the CHARACTERS to the plot as a whole. I actually wasn't sure how much I liked Elliot at first, and I definitely wasn't sure about puppy-dog Oliver, but as the book progressed I grew to love and unders More...

Review originally posted on my blog http://hobbitsies.net/2012/10/touchin...

Touching the Surface by Kimberly Sabatini blew my freaking mind. Touching the Surface is one of those books where I was going “what the effffff” all the way through and still found myself sobbing at the end.

I’m at a loss to describe my feelings for Touching the Surface. It was just unbelievably beautiful and freaking confusing and just one of those books that is going to stick with me.

I loved that Touching the Surface wa More...

3 stars.
Delving into your memories is more painful than it sounds.

Elliot Turner has died...again. When she finds herself in the afterlife for the third time, she knows she has to up her game as this is her last chance to reach enlightenment. Elliot must 'Delve' into the memories of her past life, the ones full of hurt, pain and sorrow. As Elliot starts to put the puzzle together, she realises that she and her friends might have a connection that could make or break their chance to move on.

Touchi More...

The idea about a girl caught in limbo and having to break down walls, she built in her former life, while in a world where she could create anything in her imagination is what first attracted me to the book. Only now I'm not entirely sure how I feel/felt about this book. I definitely think it was written really well, and the themes of the book were definitely thought provoking. But I think I definitely needed more. The ending with Julia gone I was unsure whether she left Obmil (limbo) like Ellio More...

I always love when I find a book that is completely different from the other Young Adult books that I have been reading lately and Touching the Surface was just that kind of book. It was a beautifully written and refreshing story.

Elliot is dead for the third time and she has no idea how it happened. All she knows is that she did something bad and she is forced to face the memories before moving on. Elliot was a strongly developed character. She's just simply realistic. She's made some huge mista More...

This was a strange book from the beginning, but in a good way. Ever wonder what happens to you when you die? Well, this book has a strange take on that subject.

Elliot, (weird name for a girl) had now died for the third time. She finds herself back at the Obmil, where 1st through 3rd timers go once they die. There she meets up with Mel, the woman who is a kind of therapist for those returning to the Obmil, and Freddie, who is the "front desk" guy, giving the newcomers their rooms and such.

Elliot More...

I give this book a 3.5 stars.

Upon reading the synopsis for this book I initially thought that it would be similar to Before I fall by Lauren Oliver, where the protagonist relives days of her life to figure out why she is stuck in limbo. However,this book revolves around the struggles of a soul that has found its way back to purgatory for a third time. Instead of returning to the world of the living, the soul stays in limbo, but travels through memories to learn the lesson that is supposed to hel More...

There are books that I enjoy profoundly as an adult, and then there are books that give me this yawning ache in my chest because I wish, I wish they had been around when I was a teenager, and hurting, and lonely, and thinking about all these questions of life, love, death, forgiveness, and this strange notion of forgiving yourself.

TOUCHING THE SURFACE is both of those books. I loved it--a lush fantasy (seems like the wrong word for it, but still) world of ever changing dimensions, Elliot finds More...

There's something particularly fascinating about books set in the afterlife. It's a purely unknowable world, yet at the same time one that might actually exist. In Kimberly Sabatini's afterlife - the Obmil - you get three chances to examine your past and complete your life's journey next time. Elliot Turner is a Third Timer and knows this is her last chance to get it right. It's time to go past the surface.

Elliot's journey to self-discovery is complicated by two things. One, her best friend (who More...

Read Review at Bewitched Bookworms

What can we learn from Life?
That is one of the most basic questions and Kimberly Sabatani beautifully addressed this in a paranormal after-life setting. Each Soul goes to an after life place to examine what they learned and maybe also buried in their previous life span. Elliot already had the chance to live 3 times and should have already managed to learn from her mistakes and examine carefully her soul. But, it’s not as easy as it seems and Elliot struggles More...

I believe we are on this Earth to learn something. If we learned it, your next life would be better. If you didn't, you would have to learn that lesson plus another lesson in your next life until you succeeded in achieving all life lessons. With that being said, this book follows along the similar values that I have when it comes to spirituality so this book captivated me. Plus the story line was fantastic.

This author writes a story with so many sub-stories, I cannot even count. Somehow she wra More...

Originally posted here (scroll down for Italiani): http://theloyalbook.blogspot.it/2013/...

Touching the surface by Kimberly Sabatini has one of those settings which fascinates me, a compelling plot and a wonderful message. It's a novel where memories, death, life, sorrow, pain, forgiveness and love all come together in order to create a sweet and lovely story that had me up at night.

The book is set in the Ombil, a kind of limbo where souls go after they die when they haven't figured out their ow More...

Landing in the afterlife for a third time Elliot knows she's messed up, before she can move on she has to figure out how she landed dead again. As she digs deeper she learns of the people she's hurt, betrayed, and even killed. It's not just her who needs to figure out the pieces but other rely on her as well, Trevor, Julia, and Oliver. They also must convince Elliot that in order to truly move on she must forgive herself and let the past be the past. All of their lives are somehow entwined and More...

