Judy Sheehan

I Woke Up Dead at the Mall has a wonderful premise, teenagers from New York that are murdered or can't move on in the afterlife, end up at the Mall of America in Minnesota. Nobody there notices them because the mall is so noisy and busy. Sarah wakes up in the ugly bridesmaid's dress that she was wearing when she died at her father's wedding. She doesn't understand why she is there until Bertha, the death coach, explains to her that she has been murdered and can't move on until she "lets go" of her past life. The rest of the story is about her interactions with some of the other dead teenagers, including a cute boy named Nick, and trying to find out who murdered her and why.
I really enjoyed this story; it had me laughing and crying in equal amounts. The stories the teenagers tell about their deaths tugs at the heartstrings, but it's Sarah's no nonsense attitude and her sarcastic wit that elevates this book to something special.… (mehr)