7 Souls

Apr 10, 2011 Amber Carson rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorite-books

I would definitely say this is amazing! It is currently 2:25am and I have stayed up to finish this book. I could not put it down and i knew there was no way i could ever sleep until I finished 7 souls so i didn't even try, i just made myself comfy and finished the book. now i must sleep so expect a longer more detailed review to come.

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Aug 06, 2011 Justin added it

This novel has to the most unexpected favourite that I have recently read. I always have a bit hesitation when I pick up a stand-alone book because sometimes the story is rushed to meet a 300-page conclusion and I'm always left feeling robbed but this book really made up for all those other books I have read.

The definite high points of the book was that the storyline was amazing right from the beginning because I was left wondering what had just happened, like did she just get drunk and pass ou...more

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May 25, 2013 Bianca rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: letti-dall-apertura-del-blog

http://toccareilcieloconunlibro.blogs...
Se volete un consiglio, non leggete la trama di questo libro.Perché ne svela più della metà.Se siete curiosi di leggerlo e volete informarvi sulla storia vi basterà sapere che 7 il numero maledetto tratta di una storia molto, molto particolare.
E' il giorno del diciassettesimo compleanno di Mary.Il giorno perfetto, che lei aspettava da tanti anni, è finalmente arrivato.
Peccato che vada tutto storto.
Per iniziare, Mary si sveglia in un letto da Crate & Ba...more

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Mar 29, 2012 Star (The Bibliophilic Book Blog) rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: reviewed

Mary Shayne, who is the IT girl at her high school is having an awful birthday. It started from the moment she woke up, hung over and disoriented, and found herself lying naked on a display bed in a furniture store with weird scratches down her back and no memory of the night before. At school everyone forgets her birthday and her boyfriend breaks up with her. However, that’s not the worst to come – she’s murdered later that night.

That’s the whole story, right? Wrong. Mary finds herself waking u...more

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Dec 14, 2011 Caitlin rated it 2 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Okay so the book was interesting and because I was on holidays with nothing better to do I was hooked and finished it in a few hours. However, this had less to do with the book being enjoyable and more to do with the my annoying curiousity where I have find out how the mystery ends, but I could never commit the most heinous crime a reader can - skipping to the end of the book :)In the end while it did have satisfactory twists and an alright ending, I was left feeling rather depressed about the w...more

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Dec 17, 2010 Susan rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: read_and_review

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. 7 Souls has a propulsive energy and certainly once started, a reader will want to find out how Mary dies and who is ultimately responsible for her death. The problem is the underlying reason for the plot to kill her and how quickly the logic and morality of it fall apart under scrutiny.

Mary's sister Ellen blames her for the near-death of their mother a decade before, but it turns out that Mary was the pawn of their father using the exact same ritual that Ellen uses to curse Mary. There are two h...more 7 Souls has a propulsive energy and certainly once started, a reader will want to find out how Mary dies and who is ultimately responsible for her death. The problem is the underlying reason for the plot to kill her and how quickly the logic and morality of it fall apart under scrutiny.

Mary's sister Ellen blames her for the near-death of their mother a decade before, but it turns out that Mary was the pawn of their father using the exact same ritual that Ellen uses to curse Mary. There are two huge clues to this that should smack Ellen in the face as soon as she researches the ritual: Mary has no memory of that day (the "minions" of the spell-caster remember nothing), and their mother wears the amulet--the Eye of Tnahsit--that is a huge part of the curse and that their father gave to her the day of the tragedy.

Mary's friends have not-very-good but typically teenage reasons for disliking her: she stole one's boyfriend, one made a clumsy pass at her she rejected while drunk, she told her boyfriend's mom about his heavy drug use. Ellen also ropes in her only friend Dylan, who resents Mary because he blames her for keeping Ellen from committing to him, and uses Mary herself as one of the seven "minions" whose hatred will destroy her. So Ellen is perceptive enough to know her sister hates herself, but can't put together the clues about the ritual or feel any empathy.

Mary develops a kind of crazy Stockholm Syndrome as she sees the day through her friends' eyes. After she sees her boyfriend's memory that his mother cut him off without a cent after the drug revelations, she thinks "I just screwed him over for no reason." Except for the very valid reason that he's using insane amounts of drugs and alcohol and his parents are enabling him. By the end she thinks "It doesn't matter what they did to me....I deserved all of their rage; I brought it all on myself." Mary is thoughtless and selfish, but that's not unusual for someone her age. It hardly justifies a plot to traumatize her and drive her to suicide.

By the end, Mary is selfless enough to sacrifice her life to save her sister, who is supposed to perish as a penalty for casting the spell. Since Mary achieved enlightenment, her reward is apparently sharing the body of her sister. Given that Ellen is stupid and craven, this seems more like a punishment.
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Oct 26, 2011 Ashlee-Rose Lovegood rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: my-all-time-favorites

This book left me speechless, shocked, almost crying, and absolutely mind-blown. I haven't felt this strongly about a one-off novel since 'Choker' by Elizabeth Woods. Wow.

When I grabbed it off the shelf of the library at the last minute, I almost put it back. But after a moment's hesitation, I scanned it and took it home. And oh my gosh, I am so glad I did!

