Review of Open Mic Night at Westminster Cemetery

This week, I received an ARC of Open Mic Night at Westminster Cemetery by Mary Amato (thanks Net Galley and publishers!). It is going to be the first book I review for my book blog, so I am super psyched to talk about it, which works out really well because I have a lot to say about this one. 

PROS:

1. This book had super charming characters. Very likable and easy to get invested in.
2. Really cool, quirky idea that was pretty darn unique.
3. Easy to read and quick to get through.
4. Good moral lessons and an overall positive theme.
5. It incorporated a lot of poetry and song lyrics, which was really fun because it's always cool when a book plays with genre and form.  

CONs:

1. The poetry and song lyrics were awful. They were overly sentimental, cliched, and trite. Before anyone says anything, I know poetry doesn't have to (and often shouldn't) rhyme, but these poems did and the rhyme schemes were awkward. They didn't match up. It was unpleasant to read and often lasted for several pages which annoyed me enough to take me out of the reading experience.
2. Similarly, at times the life lessons were just really didactic and felt like they were being force fed to the reader. I get that it's written for young adults and, therefore, can't be quite as nuanced because of the assumption that if it's too subtle, teens won't pick up on it (which, not to totally digress, but that's kind of crap: if teens read, they learn how to be careful readers and don't need a heavy handed moral in their lit), but it was too much. No, we shouldn't judge a book by it's cover. Yes, it's important to get to know people. 'K. We have it.
3. The ending was not good. It was over the top, gimmicky, and reminiscent of the TV show Lost (which is the closest thing to a spoiler I'll give you).

Overall, this book was definitely worth reading. I'm not going to go overboard with praise because there were some seriously annoying things about it, but it was very cute and pleasant and it had appearances by a deceased Edgar Allen Poe, so what else do you need to know?  

Three Stars, would recommend.