Everlost



""Linger or light; the choice will be yours.""

A novel by Neal Shusterman. The first novel of The Skinjacker Trilogy.

Nick and Allie survive the car accident, but their souls don't exactly get to where they're supposed to either. Instead, they're caught halfway between life and death, in a sort of limbo known as Everlost: a shadow of the living world, filled with things and places that no longer exist. It's a magical, yet dangerous place where bandits of lost children run wild and anyone who stands in the same place too long sinks to the center of the Earth.

When they find Mary, the self-proclaimed queen of the lost kids, Nick feels like he's found a home, but Allie isn't satisfied spending eternity between worlds. Against all warnings, Allie begins learning the "Criminal Art" of haunting, and ventures into dangerous territory, where a monster called the McGill threatens all the souls of Everlost.

In this imaginative novel, Neal Shusterman explores questions of life, death, and what just might lie in between.

Has a Character Sheet.

"Allie: "Don't try to charm me. The 'Beauty and the Beast' thing doesn't work with me, okay?""
 * Alliterative Name:
 * And I Must Scream: For some reason, The Screamer kid who gets captured along with . Allie shuts him up.
 * Anguished Declaration of Love:
 * Armor-Piercing Slap: Allie slaps Mary at one point.
 * Batman Gambit:  towards the McGill.
 * Beast and Beauty: and Allie (even Allie lampshades this):