The first couple of chapters I was like "What? She woke up naked in a random show bed... Okayyy... What is this book even about?" But after t...more

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Aug 14, 2011 David rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Mary ist 17, beliebt, hübsch und reich. Sie ist die Nummer 1 ihrer Schule, kann sich vor Freunden kaum retten, hat mehr als nur eine beste Freundin und einen ebenso wohlhabenden Freund, obwohl sie sich vor Dates kaum retten kann.
Die Story beginnt dort, wo Marys Gedächtnis wieder einsetzt. Sie findet sich in einem Möbelhaus wieder, nackt in einem Vorführbett. Sie weiß nicht, wie sie dort hingekommen ist und nicht, was sie dort soll. Sie erinnert sich nur daran, dass heute ihr 17. Geburtstag ist u...more Mary ist 17, beliebt, hübsch und reich. Sie ist die Nummer 1 ihrer Schule, kann sich vor Freunden kaum retten, hat mehr als nur eine beste Freundin und einen ebenso wohlhabenden Freund, obwohl sie sich vor Dates kaum retten kann.
Die Story beginnt dort, wo Marys Gedächtnis wieder einsetzt. Sie findet sich in einem Möbelhaus wieder, nackt in einem Vorführbett. Sie weiß nicht, wie sie dort hingekommen ist und nicht, was sie dort soll. Sie erinnert sich nur daran, dass heute ihr 17. Geburtstag ist und daran, was sie gestern Abend noch getan hat. Verwirrt zieht sich los durch die Stadt, nach Hause und zur Schule. Doch all ihre Mitmenschen verhalten sich ihr komisch gegenüber. Keiner gratuliert ihr wirklich, in der Schule beachtet sie niemand und dann dreht auch noch ein Mitschüler durch, der ihr Warnungen entgegen rief. Mary weiß nicht, was passiert ist und gerade passiert und so durchlebt sie ihren Geburtstag ganz anders, als sie es sich je erträumt hat...

Die Beschreibung bei amazon geht noch etwas weiter auf den Inhalt ein, welchen ich hier allerdings nicht wiedergeben möchte, denn man muss es einfach selbst erleben. Dieses Buch beginnt ziemlich verwirrend, denn als Leser weiß man nicht mehr als Mary, und dies ist in diesem Fall sehr wenig. Man ist also genauso verwirrt und muss zusammen mit ihr die Story entdecken. Immer mehr Fragen werden aufgeworfen und der Leser wird sofort in die komplexe Story rund um das beliebteste Mädchen der Schule gesogen.
Mary war mir anfangs sehr unsympathisch. Sie wirkt arrogant und eingebildet, prahlt mit ihren Markenklamotten und Hightechgeräten. Wie sie ihre Umwelt behandelt war ebenfalls alles andere als nett und so wunderte es mich kaum, dass sie an ihrem Geburtstag ignoriert wurde. Sie macht sich über recht lapidare Dinge viele Gedanken, die für mich nicht wirklich so schwerwiegend sind, dass man sich dort wer weiß wie viele Gedanken drüber machen muss. Doch immer wieder erfährt der Leser, dass scheinbar mehr hinter Marys Glamourleben steckt, als sie allen zeigt.
Nach und nach entwickelt sich die Story sehr mystisch weiter und ich konnte mit dem Lesen nicht mehr aufhören. Das Buch habe ich binnen nicht einmal 2 Tage verschlungen, da vor allem auch der Schreibstil sehr packend war. Die beiden Autoren haben es geschafft, ein sehr spannendes, actionreiches und geheimnisvolles Jugendbuch zu schreiben, welches die Geschichte super leicht in Kopfkino verwandeln ließ. Das Tempo der Geschehnisse nimmt immer mehr zu, sodass man total gefangen wird und nicht mehr aufhören kann.
Die Charaktere rund um Mary haben mir recht gut gefallen. Die einen waren sympathischer, die anderen weniger. Das meiste ist natürlich aus Marys Sicht geschrieben, jedoch bekommen die Protagonisten auch ihre Chance, mehr von sich dem Leser zu präsentieren.
Bis zur Hälfte des Buches bin ich nur so durchgerauscht und habe es verschlungen mit vielen Fragenzeichen, denn der Leser wird in viele Rätsel integriert, welche bis etwa zur Hälfte noch ungeklärt sind. Ich möchte hier an der Stelle wirklich nicht zu viel verraten, daher kann ich nur ans WEITERLESEN appellieren, denn die 2. Hälfte des Buches gibt noch einmal richtig Gas und der ganzen Story einen genialen Zusatz. Hier haben die Autoren es geschafft, etwas für mich völlig neues zu kreieren. Die amazon Beschreibung geht darauf schon etwas ein, dennoch möchte ich hier zu nichts weiter erwähnen.
Das Buch wird als Thriller bezeichnet, was auch stimmt. Jedoch beinhaltet das Buch für mich auch einige Fantasyaspekte, welche dem Leser nach und nach aufgezeigt und auch deutlich werden. Daher ist dieses Buch für mich ein Mix aus Jugendthrill und Jugendfantasy.
Der Altersempfehlung des Verlages (14-16) kann ich nur halb zustimmen. Dieses Buch ist wahrlich nichts für jüngere Leser und ich würde es keinem 14jährigen zum Lesen geben. Ab 16 sollte dieses Buch doch schon mindestens sein. Ich bin ein großer und begeisterter Psychothrillerleser und brauchte für einige actionreichen Szenen doch schon starke Nerven, da der Schreibstil der beiden Autoren eben sehr bildlich ist und man sich alles sehr gut vorstellen konnte.

