Beyond (The Academy)--T.P. Boje

Publishing Date: September 9, 2011

Genre: YA Paranormal Romance

Series: The Afterlife # 1

List Price: $0.99

Sensuality Rating: G

Star Rating: 4/5

Synopsis: 

Have you ever wondered where you go when you die?
Meghan is 16 when it happens to her.
She wakes up on a flying steamboat on her way to a school run by Angels in a white marble castle.
It is a school everybody has to go to before they are let into Heaven.
On the boat she meets Mick who has been dead for more than a hundred years but still looks like a teenager. He helps her past the difficult beginning at the new school in a new world filled with heavenly magic.
One day some of Meghan's roommates find a mirror in the cellar of the school and they persuade her to go through it with them - well knowing it is strictly against the rules of the school. Meghan ends up back on earth where she meets Jason. But Jason is in danger and Meghan knows something important. Something that is a matter of life and death. Soon she is forced to choose between the two worlds. The one she belongs to now and the one she left.

My Opinion:

          Beyond is a whole new world that explains what happens to people after they die. It's a creative read that shows people exactly what happens when you start messing with other people's destiny. Mehgan is a brave, caring girl that just wants to help, but you know what they say about good intentions: The road to hell is paved with good intentions.

The Good: 

1. Beyond was an easy book to peruse, due to the delightfully descriptive prose. T.P Boje did an excellent job at making sure every image she tried to portray was accurate and clear. I really enjoyed her way with words.
2. The whole Spirit world is so original (except The Academy), but we'll get to that later), I have never heard dying explained quite like that before. The whole idea that people die and go to school to learn how to survive as ghosts is so new and intriguing; that was one of the novels main draws for me, when I started it.
3. When Meghan was taken by Mick to see how ghosts are taken by other Spirits to join them in the Afterlife, my favorite part the lady that was in a car accident was allowed a second part at life. It was another very unique way of explaining how people come back to life after their hearts stop.
4. I loved the part about Michael Jackson. I cracked up when a kid in Mehgan's year at The Academy asked the teacher if, since he saw MJ, does that mean he's innocent? Hilarious, T.P.
5. Rahmiel is a favorite, as well. She sounds so adorable and kind (which would make since, as she is an Angel...), I kinda wish she was real, so I could give her a big, cuddly, hug.
6. Funny quote:

 "Where are your rabbits?" I asked him.
"Where they always are," he said with a smile.
"Making more rabbits?"
"You said it."

 The Bad:

1. Right from the start, I could tell the whole Academy, was taken from Harry Potter. I mean, come on, the moving "ladders", the refilling plates, the boats that take the first years to the school. It all was stolen from Hogwarts, and takes away some of the originality. For shame.
2. The characters rarely use contractions when they talk, which was SUPER annoying for me. What was the point of that? Confusing.

For the most point, I adored Beyond. It was a mixture of paranormal and love (amongst other emotions) and I really had fun reading it.

Recommendations?

          I think a lot of teens would enjoy delving into Mehgan's story of life as a Spirit. Take a peek if you're at all interested in the paranormal, or life after death. I have a feeling adults would like it, too.