Good morning, bookworm! Come in and snuggle under one of these thick, cosy blankets. I’ve only just managed to get the heating on; the dragons normally warm the pipes for me if I just need to take the chill off a room but this morning they stubbornly refused. I know why they’re sulking: I forbade them from scorching self-portraits into the carpet again and now, according to the wizards, I’m stifling their artistic expression. I didn’t honestly know dragons had artistic expression but there you go… Enough of my grouching, let me cocoon myself in a blanket then I’ll tell you about Not Myself Today by Muriel Ellis Pritchett.

Here’s the blurb: High school soccer star Lindsey Anderson was at the top of her game with graduation approaching and a full-ride soccer scholarship offer in her hand. Then she dropped dead on the soccer field, only to wake up in the body of a teenage sex-trafficking victim. No one believes who she really is. Not even her dad. Chased by her new body’s drug-dealing pimp and rabid parapsychologists out to dissect her, Lindsey searches to get her body and her life back before graduation day. Can her BFF and the high school nerdy boy she detests help save her life?

Here’s a little about the author:

Born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, Muriel Ellis Pritchett graduated from the University of Georgia and began her journalism career while living in Japan and Germany. Her journalism career included playwriting, editing and writing for magazines and newspapers, and working in public relations, university relations, and media relations.

After retiring, Muriel’s family doctor recommended she get a hobby. So, she began writing fun fiction about feisty older women who had been wronged and had to pull themselves up out of the muck. But her award-winning fourth book, Not Myself Today, is a change in genres—a YA paranormal thriller. It is scheduled for release September 24, 2020. Her first three “fruity” books, fun romance for older women, are Making Lemonade, Like Peaches and Pickles, and Rotten Bananas and the Emerald Dream. She is currently working on another “fruity” book, titled Sour Grapes and Balmy Knight.

When not writing, Muriel loves cruising all over the world, eating good Belgian chocolate, and spending time in any Disney park. Her favorite Disney attractions are SOARING at Disney World’s EPCOT in Florida, Alice’s Curious Labyrinth at Disneyland Paris, Journey to the Center of the Earth at DisneySeas in Tokyo, and Indiana Jones Adventure at Disneyland in California. (Note to self: Must buy Belgian chocolate, mmmmm…)

Here’s my review: I read this in one sitting, as it’s a really easy read to relax with. It’s written in first person perspective and the reader is drawn into Lindsey’s dawning realisation that somehow she’s in a different body. And not just any body; this one is tattooed, emaciated, dependent on drugs, used and battered. Her shock deepens as she learns more about Annabeth, the girl whose body she is now in habiting, and the actions which led to two criminals seeking revenge.

I felt Lindsey’s frustration as she struggled to make medical and law enforcement professionals listen to her. I felt her angst as a person calling her ‘best friend’ disclosed their life as sex-trafficked teenagers. And I felt her grief as her father called her crazy and refused to listen to a random girl telling him she was Lindsey – after all, he was mourning his daughter’s death.

When Annabeth’s past catches up with Lindsey, she must move her broken body fast to try and outrun the violent criminals who want her dead, really dead this time. She has an unexpected ally in this and she learns that actions and appearances can be deceptive unless we try to understand why someone acts in a particular way. The action is fast paced with lulls to catch her breath while she tries to figure out how to be herself in this new body.

I liked the way the story ended and I enjoyed this thriller, which highlights the very real problems faced by teenagers in the sex-trafficking world. It’s a 4 star rating from me!

If you like the sound of this novel and want to purchase it for yourself, click on the book image to go straight to the page on Amazon (I don’t get anything for doing this, I’m just being a helpful bookworm). And now I must go; I think the dragons have discovered the hidden stash of premium wood and charcoal I was going to use in negotiations to end our heating stalemate. Sigh…