": I won't be a monster's bride.
 * Becoming the Mask:
 * Beware of Hitch-Hiking Ghosts:
 * Beware the Nice Ones:
 * Big Applesauce: A good portion of the story takes place in New York.
 * Big Bad: The McGill.
 * Big Bad Friend: See spoiler on Big Bad.
 * Big No:
 * Blackmail: Twice for by  and . The former, she took a third option, but with the latter, Allie agrees for the most part.
 * Blatant Lies:
 * At least half the things
 * Body Surf: does this three times.
 * Boy Meets Girl:
 * Nick meets Allie, and then Nick meets Mary.
 * Gender-reversed when Allie is the first meets Lief.
 * Bratty Half-Pint: Vari can be seen as this at times.
 * Broken Bird: Mary.
 * But Not Too Foreign: Nick is half-Japanese.
 * Character Development
 * Character Focus: Interchanges between Nick, Allie, Lief, Mary, and the McGill (with a bit of Vari on the side).
 * Chaste Hero: Johnnie-O when he says, "I don't like girls much." According to Allie, it's because he died a year too young.
 * The Chessmaster: Allie seemed to have been getting there.
 * Chekhov's Gun:
 * Cliffhanger
 * Clingy Jealous Guy: Vari.
 * Cloudcuckoolander: Lief, half way through the story.
 * Conflicting Loyalty:
 * Cool Airship: The Hindenburg.
 * Cool Boat: The Sulphur Queen.
 * Cool Horse:
 * Crash Into Hello: Nick and Allie literally first meet when they bump into each other, causing them to sidetrack from the tunnel to the light and end up in Everlost instead.
 * Creepy Child: Vari, especially in the beginning of the story when he's a Clingy Jealous Boy.
 * Dead Little Brother:
 * Deadpan Snarker: Allie.
 * Defeat Means Friendship:
 * Delinquents: The Altar Boys (Johnnie-O and his gang).
 * Did You Just Scam Cthulhu?: tricking  into beliving that she was teaching him how to.
 * Did We Just Have Tea with Cthulhu?: Whenever begins showing genuine kindness towards.
 * The Dog Bites Back:
 * Dogged Nice Guy: Nick at first.
 * Earn Your Happy Ending
 * Easily Forgiven:
 * after catches her opening his fortune cookies, thanks to a fortune cookie predicting forgiveness.
 * Within a couple of hours of chasing for betraying him,  has a change of heart from vengeance to admiration towards  for being a Worthy Opponent.
 * Eldritch Abomination:
 * Family-Unfriendly Death:
 * Fish Out of Water: Nick and Allie.
 * Five-Man Band:
 * The Hero: Nick.
 * The Lancer: Allie.
 * The Smart Guy: Mary.
 * The Big Guy:
 * The Chick: Lief, mainly because he doesn't do much other than being the Tagalong Kid and a Cloudcuckoolander. Nick also shows signs of being The Chick because of his Non-Action Guy status
 * Foe Yay: and Allie, Nick and
 * Foreshadowing:
 * Heel Face Turn:
 * Heroes Want Redheads: Nick's crush on Mary.
 * Hesitation Equals Dishonesty: When catches  opening his fortune cookies (see Foreshadowing) in a Look Behind You! moment and demands an explanation,  opens her mouth and hesitates answering, so  automatically assumes she will lie (and if she does he won't be able to control his temper any longer). When  finally answers him, it smells of honesty, but  opens a fortune cookie with  to see what to do. It reads, "Forgiveness keeps destiny on track," so  is then Easily Forgiven by . Because of this,  does a Pet the Dog moment by saying that forgiveness is the fifth step to
 * Home, Sweet Home: Initially Nick's and especially Allie's goal in the beginning of the story.
 * I Choose to Stay:
 * I Did What I Had to Do:
 * I Have You Now, My Pretty: Allie almost/could have become this.
 * : Allie to the rescue.
 * I Love You Because I Can't Control You: takes a growing interest in  not only because of  but also because she doesn't fear him (she secretly does).
 * Implied Love Interest: Thanks to the Ship Tease, Allie and
 * Interrupted Suicide: Subverted.
 * Irony: Allie lies to Johnnie-O's gang that if they hurt her, she'll call the McGill, who will protect her.
 * It's All My Fault:
 * Jacob Marley Apparel: Afterlights are forced to wear the clothes they died in.
 * James Bondage: Guess who comes to save them twice.
 * Just Friends: Nick and Allie.
 * Kid Hero
 * Lima Syndrome:
 * Limited Wardrobe: Justified, due to Jacob Marley Apparel.
 * Living Lie Detector: The McGill believes he is this, but his arrogance blinds him from seeing
 * The Load: Nick and Lief through most of the story.
 * Look Behind You!
 * Love At First Sight: Nick towards Mary.
 * Love Hurts: Nick and Mary oh so much, could count too.
 * Love Makes You Dumb: Nick, for the most part, when it comes to Mary.
 * Luminescent Blush: When Allie names the unnamed boy she and Nick meet "Lief," which causing Lief to blush as if he had been kissed.
 * Nick whenever he's around Mary.
 * Meaningful Name
 * Meet Cute: Meet Mary.
 * Nick meets Allie first, but they are Platonic Life Partners.
 * Minor Major Character: Johnnie-O and his gang, the Haunter, Pinhead.
 * Mood Whiplash
 * Morality Chain: Arguably Allie for
 * Most Writers Are Writers: Mary Hightower and
 * Motifs: Books, the fortune cookies.
 * The Movie: Rumored to become one.
 * My God, What Have I Done?: See It's All My Fault.
 * Names to Run Away From Really Fast: The McGill.
 * Non-Action Guy: Nick.
 * Not So Different: See Becoming the Mask. They both  too.
 * Odd Couple: Nick and Lief.
 * Official Couple: Nick and Mary until . They turn into since they still love each other.
 * Oh Crap: When gets chased by  for betraying him.
 * Older Than They Look
 * Only Sane Man: Allie, Nick at times (especially in comparision to Cloudcuckoolander Lief.)
 * Only the Worthy May Pass: To the Haunter. And if you're unworthy... let's just say the cost isn't pretty.
 * Our Ghosts Are Different
 * Out-Gambitted:
 * Pet the Dog: Subtle moments between Allie and, especially when starts to like her.
 * Platonic Life Partners: Nick and Allie. You'd think they'd become the Official Couple because they're the main characters, but they're just friends.
 * Please Don't Leave Me: "Please don't go." - Lief to Nick and Allie when they decide to leave the forest to find their homes.
 * It's all right, though because
 * Plucky Comic Relief: Lief after he becomes a Cloudcuckoolander.
 * Precocious Crush: Nine year old Vari's "crush" on fifteen year old Mary.
 * Prophecy Twist: See Foreshadowing.
 * The Punishment: Getting chimed.
 * Quirky Miniboss Squad: Johnnie-O and the Altar Boys.
 * Ragtag Bunch of Misfits: See Quirky Miniboss Squad.
 * Red Oni, Blue Oni: Allie and Mary, Vari and Nick
 * Really Seven Hundred Years Old:
 * Rescue Romance:
 * Retro Gaming: It's not Lief's choice since items that pass into Everlost is sometimes difficult to find, but it is implied he is playing The Legend of Zelda Links Awakening on the Game Boy at one point, and he also becomes obsessed with playing Pac-Man, playing it for five days straight.
 * The Reveal:
 * Roaring Rampage of Revenge: When an angry mob of kids chase after, who chases after
 * Romance Ensues: Nick and Mary, obviously.
 * Rule of Three: body surfs three times and  goes to the Twin Towers three times.
 * Sequel Hook
 * Shallow Love Interest: See Strangled by the Red String.
 * Scheherezade Gambit: Allie convinces she can teach him the twelve steps on how to  so she won't get thrown overboard.
 * Ship Tease: Allie and
 * Shotgun Wedding: Lampshaded and averted.
 * Rule of Three: body surfs three times and  goes to the Twin Towers three times.
 * Sequel Hook
 * Shallow Love Interest: See Strangled by the Red String.
 * Scheherezade Gambit: Allie convinces she can teach him the twelve steps on how to  so she won't get thrown overboard.
 * Ship Tease: Allie and
 * Shotgun Wedding: Lampshaded and averted.
 * Who said I'd ask you?"

