Linda Joy Singleton
Don’t Die Dragonfly
The Seer, Book #1

Review brought to you by OBS staff member Annabell Cadiz

Synopsis:

After getting kicked out of school and sent to live with her grandmother, Sabine Rose is determined to become a “normal” teenage girl. She hides her psychic powers from everyone, even from her grandmother Nona, who also has “the gift.” Having a job at the school newspaper and friends like Penny-Love, a popular cheerleader, have helped Sabine fit in at her new school. She has even managed to catch the eye of the adorable Josh DeMarco.

Yet, Sabine can’t seem to get the bossy voice of Opal, her spirit guide, out of her head . . . or the disturbing images of a girl with a dragonfly tattoo. Suspected of a crime she didn’t commit, Sabine must find the strength to defend herself and, later, save a friend from certain danger.

Review:

Don’t Die Dragonfly ventures into the world of psychics. Sabine is sent to live with her grandmother, Nona, after a boy at her school dies. Sabine is trying to just fit in and ignore her psychic ability. Her mother barely recognizes her existence since Sabine was exiled from home and Sabine just wants to escape the past. She wants to be a normal teenager with friends and hopefully, finally get a boyfriend. To Sabine’s surprise, she not only finds her best friend in the popular cheerleader, Penny Love, but has also attracted one of the most sought after boys in the school, Josh. But one day as Sabine is working on the school newspaper, visions of a girl with a dragonfly tattoo covered with blood starts to plague her every waking hour. She knows she can’t just ignore the visions. Someone is in danger and she needs to make sure, this time, the girl in her visions doesn’t die. But Sabine also ends up being accused of a crime she did not commit. To top it all off, Nona has a new guy move in, Dominic. He may be drooling sexy but Sabine doesn’t trust him. She knows Nona is keeping secrets from her but before Sabine can get to the bottom of that, she has to clear her name and save a girl from certain death.

Don’t Die Dragonfly was a pretty fast paced and smooth read. The book is short, only two hundred and thirteen pages. It’s not mind blowing or filled with many plot twists, but was a cute read.

There is a wonderful cast of characters in this book. Josh is your typical boy next door: sweet, kind, and adorable. Dominic is the best character of the novel but he isn’t as explored as much as I would have liked. He is very mysterious, sexy, and has a really neat gift. He also has a very tragic past. There is only a small mention of it in this book but I presume it will be explored in later novels. Penny-Love is relatable but is a little bit full of herself. I really enjoyed Mannie, the editor of the newspaper. He was funny and even though he was arrogant, it wasn’t annoying, he still managed to be a hottie of a character. Thron was also one my favorite character. She isn’t afraid to be different. She is a bold and carries herself with strength. Sabine grew as a character through her friendship with Thorn.

But the main character, Sabine is too predictable. She is sweet and loving, but is difficult to relate to since she is obsessed with doing the right thing and makes too many obvious mistakes. She is also debating herself over her own ability and seems to suffer from a great deal of insecurity in her own gifts.

The suspense and tension in the book are well done. Since Sabine is dating the most popular guy in school, she is even more worried about having her gifts as a psychic. She doesn’t feel she can tell him and even worse, his best friend Evan, top football player at the school, isn’t all too happy Josh is dating her.

Something I really liked about Don’t Die Dragonfly is the message it presents to young adult readers and especially, to girls. Singleton does a beautiful job of bringing the heavy laden topic of suicide to a young audience without making the story or characters too over dramatic or preachy in any way.

To find out more about The Seer Series and more books by author Linda Joy Singleton, check out her site here.