Must read the rest of the trilogy now. YA, especially speculative YA, operates best in metaphor, and what a great metaphor for growing up: having two souls in one body, yet only one can be dominant? YA is all about finding one's identity, and the strength of the central metaphor carries the book past some of the weaker parts. ( )

In this alternate history dystopia, humans are always born with two souls, but over time one of them overpowers the other and the less dominant soul simply fades away — at least, that's what's supposed to happen. In Eva's case, she was the recessive soul in Addie's body, but she has most certainly not faded away. Addie was able to conceal Eva's presence for several years, but it has finally come to the attention of medical authorities, and they are without warning being sent away to a hospital to be "fixed."

There are so many teen dystopian novels out there, and sometimes they start to feel pretty similar. This story was a new twist for me, and I enjoyed it as a diversion, though I identified a few plot details that either didn't make sense or needed further fleshing out. For example, that was an awfully enormous hospital building for all of a dozen patients! All in all, a decent first effort, but I don't think I'll be reading further in the series. ( )

Two people sharing a body? Interesting premise. Add in the threat of death if one of those souls doesn't depart? Now you've got drama and tension. I enjoyed seeing how Addie and Eva interact and how they both have to help each other. ( )

Amazing premise, didn't fully explore it as deeply as I was hoping ( )

What's Left of Me provides a very unusual concept. That of two souls residing in one body. Stephanie Meyer approached it in The Host but in a different way. Here either Eva or Addie is supposed to override the other one and become the dominant soul. But it turns out that they're able to co-exist and Eva hides underneath Addie's soul. But by co-existing, they are setting themselves up for being sent off and treated. I enjoyed this story a lot. I had issues at times following the dual personalities and keeping straight who was in charge but, all in all, this is a fantastic and creative book. ( )