"Allie: 'Ghost' implies a whole lot of things that I am NOT. Do I look like Casper to you?
 * Shout-Out: Quite a bit (mostly said by Allie because she's our resident Deadpan Snarker / Little Miss Snarker):

Allie: Thank you, Mr. Google. The next time I need crucial information, I'll type in some keywords.

Vari: Soon everyone'll just call you Chocolate. Or Hershey. Yeah, that's it. You'll be Hershey.

Lief: This game's stupid. Who the heck is Zelda, anyway?

Allie: Great. I'm playing Wendy to a delinquent Peter Pan and the lost boys of Juvie Hall.

Allie: Don't try to charm me. The 'Beauty and The Beast' thing doesn't work with me, okay?"

"Allie: Now tell me about the Afterlights on your ship. The McGill: No. Allie: You promised. The McGill: I Lied. Allie: Then I won't teach you what I know. The McGill: Then I'll throw your friends over the side."
 * There's also a pair of afterlights in the Twin Towers who died on Halloween, dressed as a skeleton and a zombie. Their names are Skully and Molder.
 * Smoking Is Cool: Johnnie-O.
 * Stalker with a Crush: After starts to like, he has a habit of appearing behind her a few times.
 * Stockholm Syndrome:
 * Sugar and Ice Personality: Mary, kind of.
 * Tagalong Kid: Lief for Nick and Allie, Vari for Mary
 * Take My Hand:
 * Team Mom: Mary.
 * Teen Genius: Mary is a know-it-all about everything Everlost, which is a reason why Allie dislikes her.
 * There Are No Adults: Or adolescents 17 years old and above in Everlost.
 * Title Drop
 * Took a Level In Badass:
 * Tomboy and Girly Girl: Arguably, Allie and Mary.
 * Trapped in Another World
 * True Companions: Nick, Allie, and Lief.
 * Two Guys and a Girl: Nick, Lief, and Allie; Nick, Vari, and Mary.
 * Unresolved Sexual Tension: Nick and Mary.
 * Utopia: The Twin Towers, where Mary takes in Afterlights and give them a perfect-like home.
 * What the Hell, Hero?: See Becoming the Mask.
 * Well, Excuse Me, Princess!: Occasionally between Nick and Allie because they are both foils for each other.
 * Well-Intentioned Extremist:
 * Worthy Opponent: Allie to the McGill.
 * You Said You Would Let Them Go: A variation.


 * Zeppelins from Another World: The Hindenburg (or Zeppelin LZ-129).