Understudy

by Denise Kim Wy

After surviving a car crash that killed her boyfriend, the last thing Kat Vanburgh needs is to give her parents another reason to send her to a shrink. So when Adam's spirit appears in the woods, she does what any normal seventeen-year-old teen would do. She keeps it to herself.

Kat blames Adam's twin brother--Eric, for the accident. So when he arrives in town, seemingly unaffected by his brother's death, her blood boils to the point that she wishes him dead. Adam doesn't share her sentiments though. In fact, he asks her to be nice to his brother.

Complicating things further, they are forced to work together on a school play. Eric refuses to cooperate. Kat refuses to forgive. But another accident will bring them together, making Kat realize that Eric may not be the person everybody thought him to be. And as she learns about his painful past, she realizes that sometimes, letting go is easier than holding on to the past. She's just not sure how far she's willing to let go. Especially if it means losing Adam. For good.

Understudy is a YA fiction novel dealing about two young people's struggle to let go of the past and forgiving oneself. It's a love story that transcends death as the living tries to cope with the uncertainties of life and the challenges of living it.

Genres: Romance, Contemporary, Young Adult

287 pages, Paperback

First published December 4, 2013

About the author

Denise Kim Wy is a designer by day and author by night. She loves reading tear-jerking love stories as well as witty books with a dark sense of humor.

Denise believes that the world can become a better place if people will spend more time reading books instead of trolling celebrities. She's also a sucker for English period dramas and well designed furniture.

You can reach her through
TWITTER: @denisewy

To see Denise's complete bio, please visit denisewy.com

Reviews

[Abi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kat was an okay character, and I felt sorry for her because of her loss. I didn't really love her though, and I can't say I thought anything more than "okay" for the rest of the characters either.

The storyline in this was alright, but it dragged in areas and I felt quite bored. The only parts that I really enjoyed where the beginning and the end. Everything in between was quite dull.

Overall, Not a bad read, but couldn't keep my interest.

[Sarika Patkotwar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Actual rating- 3.5

*NOTE: We (he Readdicts) received a copy of Understudy by Denise Kim Wy in exchange for an honest review. We thank Denise for the book!

I had read and really liked author Denise Kim Wy's Please Stay, so I was pretty excited when we were contacted to read and review Understudy. The book has such a pretty cover and the story sounded quite different and really dazzling to me and that's exactly how it turned out to be. For me, Please Stay had turned out to be shockingly and surprisingly good since the theme of it was new to me but I now know how Denise is fascinated by this particular phenomena so I was prepared for Understudy.

Kat is the protagonist in Understudy and she is in a steady and supremely sweet relationship with Adam who dies in an accident on his birthday while Kat survives it and she blames Adam's twin brother Eric for her boyfriend's death as Adam was trying to answer Eric's call while driving on that fateful day. Besides blaming Eric, Kat is also suffering from survivors' guilt, out of nowhere she can still see and meet Adam, she has a love-hate relationship with Eric and all of that makes her an emotional mess.

I liked Kat overall and even though I understood all the turmoil she was going through, I felt that was she was being too dramatic at times, but then again, I get how difficult it must have been for her to cope with everything. Her best friend Sara was a great girl who was similar to Kat in more ways than one and their friendship was really strong. Adam was a well mannered and really good guy who loved Kat and wanted to see her happy. He and his twin brother Eric shared a very complex but totally amazing relationship. Eric was the typical mysterious and quiet guy who I love to figure out. There were a few small chapters in the book from his point of view but I really wish his side of the story, especially his past, was explained in more detail.

I really liked how a school play was an integral part of the plot of Understudy. That kind of a set up always makes for an interesting and fun read even when the main subject at hand is quite serious. Author Denise Kim Wy has a way of making the ordinary seem extraordinary in a beautiful way and her simple and smooth writing makes Understudy an easy and quick read that I thoroughly enjoyed and that left me smiling long after I finished reading it.

