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Gardenia
by
Seventeen-year-old Ivy Erickson has one month, twenty-seven days, four hours, fifty-nine minutes, and two seconds to live.
Ever since she was a child, Ivy has been able to see countdown clocks over everyone's heads indicating how long before they will die. She can't do anything about anyone else’s, nor can she do anything about her own, which will hit the zero hour before s ...more
Ever since she was a child, Ivy has been able to see countdown clocks over everyone's heads indicating how long before they will die. She can't do anything about anyone else’s, nor can she do anything about her own, which will hit the zero hour before s ...more
Paperback, 260 pages
Published
February 28th 2017
by Diversion Publishing
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Dani
Yes, the numbers are the same but apart from that it's totally different!
Community Reviews
Showing 1-30
Feb 05, 2017
Sarah
rated it
liked it
Shelves:
netgalley-edelweiss,
death,
fantasy,
paranormal,
r2r-read,
read-2017,
read-with-abbie,
romance,
young-adult
(I received an advance copy of this book for free. Thanks to Diversion Books and NetGalley.)
This was a YA mystery story featuring a girl who could see when people would die.
Ivy was an okay character, and I could only imagine how difficult it would be for her to see numbers over everybody's h ...more
"I need to know what happened. I need to find the murderer. I need to find out the truth. Not just for Vanessa. Not just for her family. For me.
Because everybody in Kennedy thinks I know who killed her."
This was a YA mystery story featuring a girl who could see when people would die.
Ivy was an okay character, and I could only imagine how difficult it would be for her to see numbers over everybody's h ...more
Seventeen-year-old Ivy Erickson has one month, twenty-seven days, four hours, fifty-nine minutes, and two seconds to live.
When Ivy was a child she learned that only she can see the numbers above others heads that count down until the exact moment that they will die. Ivy's grandmother had suffered a heart attack right in front of young Ivy as her numbers counted down to zero and that was Ivy's first experience with this deadly phenomena.
Ivy learned over the years there was nothing she could do t ...more
When Ivy was a child she learned that only she can see the numbers above others heads that count down until the exact moment that they will die. Ivy's grandmother had suffered a heart attack right in front of young Ivy as her numbers counted down to zero and that was Ivy's first experience with this deadly phenomena.
Ivy learned over the years there was nothing she could do t ...more
Disclaimer: This book was sent to me by the publisher, Diversion Publishing, via NetGalley for an honest review.
Opinion:
AHHHHH! THIS book! THIS FREAKING BOOK!
You are probably thinking to yourself Wow, WHAT about this book. WELL, LET ME TELL YOU ABOUT THIS BOOK! I have been searching high and low for a specific genre of story to read for WEEKS now. A story that will make my heart hurt and my stomach flip due to eloquent and depressing sentences. You know the kind of story I am talking about. T ...more
Opinion:
AHHHHH! THIS book! THIS FREAKING BOOK!
You are probably thinking to yourself Wow, WHAT about this book. WELL, LET ME TELL YOU ABOUT THIS BOOK! I have been searching high and low for a specific genre of story to read for WEEKS now. A story that will make my heart hurt and my stomach flip due to eloquent and depressing sentences. You know the kind of story I am talking about. T ...more
I really liked the concept of this book (it was very similar to a book I read in 2010, Numbers by Rachel Ward) and I thought the writing was really great. The writing was actually my favorite part about Gardenia. I liked Ivy and even though I wasn’t emotionally invested in her story, I was still interested to see what was going to happen. I believe this is a standalone, so I really liked that aspect as well. I’m a big fan of standalones so if you’re looking for a good mystery but you don’t want
...more
I thought the concept of this story was fascinating and the synopsis pulled me right in.
Imagine seeing countdown clocks above peoples heads to when they will die so only you know, the sheer frustration & helplessness it would leave you in well that's what our protagonist faces but she also knows when she will die too!. Not only that though, Ivy has the murder of her best friend to deal with and knowing people suspect she had a part to play in it, the financial issues within her family and ro ...more
Imagine seeing countdown clocks above peoples heads to when they will die so only you know, the sheer frustration & helplessness it would leave you in well that's what our protagonist faces but she also knows when she will die too!. Not only that though, Ivy has the murder of her best friend to deal with and knowing people suspect she had a part to play in it, the financial issues within her family and ro ...more
With the recent murder of her best friend, Ivy clock is ticking down. Since she was a child, Ivy could see the time of someone's life pass with a clock above their heads. Now her own time is running out the closer she looks for the killer on the loose. One who maybe closer then she thinks...
