I received a free digital copy from the author/publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

Suzie Sarnio is the first female Death in a million years, and has to go to school in a whole other world to learn how to become one. Suzie faces hatred, misogny and a whole load of other travels as she attempts to learn how to become something she never wanted to be in the first place.

The premise of this is really good and I really enjoyed learning all about the college for Deaths, and the classes and how the students lived their lives. There was a small touch of Hogwarts about it which I enjoyed. I would have liked a bit more insight into the lessons rather than just the first day and then the scythe lessons. The story was well written and I enjoyed the writing, and I am intrigued enough to pick up the second book for sure.

I did have some problems with this book. The start of it was a tad repetitive at times, with Suzie constantly repeating how she was eating a lot and not anorexic when explaining her weight loss and that got a bit annoying. One of the main things that bothered me was the way Suzie was treated by her fellow students for being female. Suzie is only 13 years old in the book and the level of hatred directed at her by a group of angry men was troublesome. I understand the need to make Suzie be an outcast because she is different but I think it was very inappropriate and just not nice to have older guys constantly calling Suzie a bitch and slut.

I did love the fact this book included Suzie’s first period and her fear and problems being in a literal world full of men, and no access to sanitary pads or tampons. However, she had her period for one night and it was never spoken about again, and then several months passed so I would have liked an update to see how she was dealing with all that stuff.