Ich bin von dem Buch „Seven Souls“ sehr begeistert und kann daher eine Kaufempfehlung an alle aussprechen, welche auf mysteriöse, gruselige und Actionreiche Jugendbücher stehen, welche einen Zusatz Fantasy mitbringen.

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Oct 06, 2010 Angela rated it 2 of 5 stars

What a hateful, shallow group of people populate this book. There is absolutely no one who is inherently sympathetic - Mary, the protagonist, is only sympathetic because everyone else is unjustly mean/evil. And this is a girl who isn't even loved by her own mother.

The only reason I kept up with this book, is because I wanted to see how this curse would turn out. It doesn't take long to figure out who the mastermind was, but I was curious about whether Mary would be able to subvert her fate as sh...more

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Aug 19, 2010 Nian rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2010

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Mary Shayne wakes up naked in a Crate & Barrel store on the morning of her 17th birthday, unsure of last night's events and how she got there. The day worsens as she goes to school, her boyfriend breaks up with her, and nobody has acknowledged the special day. By the end of the night, gunshots are heard, and Mary's soul is floating . . . into the bodies of the seven people whom she thought loved her, but had every reason to hate her, and want her dead.

I picked up this book because Random Ho...more

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Jul 02, 2012 Yasmeen rated it 3 of 5 stars

Mary is a spoilt American princess who does as she pleases in her perfect life and doesn't mind using people along the way. Then her 17nth birthday comes and instead of the adoration she expects everything goes wrong and at the end of the night she is murdered. You then revisit her night, through the eyes of 7 of her friends in an attempt to find her killer and perhaps save her own life in the process.

The Good:
- Compelling, you don't want to put it down because you want to know who killed Mary.
-...more Mary is a spoilt American princess who does as she pleases in her perfect life and doesn't mind using people along the way. Then her 17nth birthday comes and instead of the adoration she expects everything goes wrong and at the end of the night she is murdered. You then revisit her night, through the eyes of 7 of her friends in an attempt to find her killer and perhaps save her own life in the process.

The Good:
- Compelling, you don't want to put it down because you want to know who killed Mary.
- Interesting, makes you think about you're own life and whether you use people in it.
- Good cliffhanger regarding who the murder is.
- The author makes it very easy for the reader to hate Mary.
- Mary s realisations though exaggerated at some points are good because you see a change in her personality.
- The description when Mary is in the hotel room about to be murdered and before that in the abandoned house is quite exceptional. It really leaves you hanging.

The Bad:
- To be honest it wasn't the best written book structure wise and plot wise. Though the structure could be ignored, the plot couldn't. This is true for many reason and this knocked quite a few points of what essentially is quite a brilliant idea;
> In a lot of places the story became confusing and a little too scattered.
> To be honest none of the 7 people reasons for killing her seem realistic. For example one of her friends does it because she stole her boyfriend. Now I don't know about you but that doesn't seem like a legitimate reason to kill what is supposedly her best friend of quite a few years.
> The fact that her sister is intelligent enough to realise that she hates herself, intelligent and patient enough to figure out the curse but not intelligent and patient enough to get the last line right seems quite unrealistic to me.
> Why Dylan is the one that changes his mind not the others and why Joon kills him, it all seems quite extreme and fake.
- Before you even start reading the book you know that Mary is murdered so the fact that it takes about half the book for her to actually die is stupid and quite boring, the only reason I think most readers would hang on (the only reason I did as a matter of fact) is to find out who her killer was.So basically if that part was shorter, part two and three were a little longer it would have been a MUCH better read.
- My final bad is also funnily enough a good, Mary's realisations after being each of her friends. Though refreshing it crossed the line and became stupid ad some points like with her boyfriend. How is her telling his mother that he is a heavy alcohol and drug abuser reason enough for him to agree to do what they do to her that day? Why on earth does she start to feel bad about telling his mum? If anything it is in his long term benefit.

So to sum it up this book is - just like my rating said - ok. The idea is quite brilliant but the author quite simply did not know how to pull it through and do it. Would I recommend it though? If you have free time yea, but don't go out of you're way or anything.
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Jun 28, 2011 Myriel85 rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Ich habe mich scheinbar mit völlig falschen Erwartungen an dieses Buch gewagt – weshalb ich nach dem ersten Kapitel, welche für meinen Geschmack viel zu lang sind, direkt eine kleine Pause eingelegt habe und mal eine Nacht drüber schlafen musste. Doch leider bin ich auch am anderen Tag nicht richtig in die Geschichte rein gekommen. Der Schreibstil des Autoren Duos ist sehr gewöhnungsbedürftig, viel zu detailliert und durchwachsen von zahllosen Beschreibungen und Wiederholungen. Bis man dann endl...more Ich habe mich scheinbar mit völlig falschen Erwartungen an dieses Buch gewagt – weshalb ich nach dem ersten Kapitel, welche für meinen Geschmack viel zu lang sind, direkt eine kleine Pause eingelegt habe und mal eine Nacht drüber schlafen musste. Doch leider bin ich auch am anderen Tag nicht richtig in die Geschichte rein gekommen. Der Schreibstil des Autoren Duos ist sehr gewöhnungsbedürftig, viel zu detailliert und durchwachsen von zahllosen Beschreibungen und Wiederholungen. Bis man dann endlich mal bei der eigentlichen Handlung angekommen ist, hat man schon die Hälfte des Buches hinter sich.