This book is about a girl who is dead and in this place where she stays and remember her past in order to go on to the next life. However, remembering her past is not as easy as it seems when there are two brothers and she like one of them and the other brother likes her. Also in this life, her best friend in the world turns her back on her. Now she is in this place to figure out what is going on.
I thought that this book was very confusing since they were a lot of past names going on. The girl More...

The novel did deliver in the aspects of various concepts of afterlife. And that was about all that interested me in this book. Fortunately, that was the most discussed topic in this novel and what made me finish this book. I loved the idea of "delving" and how we looked back on our past lives and learned from them. What also fascinated me was the concept that we decide as humans to put ourselves in either personal hell or heaven. I never thought about how we had the choice of being happy or sad More...

3.5 out of 5 rating

I had been in a little bit of a reading slump so this was a nice change. I easily fell into reading the story--the words just flowed so well for me and I found myself halfway through the book quicker than I imagined.

I do have to admit that I found myself rolling my eyes a couple of times, especially at the way the word "love" was thrown around. But that didn't diminish from my enjoyment.

I enjoyed reading this version of the afterlife. The idea of souls going into humans sever More...

I received this book in a giveaway and I honestly expected another cookie cutter YA novel. Let me tell you, this is not cookie cutter in the least. The whole book was deep, meaningful, and lacked the "so romantic I could vomit" aspect of most YA debut novels.

The story itself is about life, death, and what comes in between. I'll admit that I had a little trouble picturing an afterlife that reminded me of a cross between rehab and a resort, but after the plot really picked up, everything was crys More...

I have had the pleasure of watching this book grow! I have read her manuscripts three different times and can not wait until I have the publish copy in my hand! Thank you Kim for allowing me to be part of this journey with you!

When I found out that I won a hardcover copy of this book, I was ecstatic! When it finally came in the mail, I was eager to start. And when I started, I cannot put it down!

I've never read books with afterlife themes before, so this is a new experience. And it's great! Kimberly Sabatini is definitely my kind of author. I fell in love with her writing, the plot, the characters...everything.

I think the world of Obmill is very interesting. I like how the surroundings change to reflect your mind and More...

I took waaaaaay to long to read this- I had to wait a while for it since it kept getting checked out of the library by teens (a VERY good sign)- but it was worth the wait. After a year of assault by zombie books and dystopian violence, here was a thoughtful, beautiful, lush story of the afterlife, relationships, and the power of love. The Obmil was described so well I could picture it- the characters well fleshed out I can picture them. While the (gorgeous) cover may appeal to girls, this is a s More...

The tale begins when Elliot bursts from the surface into the Obmil or afterlife. She discovers she has died again and is now a third timer to the Obmil. Here she will need to gain perspective and delve into her past life in search of answers and acceptance. Only when she reaches enlightenment will she moves on to her next life. The tale that unfolds was filled with mystery, painful memories, happy memories and characters that kept me enthralled.

I adored and appreciated the diverse and fleshed ou More...

Kimberly Sabatini’s Touching the Surface is the intriguing story of Elliot who finds herself dead for the third time. Some would say that third time is the charm but for Elliot, being dead for the third time means she has messed up really bad. She has no recollection as to how she ended up here again and all she wants is to move on. But she knows that the afterlife will force her to relive painful memories of her life. She realizes that she needs to make things right especially with the people t More...

I won a copy of this as a GoodReads First Reads.
The story is intriguing. What would you do if you realized you had died for a third time and were back in Obmil, which meant that you had to figure out something about your live(s) and change that to try and move "on"?

I really enjoyed this story. Getting to be with Elliot as she tried to discover and resolve what it was that needed to be changed was incredibly interesting. The characters perform "delving", which involves delving into your past life More...

This review can originally be found at The Twins Read .

"...Over and over, we die so we can start again. What's the point of the pain - of the missing?" -p. 267

Elliot is dead. Again. And she's back in the Afterlife trying to find out why she can't seem to move on. She must unravel her past mistakes and the secrets that keep her stranded in this afterlife alone and confused. But that isn't exactly easy when you have two familiar boys, tugging you in different directions. Add to that her feelings More...

Ladies and gentlemen, buckle up because this is going to be one long review. Why, you may ask, is this going to be an exceptionally long review? Well, the answer is actually quite simple. This book made me feel so many different emotions. I loved it, then I hated it, then I loved it even more, but I went back to hating it. It's so wonderfully complex that I didn't know what to feel. And it took an insane amount of deliberation for me to decide on a rating that I think it rightfully deserves. But More...

Rated 3.5 really. Review to come.
First thoughts: it was different. Having read more than my fair share of afterlife-and-such books (which I have a huge penchant for), I can state that much. Comparing it with other books I loved more (whatever the reason), I had to give TTS a lower rate, but this doesn't mean the novel fails to deliver. TTS is a quiet book, but that's okay, because being quiet actually suits it. On the other hand, the emotions underneath are very powerful - so much that they're a More...