Review: Rocks Fall, Everyone Dies by Lindsay Ribar

Title: Rocks Fall, Everyone Dies

Author: Lindsay Ribar
Publisher: Kathy Dawson Books

Publishing Date: June 7th 2016
Pages: 336

Genre:  YA Magical Realism
Series:  Stand Alone 

Source: Audiobook

 

Twin Peaks meets Stars Hollow in this paranormal suspense novel about a boy who can reach inside people and steal their innermost things—fears, memories, scars, even love—and his family’s secret ritual that for centuries has kept the cliff above their small town from collapsing.

Aspen Quick has never really worried about how he’s affecting people when he steals from them. But this summer he’ll discover just how strong the Quick family magic is—and how far they’ll go to keep their secrets safe.

With a smart, arrogant protagonist, a sinister family tradition, and an ending you won’t see coming, this is a fast-paced, twisty story about power, addiction, and deciding what kind of person you want to be, in a family that has the ability to control everything you are.

This is one of those books that just grabbed me because of the title. It is such an awesome  title and I am happy to say the title is very fitting for this book. This was a very wonderful read. I loved everything about. The complexity of the characters, the blurry moral lines, the magical aspect, the story itself, and the uniqueness of the story. It was a great refreshing read. 

Aspen comes from a family with a unique ability, they can steal from other people... Not things but parts of them. Personality, memories, thoughts, fears, it can all be taken away from them. Like a thread that needs to be snipped. Aspen's family does this so that the cliff does not collapse. They believe the rocks will fall and everyone will die. So Aspen goes along with the plan. He doesn't stop there, though. He also uses his gift on his friends and people he knows to benefit himself. He never really thought much about it until the day his world comes crashing down. There are secrets and betrayals, There are consequences. There is a cause and effect to everything he has stolen. He learns the hard way that those blurry moral lines.. just may have been crossed and there is no going back.

Where to start with my thoughts. They are all over the place. I loved loved loved this story. It was so unique. so twisted, and so thought provoking. I  just ate it up and was filled with all kinds of mumble jumble in my head. It really had me going all over the place. So please be patient... my review may be the same way. 

I love the idea of stealing pieces of people. Not that I would love to do it or think it's a great thing to do.... but the idea that this could exist and what it would mean. I mean how many times has one thought about taking away a fear or a memory...how would that effect us. Would it change us in a big way or a small way/ What if it could be done to us and we had no clue? So many questions are created around this subject. It really did some mind tricks on me. It was such a new concept... or at least one I have not read or heard of and I found myself immersed into this world. 

I love magical realism aspect...... I have a hard time finding magical realism in ya books. I just think its such a treasure to find. For the longest time I had no idea what this genre really was. When I figured it out I fell in love with it. Some magical realism books are  a bit over my head and I find myself lost without true explanation. This book.. well it didn't have the explanation that really hit the issue of why this family has the magic... but since that is what magical realism is all about I didn't mind. So much more was explained and I was never lost or bored or wondering what the heck is going on. It was a real good story a real good read. 

The characters were so complex. There wasn't good or bad or right or wrong. There were so many elements to each character and their story and how being in the same world as Aspen and his family has affected them. There were innocent and there were not so innocent but that is about the only real line I found. There were so many pieces and so many layers. There was so much growth for Aspen when he discovered things he either didn't think about or never knew about. The revelations just peeled the layers off and really allowed him to get to his core. I can't say I loved his character or hated his character. I just loved the journey his character was on. 

There was a bit of mystery and a bit of dark in this story. A bit of suspense a bit of thrill. There was romance and there were friendship and family aspects too. It had a bit of everything. The entire story centered around a coming of age story for aspen but I do believe there is something for everyone in this book. 

The book was a page-turner... or minute racer. I never wanted to put it down and I just needed more. It was fast paced and it was slow burning. It was just right. There were moments that needed to speed by and it did... then there were the moments where I needed to revel in the thoughts or scene. To really feel what was going on. I was able to do that. I really got the gist of it all and then I just studied it.

I think I will recommend this book to everyone I know or meet. Just everyone. I loved it. 

Lindsay Ribar lives in New York City, where she works in book publishing by day and writes YA novels by night. She attends far too many concerts, watches far too much nerdy TV, and consumes fanfiction like it's made out of chocolate. She is fond of wine, cheese, and countries where they speak English but with really cool accents. Oh, and she has a Harry Potter tattoo.