Mary ist eine Protagonistin, bei der man am liebsten schreiend das Weite suchen möchte – ihre eingebildete und arrogante Art kommt absolut unsympathisch rüber. Krampfhaft versucht sie ihre Herkunft, die aus eher ärmlichen Verhältnissen kommt, zu verdrängen indem sie sich vollends ihren superreichen “Freunden” aufdrängt und ständig mit ihnen abhängt. Für ihre Beliebtheit, ihren Erfolg und die geilsten Kerle geht sie sprichwörtlich über Leichen. Was die anderen davon denken ist ihr egal. Selbstbewusstes Mädchen könnte man da nun denken, doch dass sie dabei auch ihre angeblich besten Freunde ausnutzt und bis aufs Tiefste verletzt ist ihr überhaupt nicht bewusst, denn Mary Shayne ist einfach nur ein kleines dummes egoistisches Mädchen.

Nach etwa einem Drittel nimmt die Spannung auch so langsam Fahrt auf und da der Leser bis zum Ende nicht weiß, was wirklich passiert ist, bleibt sie auch relativ konstant erhalten, was für mich das einzig Positive an dem Buch war.

Gegen Ende wird es ein wenig mystisch was meiner Meinung nach so gar nicht gepasst hat und ich kopfschüttelnd vor dem Buch saß. Es wirkte, als ob die Autoren zwanghaft einen Grund suchten, warum dies alles mit Mary geschehen ist. Der Schluss an sich ist leider ab der Hälfte ziemlich vorhersehbar, was mich am Ende noch eine Spur enttäuschter zurück ließ.

Fazit
Wer mit sehr niedrigen Erwartungen an dieses Buch geht, sollte nicht enttäuscht werden. Mir persönlich hat der Stil des Autorenduos leider nicht zugesagt, was die Protagonistin mit ihrer schrecklichen Persönlichkeit noch weiter gen Nullpunkt gezogen hat. Die gelungene Aufrechterhaltung der Spannung konnte das jedoch nicht retten.(less)

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Feb 21, 2011 ALPHAreader rated it 5 of 5 stars

Mary Shayne wakes up on the day of her birthday, butt-naked, in the display window of a Soho furniture store. Not the best start to the day. . . but things only get worse and weirder from there. Mary has no memory of the last 24 hours. She has mysterious scratches on her back. Her boyfriend has just dumped her and her Upper East Side best friends are completely blanking that today is her birthday. Her pudgy study-buddy is screaming at her that she’s in mortal danger, and her little sister’s scru...more Mary Shayne wakes up on the day of her birthday, butt-naked, in the display window of a Soho furniture store. Not the best start to the day. . . but things only get worse and weirder from there. Mary has no memory of the last 24 hours. She has mysterious scratches on her back. Her boyfriend has just dumped her and her Upper East Side best friends are completely blanking that today is her birthday. Her pudgy study-buddy is screaming at her that she’s in mortal danger, and her little sister’s scruffy best friend is asking her out on dates.

Mary’s perfect world is spiralling out of control. She is experiencing the worst day of her life and learning some uncomfortable truths. Things like this shouldn’t happen to girls like Mary. She’s beautiful and popular and all the boys want her and all the girls want to be her.

Only one thing is certain on this day of days; Mary Shayne is about to have one killer birthday.

I was surprisingly enraptured by this book from writing team Barnabas Miller and Jordan Orlando. I will warn that the book is deliberately hectic and confusing – hieroglyphics on the cover and a strange opening quote about the powers of death and the powers of life. All of these supernatural clues seem at odds with the opening chapter of party-girl Mary waking up from an all-night-bender . . . all I can say is ‘persevere’.

Miller and Orlando layer mystery upon conundrum and keep Mary spiralling out of control ... ‘7 Souls’ is constantly set at a fast and frenzied pace, and it’s brilliant. The helter-skelter plot and constant confusion actually lend a lot of heightened feeling and delicious tension to the book. So even while you’re scratching your head and wondering where the storyline is going, you can’t help but be sucked in and strung along for the duration. . .

At first the novel seems to be all about teen angst as the perfectly popular princess, Mary, learns a thing or two about being knocked off her pedestal. . . The novel is set in New York and Mary’s clique is the requisite Upper East Side darlings; her penthouse boyfriend and designer-clad besties.

But then things take a turn for the weird . . . Mary takes the old adage ‘walk a mile in someone else’s shoes’ to heart, with disastrous consequences.

