Review: Dead is Not an Option

Author: Marlene Perez
Pages: 252
Source: ARC from Netgalley
Release Date: April 29 2011
Synopsis:
It’s springtime of senior year, and psychic sleuth Daisy Giordano is preparing to say goodbye to Nightshade High. But no college acceptance letters have arrived yet, and she’s beginning to worry about where she’ll end up come fall—and if it will be anywhere near her boyfriend, Ryan. But that’s not the only uncertainty Daisy’s dealing with. There’s a vamps versus shifters war going on in Nightshade, and things are so tense that there is talk of canceling the prom. The conflict is carrying over to the Giordano home, since Rose and Daisy are both dating werewolves and Poppy’s new boyfriend is a vampire. 
      
Daisy’s investigations involve mysterious new folks in town—and some old familiar faces, like her nemesis, celebrity chef/sorceress Circe Silvertongue. Can Daisy convince Circe to free the spirit she trapped in a jukebox long ago, and to change her pet pig, Balthazar, back into the man he once was? Can the paranormal community in Nightshade finally find peace? And will Daisy and her friends survive graduation? All of these questions and more are answered in the explosive final installment in the Dead Is series.

I've been reading this series since I saw it on my library's "If you like Twilight shelf" over a year ago and I've always enjoyed reading the books. Daisy is a strong heroine who's remarkably real. After reading all the books, I feel like I know her pretty well.
Dead is Not an Option started off where Dead is Just a Rumour left off; college applications. Daisy is worried and upset that she hasn't gotten any replies from colleges while it seems everyone else has. But she's mature enough to realize that there's no sense moping about it and in typical Daisy style, she focuses on freeing Lily and Bam. Except that's not all the trouble that's happened. There are a series of crimes hurting vampires and werewolves which leads to both species angry and on the verge of a fight. This of course troubles the Giordano household since Daisy and Rose are dating weres but Poppy is dating a vampire... Add a new, dangerous plot by the Scourge, terrible murders, betrayals and more. There's really never a dull moment in Nightshade.

One of my favorite things about Marlene Perez's writing is that it's light and easy to read. Like others in the series, this was a fun and cute read. The relationships in the story are all realistic and strong. Ryan and Daisy are adorable. They both support each other, and are open with each other which I find is a nice change from the romantic trauma usually happening everywhere else. Daisy and Sam are lots of fun to read about too, as are Daisy and her sisters.

While there were many twists and turns in the plot, by the end I guessed what had happened so I wasn't very surprised. While Daisy's story is fun to read, it wasn't a story that I was overly in to. I liked it, but didn't love it. Though fans of this series will probably enjoy the last book since it has a satisfactory, if not a bit too Disney-fairy-tale ending.

All in all, I would give this book a 3.5 since I liked it more than the usual book but not really got too hooked. The whole series is 4 stars because it was a series I enjoyed reading— a feel-good series.