The Taking of Jake Livingston by Ryan Douglass

Book Description: Jake Livingston is one of the only Black kids at St. Clair Prep, one of the others being his infinitely more popular older brother. It’s hard enough fitting in but to make matters worse and definitely more complicated, Jake can see the dead. In fact, he sees the dead around him all the time. Most are harmless. Stuck in their death loops as they relive their deaths over and over again, they don’t interact often with people. But then Jake meets Sawyer. A troubled teen who shot and killed six kids at a local high school last year before taking his own life. Now a powerful, vengeful ghost, he has plans for his afterlife–plans that include Jake. Suddenly, everything Jake knows about ghosts and the rules to life itself go out the window as Sawyer begins haunting him and bodies turn up in his neighborhood. High school soon becomes a survival game–one Jake is not sure he’s going to win.

Book Rating: 4.3/5

Read: March 17-19

Book Review: The Taking of Jake Livingston was a paranormal thriller that dealt with black queer trauma and microaggressions when it comes to going to predominantly white schools. Which I personally can relate to, so when I was recommended the book through TikTok I ordered it pretty quickly. I also watched a short YouTube book trailer and it reminded me of the movie Paranorman, which I used to watch all the time when I was younger. 

I'm not the biggest fan of the paranormal genre with books, especially those that involve ghosts, as they tend to be too scary for my taste. However at this point in the year I was trying to get out of my comfort zone and read more books not centered on romance. 

With this book, I actually found Jake Livingston's powers interesting along with all the other paranormal things occurring in the book. However, I felt like we didn't get a whole lot of information on why Jake could see ghosts. Along with why Sawyer targeted Jake so heavily during the book when they had never met. 

Even though some information fell short, I appreciated how the book tackled important and sensitive topics such as homophobia, racism, bullying, and school shootings. The author handled each issue with a seriousness that allowed readers to empathize with the characters experiencing them. I believe that incorporating these themes in books helps raise awareness about these problems, especially since these issues are so commonly experienced in everyday life. 

Overall, I enjoyed reading "The Taking of Jake Livingston," and would highly recommend it. However, I think the story has the potential for a sequel, one that delves deeper into the origins of Jake's powers and how they relate to his ancestors.