Mary was crying again. “It’s the worst day of my life; it’s sucked since the moment I woke up. Everyone’s been out to get me, all day!”
“You sound paranoid,” Dylan said. He was shaking his head, looking more confused with each passing second. “There can’t be – ”
“I'm not paranoid!” Mary yelled. Her throat ached with the strain.

I am in gob-smacked awe at Miller and Orlando’s twisted plot. I spent the whole book trying to guess what was around the corner and the ‘whodunit’ mystery at the centre of it all. I was not prepared. I wasn’t even close to figuring it all out . . .

‘7 Souls’ is a cross between ‘Gossip Girl’, ‘Scream’ and ‘Jawbreaker’. This is a paranormal tale with a strong moral compass. Mary is the perfect protagonist and somewhat unreliable narrator – she’s a girl with a lesson to learn (even if she has to choke on her comeuppance). You will never guess the ending to this twisted tale, but you’ll love picking apart the pieces of the puzzle.
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Jul 01, 2011 Kerstin rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: re-2011

Kurzbeschreibung:
Mary war nicht nur das beliebteste und hübscheste Mädchen der Schule, sondern auch das am meisten gehasste - und deshalb musste sie sterben. Aber ihr Tod ist nicht das Ende, sondern erst der Anfang. Ein Fluch sorgt dafür, dass sie den Tag, an dem sie starb, immer wieder erleben muss. Aus der Perspektive ihrer sieben Freunde lernt sie eine ganz andere Mary Shayne kennen. Und bekommt sieben Mal vor Augen geführt, dass jeder gute Gründe hatte, sie zu hassen.

Zu den Autoren:
Barnabas...more

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Apr 13, 2012 Elena rated it 4 of 5 stars

Un thriller con i fiocchi

Mary Shayne è la ragazza più carina dell'intera scuola, cadono letteralmente tutti ai suoi piedi, compresi i suoi amici.
Mary è come un burattinaio e tiene in mano i fili che manovrano tutti quelli che le stanno accanto.
Cosa succede, però, se le marionette ti si rivoltano contro?

Tutto inizia il giorno del suo compleanno.
Dal momento in cui si sveglia inizia ad andare tutto storto, per prima cosa perché non si risveglia nel suo letto ma in una vetrina di un negozio. Mary c...more

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Nov 18, 2010 Melissa Wehunt rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult, ya, paranormal, souls, friendship, sisters, unreliable-narrator, murder, curses, occult, haunting, alternative-narrative, spells

I really wish that Goodreads would invest in half stars...cause if so, I would totally rate this 4.5.
So, here's the deal....without giving away too much detail...here is my little review:

This is a story of Mary, a totally cool teenage girl who has everything (at least, on a social level). Mary's home life, however, is not as great. But who cares?? Because Mary and her friends just drown themeselves in partying, buying cool clothes, and just generally doing whatever they please, whenever they wa...more

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Sep 15, 2011 Jodi Papazian rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya-reads

I really did not like 7 Souls. Not even a little bit. I plugged through because, all along, I had hoped that it would get better. Based on the book jacket, I thought that this would be along the lines of Before I Fall but with a darker, more sinister plot. However, it was not. It was the story of a self-centered girl who no one liked and thus set out to make her want to kill herself.
The characters were all horrible and I didn't find any of them likable. Hard to believe, but I didn't even sympa...more

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Apr 09, 2013 Bücherbiene rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. "Seven Souls - Sieben Gründe Mary Shayne zu hassen" lässt bei mir einige Fragen offen: was ist der siebte Grund? Warum wird in Kapitel II Marys Seele als eine der sieben Seelen aufgeführt, wenn der Fluch es doch erfordert, dass der Beschwörer sieben Ergebene erwählt? Ich zählte immer nur sechs, weil Mary als das Opfer ja wohl nicht dazu gehört. Marys Mutter aber ja wohl auch nicht (obwohl sie ihre Tochter die Schuld an ihrer traurigen Situation gibt). Oder?

Schon der Anfang des Buches hat mich au...more "Seven Souls - Sieben Gründe Mary Shayne zu hassen" lässt bei mir einige Fragen offen: was ist der siebte Grund? Warum wird in Kapitel II Marys Seele als eine der sieben Seelen aufgeführt, wenn der Fluch es doch erfordert, dass der Beschwörer sieben Ergebene erwählt? Ich zählte immer nur sechs, weil Mary als das Opfer ja wohl nicht dazu gehört. Marys Mutter aber ja wohl auch nicht (obwohl sie ihre Tochter die Schuld an ihrer traurigen Situation gibt). Oder?

Schon der Anfang des Buches hat mich aufgeregt. Wieso müssen ständig irgendwelche Luxuslabels namentlich erwähnt werden? Man kann doch auch auf andere Art beschreiben, dass es sich um einen Clique oberflächlicher zum Großteil reicher junger Leute geht. Die Reaktionen Marys waren für mich überhaupt nicht nachvollziehbar: nach dem Aufwachen in einem Möbelhausschaufenster, nackt, den Rücken blutig gekratzt, spaziert sie einige Stunden später Schaufenster betrachtend durch die Gegend. Patrick, ihr Freund trennt sich unerwartet und sehr kaltherzig von ihr und als es sich am Abend als Scherz! darstellt, nimmt sie die Situation ohne Diskusision oder Fragen hin. Und die Frage aller Fragen für mich war: warum ruft sie nicht einfach die Polizei nachdem sie den Hilferuf per SMS von ihrer Freundin erhält??? Weil die Geschichte dann nicht weitergegangen wäre. Ich war jedenfalls,kurz davor das Buch abzubrechen.