[Aldy · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.50
La historia gira entorno a la muerte de Adam en el día de su cumpleaños, por estar charlando (contestar) el teléfono mientras estaba conduciendo su auto en el día de su cumpleaños. Estaba yendo a festejarlo con su novia, Katharine y recibió un llamado de su hermano gemelo con quien no se llevaba bien, perdió su atención al volante y chocaron.
Así es como vuelve Eric a su ciudad, el hermano gemelo que había estado en un internado distanciado de su familia, se habla siempre de un pasado oscuro pero no se aclara jamás a qué se refiere con eso. Su padre le hace un comentario sobre inyectarse cosas pero nunca se repite en lo más mínimo (terrible hueco de la historia no saber cómo justificar el porqué un adolescente -menor de edad- crece lejos de su familia).
Ninguna de las familias tienen problemas.
Kat es irritante todo el tiempo que le hecha la culpa a Eric por la muerte de Adam, vive el 85% del libro culpándolo, siendo que éste no sabía que su hermano estaba manejando al contestarle, y que ELLA era la que estaba en el auto con su novio y le pidió que respondiera el teléfono.
Es un tanto raro como es que se sigue encontrando Kat con Adam en el bosque donde ocurrió el accidente, como él la guía, pero siguen como si tuvieran una relación, besándose, incluso quieren tener su primera vez juntos. Es por esto que se me hace muy difícil aceptar la pareja de ella con Eric, porque hace pocos meses que su hermano murió y ella sigue enamorada del otro, jamás me gusta que cambien las parejas si es que se llevaban bien, capaz sea una falla mía, una vez que veo la química de una y me gusta como funciona, no va a cambiar.
Pasa lo más predecible, Eric no tenía una pierna porque había salvado de un accidente a su hermano, regalándole diez años más de vida según este, y luego tiene otro accidente más pero sobrevive.
Muy predecible. Me hubiera gustado más la pareja de Eric con Sarah, la amiga de la heroína, cambiar a su pareja de tres años por su gemelo al poco tiempo de haber muerto... no.

[Elsa Carrion · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won’t rewrite the descriptive section just to make the review longer. However, I will give you my opinion of the story. The story is about love and loss with a little paranormal activity, not the spooky kind just the can’t leave my love behind quite yet. The plot was unique and the pace was steady. The story shows how to forgive and how to let go. I loved the cover, very nicely done.

Every once in a while, I just start to read a book without reading the summary based on recommendations from friends, that know what I like to read. This is how this story came to me by a request to read from the author. I had read her prior work and loved it, so I had no idea what this story was about, besides being a YA novel. I simply liked the cover and away I went. So you can see and understand that I did not expect and was surprised that Adam would have a short role in the story. I was left thinking “now what” so every chapter was like a little gift, I didn’t know what was going to happen next.

I found some twists and some turns in the story and I had a few questions lingering at the end. Which really, were no biggie and they didn’t take away anything from the story. At times, I was a little upset with the main female character Kat, and Sarah was a little pushy, I loved Eric, he had his own issues to deal with besides his brother.

I recommend Understudy. The ending is a little different because of the situation and Kat’s history but it was still a cute ending

I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion and review.

Title: Understudy
Author: Kenise Kim Wy
Genre: YA Fiction Novel
Series: No, Stand Alone
Edition: Kindle - 272 pages
Cover: 5 stars
Main Characters: Kat, Adam, Eric & Sarah
Rating: 4 stars
Recommend: Yes

http://www.amazon.com/review/R2PRUKKD...
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Levian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kat's boyfriend, Adam died on his birthday. urging him to pick up the phone before the crash, Kat felt partially responsible for it. the phone call was from Adam's identical twin brother, Eric, whom Kat just learned existed. after the traumatic accident, Kat returned to the crash site to find Adam appearing in the woods nearby. at the same time, Eric enrolled in Kat's school, throwing Kat of her balance. despite being the dark sheep of the family, Eric had a secret behind his negativity. being the complete opposite of Adam, everyone hated him including Kat, until she realized the person behind that mask.

