January 17th, 2013 
Vicky 
Title: Survive
Author: Alex Morel
Publication date: August 2, 2012
Publisher: Razorbill (Penguin Books)
Format: Ebook
ASIN: B006CU9XRI
Length: 273 pages
Genre: Adventure
Age group: Young Adult
Source: Purchased
Add it: Goodreads
Buy it: Amazon US | Amazon UK | The Book Depository
Synopsis
Jane is on a plane on her way home to Montclair, New Jersey, from a mental hospital. She is about to kill herself. Just before she can swallow a lethal dose of pills, the plane hits turbulence and everything goes black. Jane wakes up amidst piles of wreckage and charred bodies on a snowy mountaintop. There is only one other survivor: a boy named Paul, who inspires Jane to want to fight for her life for the first time.
Jane and Paul scale icy slopes and huddle together for warmth at night, forging an intense emotional bond. But the wilderness is a vast and lethal force, and only one of them will survive.
My thoughts
I don’t know what it is about plane crash/survival stories that fascinates me but I’ve always loved these types of books. Judging by the synopsis, Survive sounded just like my cup of tea but it turned out to be even better than what I expected. There are actually no words to describe how much I enjoyed reading this book, other than… oh my goodness.
In terms of the plot itself, it’s not the most mysterious story you’ll ever read. Basically, a girl called Jane Solis, who’s been living in a mental hospital for the past 12 months or so, is on her way back home for the Christmas holidays – the problem is, she doesn’t intend to leave the plane alive. She carefully planned her own death down to the tiniest details – but things don’t go her way. Just when she’s about to hit the switch and swallow a handful of pills, the plane hits turbulence and crashes. They landed on a snowy mountaintop in the middle of nowhere and no one seems to be alive but her. Jane, who was about to take her own life a few hours ago. Then he finds a guy called Paul and as much as they irritate each other at first, they join forces and try to figure out how to stay alive and get out of there as soon as possible. Since most of these are given in the synopsis, things don’t take you by surprise – but still, there was something about this book that made me keep on reading. I’m quite a slow reader but I devoured the first half of the book in one sitting. I think that says it all.
One of the things I loved the most about Survive is how much Jane changed during those 6 or 7 days they’ve spent on the mountain. She’s definitely come a long way from being a suicide, someone who’s constantly angry, anxious and just bored with her own life. I also loved how her relationship with Paul has changed during their adventure and how they kept motivating each other to go on and fight. I pretty much sobbed my way through the last 40 or 50 pages – it was beautifully written.
My only issue with this book is that there are some plot holes in the story. The one that bugged me the most was the fact that Paul was able to bring some matches and a knife with him on the plane. I’m not an expert on airport security rules and regulations but I’m fairly sure you’re not allowed to walk around with knives in your hand luggage. Having climbing ropes and knives is very useful for our two main characters but it does make you raise your eyebrows. I mean, what are the chances that the only time you’re about to kill yourself and/or get into a plane crash you’re travelling with a group of rock climbers who happen to have all their equipment and snow gear with them on the plane? It’s very convenient but … is it realistic? I’m not a hundred percent sure that it is. Having said that, it still didn’t put me off. It made me raise my eyebrows here and there but all in all I still ended up loving this book.
If you’re looking for a quick but captivating read or something heartbreaking but still hopeful, you’ll like Survive. It’s a fast paced emotional roller-coaster that is guaranteed stay with you for a long time.
Teaser
“It is ten minutes before ten, and normally I’d b staking out a chair for Group. That’s the kind of thing you worry about in an institution like Life House. I guess that’s good, in a way. The challenge of Group is to find a chair as far away from Old Doctor as possible without sitting too close to Big Stink, otherwise secretly known as BS. BS is Ben, and he’s the only boy on Life House D, which is specifically for cutters and suicides, and he smells like urine baked at three-fifty for forty minutes.”
Rating:
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Sounds interesting – I’ve never tried a “plane crash” type of book. They always sound like they could be pretty depressing. This one sounds like there is more of a story to it between the two characters who have survived the crash. Might give this one a try.
There is and that’s part of why I loved this so much. I hope you give this one a try and end up loving it just as much as I did
That sounds awesome! I’ve not read any plane crash/survival type books before but I do like disaster movies so I’d probably enjoy them. This sounds like it could be a good place to start
Claire @ Project to be Read recently posted..White Cat by Holly Black
It is! Just don’t let the plot holes put you off
It’s interesting because I wouldn’t normally like these type of books if they were films. Films tend to scare the heck out of me while in books – for some odd reason – I’ve a bit of an obsession with disasters and serial killers.
This sounds fantastic!!! Great review Vicky
I’ve never read any plance crash books before, but lately I seem to be in a mood where I want a little bit more danger in stories!
I’ve added this to my to-buy list, I’m really looking forward to reading it
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Megan @ ReadingInTheSunshine recently posted..Cupcakes At Carrington’s by Alexandra Brown
I know, I’m the same! I was just saying to Claire here how obsessed I’ve been with thrillers and all sorts of disasters in the past 12 months or so. This one’s actually not even a mystery but there’s something about it that just makes you want to keep on reading. It’s really good! Can’t wait to hear what you think! Give me a holler if you manage to get a copy and read it
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Very interesting! I quite like books about survival and I love it when a character has a good development in a book
It’s a shame that there is a little plot hole, but if the story is strong enough, I can accept it without a problem – I believe that will be the case. Nice review Vicky!
Ps: I like the moving imagine of you! I haven’t seen that before on a blog
Mel@thedailyprophecy recently posted..Review 98. Brodi Ashton–Everneath.
I’m not sure why I said ‘Imagine’ when I tried to say ‘image’ :p
Mel@thedailyprophecy recently posted..Review 98. Brodi Ashton–Everneath.
Aw, thank you! I wasn’t sure if it would be too distracting or not but I thought I’d give it a go
So glad you like it!
And yeah, I was a bit worried about the plot holes too but by the time I got to the second half of the book I couldn’t care less. Hope you enjoy it if you decide to pick it up! x
I’m not sure if I’ve read many survival stories. Though, I agree about the knife and matches. Sketch. Still sounds like a good read though.
Alexis @ Reflections of a Bookaholic recently posted..Review: Tricked (Audiobook)
Yeah, I instantly went ‘how convenient’ – but other than that, it’s a really good story and I ended up loving it.
Love the idea of how the experience changes her! Great review!
Thanks, M!
Survive sounds really great. I love it when books are very well written
Amazing review!
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Thank you so much! <3
Ohhhhhhhhh I love survival books! Even plane crash ones which scare the heck out of me. I could probably overlook the plot holes to enjoy the character progression.
Great review
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