Gardenia at times pulls me one way then another. The setting of the story takes place in a small town, the thing was it could have been any town. Which perhaps the author was going for, as this killer could ...more
Like a time bomb counting down the seconds to explosion, everyone has a finite amount of time to live. It is a mercy that we do not know when we will die, but Ivy doesn’t have the luxury of not knowing. Ivy sees the exact moment a person will die. It is in a counter that looms over them and only she can see them. Ivy even knows when her death will be and there is nothing she can do about it, but make sure those around her are prepared to go on without her, prepared to make the most of the time t
...more
Can't wait to read!
I've seen this story idea posted on Tumblr for quite some time and I cannot wait to see how this author tackles it.
Edit: 7-17-17
Pros:
•The writing.
Dang. I can't tell if she was born with words in her soul, but this author can write. I truly enjoyed each mini cliffhanger in each chapter ending. That was a vital point that made me want to read on. And so I did. There was a point in every line and that is when you know you are writing an amazing thriller (or any story, really)!
•Th ...more
I've seen this story idea posted on Tumblr for quite some time and I cannot wait to see how this author tackles it.
Edit: 7-17-17
Pros:
•The writing.
Dang. I can't tell if she was born with words in her soul, but this author can write. I truly enjoyed each mini cliffhanger in each chapter ending. That was a vital point that made me want to read on. And so I did. There was a point in every line and that is when you know you are writing an amazing thriller (or any story, really)!
•Th ...more
Not the most original story (the "death prediction" theme has been recycled time and time again throughout fiction, including the short story I Can't Help Saying Goodbye), but Sutton's writing is imaginative, dazzling and eerily beautiful, making Gardenia very much a novel worth reading.
Mar 17, 2017
Cheryl
rated it
really liked it
Shelves:
mystery-suspense-thriller,
young-adult-fiction
Teenager Ivy Erickson has a unique “gift”. When she looks at people, she sees a countdown clock ticking off the time until their death. She even knows exactly when she will die and the time is quickly approaching.
Ivy’s life has not been easy. Her father abandoned the family when she was very young, and Ivy struggles to help her mother pay the bills. Ivy has a best friend, Vanessa, whose time is also running out. When her friend is found murdered, many people believe that Ivy had something to do ...more
Ivy’s life has not been easy. Her father abandoned the family when she was very young, and Ivy struggles to help her mother pay the bills. Ivy has a best friend, Vanessa, whose time is also running out. When her friend is found murdered, many people believe that Ivy had something to do ...more
Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read and review this wonderful title by Kelsey Sutton! Wow, I really enjoyed "Gardenia"! I think what stayed with me most of all as I was reading, was how mature Ivy was, and how collected she managed to be, despite knowing what was going to happen when her clock ran out. It's a story about science fiction, sure, but it's something that translates poignantly I think to so many other topics because there's a lot of other teens ou
...more
After reading and loving Some Quiet Place I bought two more books by Kelsey Sutton. Of the two I first picked up Gardenia.
And this is a cool read.
Some Quiet Place was a book that was both suspenseful and atmospheric. Gardenia isn't as atmospheric, but the suspense it racked up high. Ivy can see how long people have left to live and can see her own time running out.
I mostly liked Ivy. She's trying to deal with her coming death, her guilt over the death of her best friend, and on top of that a kil ...more
And this is a cool read.
Some Quiet Place was a book that was both suspenseful and atmospheric. Gardenia isn't as atmospheric, but the suspense it racked up high. Ivy can see how long people have left to live and can see her own time running out.
I mostly liked Ivy. She's trying to deal with her coming death, her guilt over the death of her best friend, and on top of that a kil ...more
Ivy is a very compelling character, one you end up rooting for. Good amount of humor, sadness, and suspense. Hard to put down.
I'd like to thank the publisher who sent me this book for review via Netgalley.
This book was an amazing surprise for me! I went in knowing nothing about the book except the brief synopsis: Seventeen-year-old Ivy Erickson has one month, twenty-seven days, four hours, fifty-nine minutes, and two seconds to live.
This book was quite short, which I loved, because when books have a mystery or something to be solved I get very impatient wanting to know the answer! I liked the way the story was solved, ...more
This book was an amazing surprise for me! I went in knowing nothing about the book except the brief synopsis: Seventeen-year-old Ivy Erickson has one month, twenty-seven days, four hours, fifty-nine minutes, and two seconds to live.
