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Preloved has one of the coolest concepts on the block (a ghost from the Eighties? It was only the so-daggy-it's-cool era), and add to that major bonus points for a YA heroine who's Chinese.

However the startling brevity in which this tale was told left me breathless and a little disappointed. The book could have easily been twice as long with a little description added.

Perhaps it was the narrative style itself that didn't gel with me, but I didn't see Amy's relationships at all. All the other characters besides her mother were just people she interacted with. Even her best friend was stand-offish and vague.

Where this novel soars is living in Amy's mind: the mind of a lonely Chinese-Australian teenager who just wants to connect with her somewhat prickly but caring mum. Amy is realistic to the point of being painful, although I did find her resignation to the sidekick role an interesting take on her friendship with Rebecca. In my reading she wasn't jealous, just incredibly lonely. She was bound to fall in love with the only guy who can interact with her. Poor soul.

I'm not sure I fully grasped the concept that wrapped up the climax (view spoiler)[All three of them died: Logan became a ghost, Rebecca was reborn to look exactly the same, and Amy was reborn with the exact same name and doomed to repeat her betrayal again, even though Logan wasn't reborn? I think I missed something. (hide spoiler)], and due to that I will re-read the book one day.