Teil II brachte dann unerwartete Wendungen, die Spannung erzeugten und mich zum Weiterlesen brachten. Die Idee mit dem Fluch fand ich an sich nicht schlecht. Am besten hat mir gefallen, dass Mary in die Körper der 6 Personen schlüpft und eine neue Sichtweise erhält. Wie oben erwähnt, fehlt für mich die siebte Person. Die Mutter gibt ihrer Tochter die Schuld an ihrer eigenen Misere, hat im Gegenzug jedoch ihre damals siebenjährige Tochter stundenlang nach Schulschluß warten lassen, weil sie (die Mutter) ein Treffen mit ihrem Geliebten im Larry-Land vorgezogen hat!!! Die Schwester gibt ebenfalls Mary die Schuld an Vaters Tod, weil die siebenjährige Mary ihre Mutter nicht aus der Grube befreit hat. Die Kraft jedenfalls hätte sie gehabt (mit sieben?) glauben Mutter und Schwester!

Warum wird Dylan angeschossen, obwohl alle außer Ellen und Dylan dachten, die Waffe wäre nicht geladen? Eigentlich sollte Mary doch nur ein gewaltiger Schrecken eingejagt werden!

Teil III ist sehr kurz und auch ich habe nicht verstanden, ob der Körper von Ellen nun beide Seelen der Schwestern vereint oder nur eine - welche ? - der beiden. Dieses Ende und die kurze Episode mit dem Detektive einschließlich der dürftigen Auflösung des Falls fand ich enttäuschend, somit schloss sich der Kreis zum enttäuschenden Anfang.(less)

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Dec 19, 2012 Butterblume89 rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012, jugendbuch

Meinung
Achtung! Nehmt euch an dem Tag nichts vor denn ihr werdet dieses Buch nicht mehr weglegen können!
Inhalt
Mary, ein wunderschönes und sehr beliebtes Mädchen, wacht eines morgens nackt in einem Möbelgeschäft auf und kann sich nicht erinnern ,wie sie dort hin gekommen ist.
Doch das ist noch nicht mal das Schlimmste, denn es ist zudem ihr Geburtstag, und keiner ihrer Freunde scheint sich an ihren Geburtstag zu erinnern. Sie wird von jedem ignoriert und dann macht auch noch ihr Freund an ihrem Ge...more Meinung
Achtung! Nehmt euch an dem Tag nichts vor denn ihr werdet dieses Buch nicht mehr weglegen können!
Inhalt
Mary, ein wunderschönes und sehr beliebtes Mädchen, wacht eines morgens nackt in einem Möbelgeschäft auf und kann sich nicht erinnern ,wie sie dort hin gekommen ist.
Doch das ist noch nicht mal das Schlimmste, denn es ist zudem ihr Geburtstag, und keiner ihrer Freunde scheint sich an ihren Geburtstag zu erinnern. Sie wird von jedem ignoriert und dann macht auch noch ihr Freund an ihrem Geburtstag mit ihr Schluss...Mary ist verwirrt. Was wird hier gespielt?
Charaktere
In diesem Buch lernt man eine Vielzahl an verschiedenen Charakteren kennen. Zum einen Mary Shayne ein sehr beliebtes und wunderschönes Mädchen deren Leben an ihrem 17. Geburtstag plötzlich aus den Fugen zu geraten scheint. Ich mochte Mary, auch wenn sie sehr von sich überzeugt ist.Doch sie hatte irgendwas an sich was ich mochte, was genau kann ich nicht sagen. Im Laufe des Buches änderte sich dann meine Meinung, aber warum? Findet es selber raus ;-)
Desweiteren lernt man Patrick kennen, ihren Freund oder sollte ich sagen EX-Freund? Zu Patrick konnte ich während des Buches keine Beziehung aufbauen. Macht nichts, denn es gab ja noch Dylan,Scott,ihre Freundinnen Joon und Amy sowie ihre Schwester Ellen.
Alles tolle,gut ausgebaute Charaktere, die ich gerne durch dieses Buch begleitet habe.
Schreibstil & Aufbau
Was soll ich sagen? Der Schreibstil ist einfach gehalten und wahnsinnig fesselnd! Barnabas Miller hat es geschafft mich ,mit den vielen offenen Fragen die sie in den Raum stellte, total an dieses Buch zu fesseln, sodass ich es in einem Rutsch gelesen habe.
Aufgebaut ist das Buch in 2 Teile,die auch mit einer passenden Überschrift benannt wurden. Was es mit dieser Aufteilung auf sich hat, verrate ich an dieser Stelle nicht :) Es soll ja spannend bleiben, nicht wahr?! ;-)
Aber so viel kann ich verraten. Die Kapitel im ersten Teil des Buches waren mit einer Uhrzeit gekennzeichnet. Die Kapitel im zweiten Teil jedoch mit Namen.
Fazit: Einfach klasse!
Fazit
Wow! Ich hatte dieses Buch einst geschenkt bekommen und es seitdem nie angerührt ,weil ich keine Lust drauf hatte und es immer andere Bücher gab ,die ich lieber lesen wollte. Jetzt frage ich mich, warum ich so lange gewartet habe! Es war der Wahnsinn. Aber das konnte ich vorher natürlich nicht wissen.
Ich habe dieses Buch also, ohne mir vorher Rezensionen und den vollständigen Klappentext durchzulesen, begonnen und war völlig neutral und ahnungslos.
Und daher umso baffer und überraschter! Das Buch beginnt sofort mit Mary, als sie in dem Möbelgeschäft aufwacht und nicht weiß wie sie dorthin gekommen ist. Schon mal ein super spannender Start und die Spannung flachte nicht ab. Im Gegenteil, sie nahm noch zu. Denn dadurch, dass so viele offene Fragen in den Raum gestellt wurden und so viele Dinge einfach unklar waren, musste man einfach weiter und weiter lesen und stieß auf so einige WOW - und Knall-Effekte!
Mich hat dieses Buch ein bisschen an ein anderes Jugendbuch erinnert, dessen Namen ich hier jetzt nicht nennen kann, weil es eventuell etwas verraten oder gar Spoilern würde.
Das lassen wir mal lieber!
Vielleicht findet ihr ja beim Lesen raus welches Buch ich meine :)
Also Fazit: Mein Lesehighlight im Dezember und ganz klare Kaufempfehlung!(less)