This book was quite short, which I loved, because when books have a mystery or something to be solved I get very impatient wanting to know the answer! I liked the way the story was solved, ...more
Update: 2/3/17
*An ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.*
The science-fiction part of the premise of Gardenia may sound strikingly similar to those of Numbers, When, even Denton’s Little Deathdate if you want to go that far. I haven’t read those three, so I cannot say if Gardenia is original enough, but I can say that it’s definitely more invested in the emotional elements that come with this concept. It’s not too unique, but the overall writing and char ...more
*An ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.*
The science-fiction part of the premise of Gardenia may sound strikingly similar to those of Numbers, When, even Denton’s Little Deathdate if you want to go that far. I haven’t read those three, so I cannot say if Gardenia is original enough, but I can say that it’s definitely more invested in the emotional elements that come with this concept. It’s not too unique, but the overall writing and char ...more
This is a teen read featuring seventeen-year-old, Ivy who can see a running countdown to the exact moment everyone around her, including herself, will die. It was this premise that drew me to the book initially but there are a few different genres at play within the story. Adding to the paranormal aspect there is also a mystery regarding the death of Ivy's best friend and a strong focus on Contemporary Fiction involving family and romantic relationships.
A lot of page time was spent with Ivy's re ...more
A lot of page time was spent with Ivy's re ...more
I wish there were an easy way to describe this book but as always with Kelsey, it isn't.
Maybe I can put it this way: I admired Elisabeth from Some Quiet Place, wanted to slap Alexandra from Where Silence Gathers (you know, in a good way, like you would slap a friend and tell her to get something moving). But all I wanted to do with Ivy is to hug her, hold her and tell her I was here.
To be honest, I've always thought that books with people (especially young girls) who know they will die soon wh ...more
Maybe I can put it this way: I admired Elisabeth from Some Quiet Place, wanted to slap Alexandra from Where Silence Gathers (you know, in a good way, like you would slap a friend and tell her to get something moving). But all I wanted to do with Ivy is to hug her, hold her and tell her I was here.
To be honest, I've always thought that books with people (especially young girls) who know they will die soon wh ...more
Ivy has become accustomed to seeing the numbers above people's heads. Their individual countdowns mean Ivy knows the precise moment at which someone is going to die.
In some ways this reminded me of Numbers by Rachel Ward, but in Gardenia we have a little more going on. Ivy's best friend was murdered and people in her town are convinced she knows something. When more girls disappear, Ivy realises she has to do something. Only, time is running out and every moment counts.
The character of Ivy was q ...more
In some ways this reminded me of Numbers by Rachel Ward, but in Gardenia we have a little more going on. Ivy's best friend was murdered and people in her town are convinced she knows something. When more girls disappear, Ivy realises she has to do something. Only, time is running out and every moment counts.
The character of Ivy was q ...more
I got this book through NetGalley to review. This was a well done book about a girl, Ivy, who sees numbers over everyone's head that tell her how long that person has before they die. Ivy also sees when her own death is going to occur and it is soon.
Ivy becomes determined to solve the mystery behind the murder of her best friend before she dies. This gives her a purpose to help her fight the looming depression of her own imminent death.
I enjoyed this story; it was a creative premise and the char ...more
Ivy becomes determined to solve the mystery behind the murder of her best friend before she dies. This gives her a purpose to help her fight the looming depression of her own imminent death.
I enjoyed this story; it was a creative premise and the char ...more
This is the first book I have read by Kelsey Sutton and I enjoyed it so much I cannot wait to read her others.
This book totally consumed me, I read it in two days because I just had to know how it was going to end. It brings back the age old question "Would you want to know the exact moment you were going to die?", after reading this book, I would have to answer No. It was a fast paced read and very original to me, I have never read another book quite like this one.
I won this book as part of t ...more
This book totally consumed me, I read it in two days because I just had to know how it was going to end. It brings back the age old question "Would you want to know the exact moment you were going to die?", after reading this book, I would have to answer No. It was a fast paced read and very original to me, I have never read another book quite like this one.
I won this book as part of t ...more
Check out more reviews @ Perspective of a Writer...
Ivy can see glowing countdowns. She knows exactly how long everyone has until they die, including herself, which is one month, twenty-seven days, four hours, fifty-nine minutes, and two seconds from now, much shorter than she would like it to be. She's already missed saving her best friend from her countdown and a misjudgment doomed another girl. Is it possible to save anyone from what will happen? If she can't save herself then she's bound and ...more
Synopsis: Seventeen-year-old Ivy Erickson has one month, twenty-seven days, four hours, fifty-nine minutes, and two seconds to live.
Ever since she was a child, Ivy has been able to see countdown clocks over everyone's heads indicating how long before they will die. She can't do anything about anyone else’s, nor can she do anything about her own, which will hit the zero hour before she even graduates high school.
A life cut short is tragic, but Ivy does her best to make the most of it. She struggl ...more
Ever since she was a child, Ivy has been able to see countdown clocks over everyone's heads indicating how long before they will die. She can't do anything about anyone else’s, nor can she do anything about her own, which will hit the zero hour before she even graduates high school.
