Review: Croak by Gina Damico

I heard about this book a while before it came out.  Thanks to my serious Twitter addiction, I heard about Croak via Jessica Spotswood, author of Born Wicked, ranting about it.  After doing a bit of research on the book, I knew I had to get my hands on this book.  And I did.  I mean, just look at the book trailer--it's awesome.

Sixteen-year-old Lex Bartleby has sucker-punched her last classmate. Fed up with her punkish, wild behavior, her parents ship her off to upstate New York to live with her Uncle Mort for the summer, hoping that a few months of dirty farm work will whip her back into shape. But Uncle Mort’s true occupation is much dirtier than that of shoveling manure.
He’s a Grim Reaper. And he’s going to teach her the family business.
Lex quickly assimilates into the peculiar world of Croak, a town populated entirely by reapers who deliver souls from this life to the next. Along with her infuriating yet intriguing partner Driggs and a rockstar crew of fellow Grim apprentices, Lex is soon zapping her targets like a natural born Killer.
Yet her innate ability morphs into an unchecked desire for justice—or is it vengeance?—whenever she’s forced to Kill a murder victim, craving to stop the attackers before they can strike again. So when people start to die—that is, people who aren’t supposed to be dying, people who have committed grievous crimes against the innocent—Lex’s curiosity is piqued. Her obsession grows as the bodies pile up, and a troubling question begins to swirl through her mind: if she succeeds in tracking down the murderer, will she stop the carnage—or will she ditch Croak and join in?

Wow, that's a really long synopsis.
Anyhow, I wanted to start this review with how dimensional I though Lex was.  At first, I thought she was an extremely bratty and angst-ridden teen with something to prove when she actually didn't.  But then, as the book continues, I realized there was much more to her.  She didn't always want to be bad, in a way, her violent and angry mind is woven into her blood.  It's who she is and she can't change that.  But she also happens to be a person who cares a lot about her family.  She loves them.  The problem is that she just can't express it the right way.
Okay, and I just thought I'd tell you all the Uncle Mort has to be a pretty handsome guy in here, only edgy looking.  Don't know why; it's just how I imagined him to be.
This tale put an awesome twist to Grim Reapers.  They don't take souls because they can and wear cowls.  Although, they do wear black hoodies.  Their job is to bring peoples' souls into a safer place, where they won't become ghosts and all.
And then things start getting mysterious and sketchy.  Innocent people die before they're supposed to and Lex and Driggs are determined to figure it out.  With the help of the junior Grims and Uncle Mort, they unravel the mystery only to be completely caught offguard and shocked.
Yeah, it was a good book.  I gave is four out of five stars.  It was very good, and like always, I highly suggest people read it.  It was a quick read that had the adrenaline pumping.  It was a very unique story and I can't wait to see what happens to our beloved Lex and the others in Book 2, Scorch.
Happy reading!