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Jan 31, 2013 Amira rated it 4 of 5 stars

Talk about original! I just finished reading this book, and I'm speechless. When I read the last page, I just sat there in silence, soaking in everything. In the beginning, I was confused, - as confused as Mary (the main character) had been, and as she started to figure out what was happening, I also started to piece things along. I can tell you it's not even close to what I expected it to be. And is it possible to love and hate the main character at the same time? Because, Barnabas sure pulled...more

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Nov 10, 2010 Rebekah rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: kiss-the-book, young-adult

First off, the cover is UGLY. I judge books by their covers all of the time. If I hadn't gone the extra mile to read the blurb, I would never have picked this book up. I'm also not a fan of the title. It's boring. It doesn't even make sense until the last fourth of the book. This is a contemporary supernatural teen, and it does not look like that from the cover. Which is sad since I liked the book.

I expected Mary to die pretty close to the beginning. She's going to be inhabiting 7 souls and I a...more

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Jul 07, 2011 Kerri rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: enypl, young-adult, fantasy-science-fiction

I thought this was a really interesting teen thriller/fantasy novel. It was different, spooky, and a true page turner. A few questions were left unanswered and I feel like the main characters drinking probably was a little unbelievable for a teenager, but it happens.

This is the story about Mary who wakes up on her birthday bare naked in the Crate & Barrel store on Houston St. in New York City. She has a massive hangover and when she gets to her high school everyone seems to have forgotten he...more

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Oct 22, 2010 Jennifer rated it 3 of 5 stars

Recommended to Jennifer by: Liz Burns

Shelves: paranormal, youngadult, mystery

The best part was the twisty, puzzle piece plot and waiting to see if the authors were going to be able to put it all together. The first half of the book should really have been the first third though - it drags a little compared to the tense, action-packed second half; by the last third of the book I didn't want to put it down. While I came to sympathize with the characters, I certainly didn't like most of them. It's definitely refreshing to have read what appears to be a standalone title inst...more

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Sep 05, 2012 Courtney rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: ebooks, young-adult

This read like a Lifetime/Syfy channel movie mashup. Which is a shame, because I think the premise was interesting. I have to admit--I skimmed most of the book, because the writing was just too much. Too much detail, too much teenager angst, too much "Mary Shayne is so perfect" (and no explanation of how she came to be worshiped by everyone, aside from her beauty, which we were heavily battered with from the beginning pages).

It was all just too overwrought, and the characters are not people I co...more

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Jun 18, 2011 Leslie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: library-ebooks, ya-series

Mary Shayne is one of the most popular girls at her school, but her seventeenth birthday is shaping up to be one of the worst days in her life. She wakes up, hung over and naked in a public place, and from then on things only get worse. By the end of the day she will be dead, and forced to see herself through the eyes of those she had always assumed were her friends. Will she be able to solve the mystery of what has happened to her and prevent her own death? Mary is a realistic, self-absorbed bu...more

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Aug 07, 2010 Kelly Hager rated it 3 of 5 stars

I'm not going to give you a detailed synopsis because if you do decide to read this, it's probably best that you go in as blind as possible.

Mary's 17th birthday is today. It's not going well--her mom forgot, so did her friends and her boyfriend broke up with her. And then it gets worse. A LOT worse.

