My Last Kiss

Seventeen-year-old Cassidy Haines has just died after falling from a bridge, and now she’s a ghost, witnessing her own autopsy. She soon finds out that her boyfriend, Ethan, is the only person who can see her, and she enlists his help to piece together what actually took place on the night she died, even as her friend Aimée investigates, too. Through a series of flashbacks, Cassidy is forced to revisit moments leading up to her death. The setup of Neal’s debut may remind some adult readers of the 1980s classic Ghost, though the dialogue can sound more like that of a TV police procedural (“From where I was standing, she was unstable that night”) than a story about teenagers concerned about their friend’s death. Neal creates confusion while trying to maintain mystery; so many people in Cassidy’s life were involved on the night of her death, readers may find themselves as lost as Cassidy as the mystery progresses. Ages 12–up. [em]Agent: Stacey Glick, Dystel & Goderich Literary Management. (June) [/em]