Find this review and more on my blog, Lilybloombooks 
 Wow. We can file Alive under TOTALLY UNEXPECTED. 
 However, I didn't have any expectations when heading into Alive - the premise is interesting and I have this morbid fascination with the possibility of organ transplants gone wrong. That's not to say that is what happened, per se, but I have a wild imagination on a good day. 
 Ella was, in short, a hard character to like. I was sympathetic to her situation, but there were times when I was just so flabbergasted by her gall and questioning her sanity at almost every turn. And that doesn't even have to do with the hallucinations. BUT. I understood her. I could not image practically knocking on death's door for years. After her transplant, she wants to be different, dive into life and live how she wants to. Can you blame her? She has a lot of growth to her character too, and once she starts to piece some things together, it was literally a smack in the face.. err, jolt to the heart? >.< I also loved her sense of humor. 
 Her attraction to Levi wasn't really.. insta-love. It was.. obsession. The added piece that he literally took her pain away just adds to the connection and I was beyond fascinated with why. However, there was an underlining creepiness about Levi that I couldn't shake, which is the point I'm sure, and the suspense had my heart a pitter-patterin. 
 I also adored her friends, Henry and Brynn. Henry was such a sweet, supporting best friend and it killed me to see him pushed aside. Brynn is straight forward and to the point and loved her to pieces. Also, the family dynamic is strong. Even with the comments of the little sister replacing Ella, you can tell she really did love her family. 
 The writing is just superb. I loved the medical files, the chapter headers and I loved the paranormal twist that was thrown in. The hallucinations and nightmares were flat-out creepy and gave me goosebumps! I didn't even know until AFTER the fact, that they were hallucinations! I was FREAKING OUT. 
 My only small issue was the quick resolution. It's only barely enough to satisfy my questioning mind. I also can't figure out why (view spoiler)[ Levi was stealing hearts. It wasn't HIS, so what gives?? (hide spoiler)] 
 Alive was a such an unexpected, creepy but REALLY GOOD READ with a dark undertone. I highly recommend it! 
 *I received this book for free from The Publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.*