This is one of those books where there are a lot of twists and turns--some I called ridiculously early and some I didn't. I gave it three stars because I didn't really like Mary, so it was hard to fee...more

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Jul 21, 2011 Erica rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: high-school, favorite-books

17-year-old Mary wakes up in in a Store display window on her 17th birthday. She's nude and has bloody scratches on her back and no memory of what happened or how she got there. This day promises to be full of fear, confusion, regret, pain, death, revelation, agony, and so much more. Is it a curse or blessing to be thrown into the thoughts of your friends? Fast-paced, twists and turns. There is hardly a time to rest. Rec for those who liked, "Before I Fall" but more intense and greater depth. Du...more

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May 13, 2013 Yangyang Cheung rated it 5 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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May 04, 2013 Leah rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: books-read-2013

This book is not for everyone, and at first I didn't think it would be for me. However, as it progressed I found myself liking it more and more, and reading it faster and faster. Most of the characters are thoroughly unlikable, especially the main character, but I have never been put off by unlikable characters. The plot device of having the murdered girl briefly inhabit the bodies and experience some of the memories of each of her killers on the day of her death was intriguing. I also liked the...more

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Jun 24, 2012 Serena rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

TRAMA: Mary Shayne desiderava che il suo diciassettesimo compleanno fosse speciale, un evento da ricordare, ma di certo non immaginava che si sarebbe svegliata nuda, nel letto di un negozio di mobili, con i postumi di una terribile e inspiegabile sbronza. E la giornata prosegue nel peggiore dei modi: a scuola nessuno le fa gli auguri, né le sue migliori amiche, Amy e Joon, né il suo ragazzo, Trick, che anzi la lascia. Con il trascorrere delle ore, Mary si convince sempre di più che qualcuno sta...more TRAMA: Mary Shayne desiderava che il suo diciassettesimo compleanno fosse speciale, un evento da ricordare, ma di certo non immaginava che si sarebbe svegliata nuda, nel letto di un negozio di mobili, con i postumi di una terribile e inspiegabile sbronza. E la giornata prosegue nel peggiore dei modi: a scuola nessuno le fa gli auguri, né le sue migliori amiche, Amy e Joon, né il suo ragazzo, Trick, che anzi la lascia. Con il trascorrere delle ore, Mary si convince sempre di più che qualcuno sta tramando contro di lei, e i fatti le danno ragione: prima della fine della giornata viene uccisa a sangue freddo. Ma la morte non è che l’inizio di una nuova odissea. Mary si ritrova intrappolata in uno strano limbo, costretta a rivivere il giorno della propria morte attraverso gli occhi delle sette persone che le erano più vicine, ognuna delle quali – scoprirà con sgomento – aveva più di una ragione per odiarla. Ma chi di loro l’ha uccisa? E perché? Per scoprirlo e cercare di cambiare il corso degli eventi, Mary dovrà fare i conti con i dolorosi misteri e gli inconfessabili segreti che si nascondono sotto la patina dorata del suo mondo perfetto.

Pazzesco! Non trovo un’altra definizione. Un thriller al cardiopalma che mi ha tenuta col fiato sospeso fino alla fine. Forse l’inizio è di una lentezza snervante. Si fatica a capirci qualcosa,poi la storia prende corpo con sorprendente facilità. Ben scritto,fluido,brilla per la suspense che schizza fuori da ogni pagina. Ripercorriamo per intero il giorno in cui Mary va incontro alla morte senza sapere chi è stato,poi comincia il caos. Lo spirito di Mary si incarna in ogni singolo partecipante del complotto a suo carico. Scopriamo così che esiste una antica maledizione in cui 7 persone dovranno punirne una cattiva fino alla sua morte. Scopriamo che il padre di Mary è morto a causa della stessa maledizione. Dopo averla usata. Perché?Perché la traduzione è sbagliata e a morire non è la persona punita se quest’ultima comprende di essere stata cattiva. Mary si ritrova quindi nel corpo dei suoi migliori amici e persino di sua sorella Ellen,colei che ha ordito il piano(la accusa di aver cercato di uccidere la madre e di rovinarle la vita). Ognuno di loro la odia. Joon perché le ha rubato il ragazzo,Amy perché è innamorata di lei e l’ha respinta,Patrick,il suo ragazzo perché gli ha rovinato il rapporto con la madre,Dylan,amico di Hellen perché vuole aiutarla,ma sarà lui a tirarsi indietro e a favorire lo spezzarsi dell’incantesimo. E infine si ritroverà nel corpo di sé stessa,perché anche Mary si odia con tutto il cuore. Sarà un continuo saltare da un corpo all’altro verso la scoperta di un complotto che ha dell’incredibile e che spinge a riflettere su quanto ,a volte ,si facciano cose assurde per stupidità. E Mary avrà modo di comprendere il suo egoismo,la sua vanità,il suo disinteressamento verso gli altri. Proprio ciò che la condurrà al’Akh liberando la sua anima. Un finale che mi ha sorpresa ma non delusa perché in fin dei conti tutti abbiamo la possibilità di riparare ai nostri torti. Ricco di descrizioni sia ambientali che emotive. Non si tratta di scene di azione,ma piuttosto di un intreccio ben orchestrato a fare di questo romanzo una chicca nel suo genere. Cupo,da brivido,contorto,ricco di tensione. Pecca imperdonabile,il finale tirato per i capelli,come se si volesse sistemare tutto in fretta e furia,tanto che in alcuni punti non c’è chiarezza. Ogni pagine serve ad infittire e al tempo stesso a schiarire la trama catapultandoci in un incubo allucinante. E’ come entrare e uscire da un sogno mai voluto. Davvero interessante.
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