i received a free e-book from the author in exchanged for a review. the book was an absolute fast read. the mysteries kept the story flowing at a fast pace. the twins, the unspoken past, all the reasons that was soon patched together to make a clear picture of what Adam and Eric was like, and how Kat fit in between them. when Eric also found himself falling for Kat like his perfect brother did, it became even more engaging as i was curious how he could win her over. Kat on the other hand, was an average girl that mourned for her dead boyfriend in her own way. until the very end, i still couldn't figure out if Adam really appeared in the woods everyday or it was all mental. the spookiness added quite plenty of points to the seemingly typical romance.

my review: here

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Firstly I received a copy of Understudy by Denise Kim Wy in exchange for an honest review so id like to take this opportunity to say thankyou 

I had previously read and really enjoyed “Please Stay” also written by Denise, so I was excited when Denise contacted me to read and review Understudy. The book has such a detailed cover and the blurb told me that it was a really enjoyable story .and it turned out to be just as good as expected.

Kat is the protagonist in Understudy and she is in a steady and supremely sweet relationship with Adam who dies in an accident on his 18th birthday while Kat survives it and she blames Adam's twin brother Eric for her boyfriend's death as Adam was trying to answer Eric's call while driving on that fateful day. Besides blaming Eric, Kat is also suffering from survivors' guilt, out of nowhere she can still see and meet Adam, she has a love-hate relationship with Eric and all of that makes her an emotional mess.

Denise Kim Wy has a way of making the ordinary seem extraordinary in a beautiful way and her simple and smooth writing makes Understudy an easy and quick read that I thoroughly enjoyed and that left me smiling long after I finished reading it.
I’d definitely recommend “Understudy” to anybody looking for a book that is enjoyable to the end and would give it a rating of 5/5.

[Shaz X · Rating 5 out of 5]

*Received a copy from Author in return for an honest review*

Sharon's Book Nook Full Review

A beautiful story about love and loss, it is a very emotional read which brought me to tears on a few occasions. Understudy is well written, expresses a wide range of emotions and has a cast of characters that you feel for and find yourself needing them to be ok.

Kat is a trying to put on a brave face after the loss of her boyfriend Adam, but is crumbling on the inside through her own grief and guilt over the accident. Eric is a misunderstood teenage boy, the black sheep of the family for reasons that are revealed towards the end and are completely understandable. These two share a bond strong than neither of them expected and after a fiery start end up in a typical innocent teenage romance.

My only dislike of this book is that I would have liked the story to continue a little longer to find out where they went for college and how their relationship progressed.

I was glued to this beautiful book and found it relatable on so many levels. Great read!

5 stars!

[T · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this book free in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. It is basically the story of Kat, who loses her boyfriend, Adam, in an accident on his 18th birthday. After Adam’s death, his twin brother moves into town causing all sorts of interesting, and sometimes painful feelings to crop up for Kat.

There were many aspects of this book that I really liked. Seeing Kat’s pain, as well as the pain of others in town, play out over a long period of time was quite heartbreaking. Everyone handles grief differently and I thought it was interesting to see how the various characters dealt with Adam’s death.

I also really enjoyed the time that Kat spent with Adam’s (for lack of a better description) ghost. This book could have gotten very cheesy, very fast, but didn’t. I liked the way it played the line between grief and the paranormal.

I would recommend this book and look forward to reading other works by this author.

[Jenna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this book for free on Amazon. Kat and Adam are in love and have a date on his 18th birthday. But on the way to their date the car crashes and Adam dies and leaves Kat totally heartbroken behind. By some miracle or maybe Kat is going crazy she see's him in the woods everyday. Eric Adam's twin brother comes back to town, making it difficult for Kat to move on. At first Kat hates him with all her guts, but as she get's to know him she starts to like him and that's when things get complicated.

This was a beautiful written story. This book made me cry a couple off times.

[Amanda (Fandomly Bookish) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is quite a short, fast and a very heartwarming read.