A life cut short is tragic, but Ivy does her best to make the most of it. She struggl ...more
Kelsey, my dear friend, just keeps getting better and better. This is the type of suspense novel that I love - where you are left guessing until the end. Well done, Kels, well done! ❤
I am not often drawn to reading books that fall into the suspense/thriller genre but after reading this book's synopsis, I had to find out what Gardenia was all about.
Gardenia by Kelsey Sutton is beautifully written and full of characters that moved my heart. A plot full of bittersweet memories, poignant emotions, supernatural gifts and suspenseful moments that kept me on the edge of my seat! I also enjoyed the bit of romance thrown in as well.
To sum it up? Teenage angst at it's very best! I t ...more
Gardenia by Kelsey Sutton is beautifully written and full of characters that moved my heart. A plot full of bittersweet memories, poignant emotions, supernatural gifts and suspenseful moments that kept me on the edge of my seat! I also enjoyed the bit of romance thrown in as well.
To sum it up? Teenage angst at it's very best! I t ...more
Mar 10, 2017
Gemma F
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
2017-books,
advanced-reader-s-copy,
netgalley,
kindle-books,
ya-lit,
stand-alones,
death-dying
4 Stars! Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an eARC of this book! This is the third book I've read from Kelsey Sutton and I absolutely loved Gardenia and the mystery surrounding Ivy who could see the countdown to a person's death. Although the synopsis reminded me of another book, When– it was a completely different story with some similarities in relation to the death part. I did not see that ending till it was at 95%! This one really made my heart race!
4 Stars for great pacing and fo ...more
4 Stars for great pacing and fo ...more
So close to being 5 stars, and it would have been if it answered the question "why?"
I read Gardenia in one day. It was thoroughly entertaining. The pieces fell together very well at the end, and I didn't see that ending coming. I had lots of feels, most depressing. I felt as though I was in the story.
I get angry at books that don't explain everything, and not explaining the point of a book is a dagger through the heart. So, so close to a 5...but why, why, why???
I would like to read more by this ...more
I read Gardenia in one day. It was thoroughly entertaining. The pieces fell together very well at the end, and I didn't see that ending coming. I had lots of feels, most depressing. I felt as though I was in the story.
I get angry at books that don't explain everything, and not explaining the point of a book is a dagger through the heart. So, so close to a 5...but why, why, why???
I would like to read more by this ...more
What an engrossing suspense read! There are so many possible suspects and so many red herrings that I found it impossible to even take a good guess at the killer's identity. To be fair, I'm not sure the clues are there until the big reveal, which can be a pet peeve of mine, but I didn't mind in this case. What was even more surprising was how satisfying the narrator's development is in the midst of the mystery. I love the fact that she makes a tough decision about facing her short future, and it
...more
(I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.)
Rating: 4 Stars
Gardenia is one of those books that left me without much to say, mainly because I was left so satisfied and in love. This book was both thrilling and meaningful, and probably a book I'll come to re-read.
Ivy Erickson is a normal seventeen year old. That is, if you overlook that fact she can see how long people have to live, and the fact that she knows she'll die in a less than two months. The story follows her as she traces wha ...more
Rating: 4 Stars
Gardenia is one of those books that left me without much to say, mainly because I was left so satisfied and in love. This book was both thrilling and meaningful, and probably a book I'll come to re-read.
Ivy Erickson is a normal seventeen year old. That is, if you overlook that fact she can see how long people have to live, and the fact that she knows she'll die in a less than two months. The story follows her as she traces wha ...more
(I received a copy from Netgalley, In exchange for an honest review.)
I didn't love the main character in this, but she was okay. I felt quite sorry for her at points.
This was an alright read, but it did struggle to keep my interest at points unfortunately. It felt like a pretty quick read, so it didn't drag at any point for me, it just didn't grip me like I hoped it would.
Overall, An okay read.
I didn't love the main character in this, but she was okay. I felt quite sorry for her at points.
This was an alright read, but it did struggle to keep my interest at points unfortunately. It felt like a pretty quick read, so it didn't drag at any point for me, it just didn't grip me like I hoped it would.
Overall, An okay read.
Compelling characters, inventive premise, but both the dialogue and the prose go clunk, clunk, clunk. Then clunk, clunk, clunk some more. Plus, ain't nobody sent gardenias to NObody since the 1950s.
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
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| YA Buddy Readers'...: Gardenia By Kelsey Sutton - Starting February 16th 2017 | 7 | 6 | Feb 16, 2017 09:32AM |
Readers also enjoyed
Kelsey Sutton is a young adult and middle grade author. She lives in Minnesota, where she received a dual bachelor's degree in English and Creative Writing from Bemidji State University. She will soon have a master's degree from Hamline University. Her work has received an Independent Publisher Book Award, an IndieFab Award, and was selected as a Kirkus Reviews Best Teen Book of 2013. When not wri
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