Not Myself Today by Muriel Pritchett

Thanks to the author and Rachel’s Random Resources for the digital copy of this book in return for my honest opinion.

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 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!

Rating: 4 out of 5.