Denis Ever After

I really like different looks at the afterlife that don't rely on Biblical mythology and when you thrown in a good murder-mystery, this book didn't disappoint. The book opens up with Denis talking about how he died (murdered at age 7 and left to be found at the base of a statue in Gettysburg) and how he “lives” now in the Port Haven, basically Heaven but where everyone has a home and people arrive on different types of boats. He spends his days with a variety of characters, most notably his great-grandmother (Gee Gee) and an author that catalogues everyone he meets in Port Haven, on the beach watching the boats come in and playing cards. The longer you're in Port Haven, the less you remember about your life but starting from your death backwards, as a way to find peace and “go clean” before you leave (ascend?) for the next place (this isn't explained because Denis wouldn't know but reincarnation isn't mentioned). There are ways to look in on your living relatives, either through a well/looking glass that just shows you what's happening or you can go through The Razor (which is both literal and figurative as Denis explains it) to actually haunt them in real-time. After Denis looks in and sees that his twin brother is having a really hard time (it's 5 years since Denis' murder), Denis decides to endure The Razor and help Matt forget him so Denis himself can “go clean” and move on too. However, it's not as easy as he thinks. This reminded me of both [b:Elsewhere 359410 Elsewhere Gabrielle Zevin https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1442686280l/359410.SX50.jpg 349532] and [b:The Lovely Bones 12232938 The Lovely Bones Alice Sebold https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1457810586l/12232938.SY75.jpg 1145090] but for younger readers. The murder is solved at the end and you get a pretty satisfying resolution, though it's a bit open-ended since Denis is still dead and must return to Port Haven. The only issue is that both Matt and Denis speak more like adults so you tend to forget they're only 7-12 years old - they could have easily been 16-18 or older, though maybe the matured a little faster because of how their life ended up going. Overall, I really recommend and I plan on looking into the author's other non-serial books.