
The Taking of Jake Livingston
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Narrated by:
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Kevin R. Free
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Michael Crouch
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By:
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Ryan Douglass
An Instant New York Times Best Seller!
Get Out meets Holly Jackson in this YA social thriller where survival is not a guarantee.
Sixteen-year-old Jake Livingston sees dead people everywhere. But he can't decide what's worse: being a medium forced to watch the dead play out their last moments on a loop or being at the mercy of racist teachers as one of the few Black students at St. Clair Prep. Both are a living nightmare he wishes he could wake up from. But things at St. Clair start looking up with the arrival of another Black student - the handsome Allister - and for the first time, romance is on the horizon for Jake.
Unfortunately, life as a medium is getting worse. Though most ghosts are harmless and Jake is always happy to help them move on to the next place, Sawyer Doon wants much more from Jake. In life, Sawyer was a troubled teen who shot and killed six kids at a local high school before taking his own life. Now he's a powerful, vengeful ghost and he has plans for Jake. Suddenly, everything Jake knows about dead world goes out the window as Sawyer begins to haunt him. High school soon becomes a different kind of survival game - one Jake is not sure he can win.
©2021 Ryan Douglass (P)2021 Listening LibraryListeners also enjoyed...




















Critic reviews
A 2022 ALA Rainbow Book List Pick
A 2021 Tor.com Young Adult Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror Best Book Pick
A 2021 Black Caucus American Library Association Best of the Best Booklist Pick
“This book is absolutely incredible, chilling, and a must-read.” (BuzzFeed)
“An exceptional blend of genres - horror, mystery, thriller, and contemporary - that brilliantly captures how Jake, a Black gay teen medium, copes with the varying kinds of violence threatening him.... Douglass creates a clever and effective parallel between what Jake can't control - racism and how his body is perceived, a toxic father, an irresponsible brother, his mother's expectations - and his fight against Sawyer. The story builds to a rewardingly chilling and sentimental climax, as Jake must look deep within himself for the power to break the cycles of harm entrapping him.... An extraordinarily crafted exploration of agency during Black gay teenhood.” (Shelf Awareness)
“A teenage version of Get Out, and you will not be disappointed.... Author Douglass looks at race and trauma and death with a comical and horror-esque twist.” (The Root)
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Had moments that was slow and were confusing, I still would recommend it!
getting into the spooky vibes in spring 😄☠️🎃👻💀
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Definitely read trigger warnings but if you like diverse books I would actually suggest it. Author is a POC, the MC is as well and is also LGBTQ+
A solid 3 for story, narrators not my fave.
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WOW WHAT A GREAT BOOK
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great
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Very Creative and Original
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read! listen! JUST DO IT!!!
speechless
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The Taking of Jake Livingston will always hold a special place in my heart as my favorite book. It’s so inspiring that it has motivated me to write my own story, because we, as African American gay boys, deserve more than just a handful of books that speak to us. I want to send all my love to Ryan Douglass for creating something so powerful and unique.
This isn’t just a great book because it’s rare to see someone like me reflected in its pages; it’s a great book because Ryan Douglass captures so much reality within a fictional ghost story. It’s unlike anything I’ve ever read before.
This is also the first review I’ve ever written. Normally, I’d skip reviewing something and move on, but this book deserves my time, my energy, and my thoughts. Thank you so much for creating this masterpiece, Mr. Douglass. I deeply appreciate your work.
Sincerely,
Jerry
P.S. Thank you.
Gay black teen romance
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I’m sorry it ended
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one thing I will say is that the book is pretty dark at times which I wasn't expecting (i think cuz it was labeled a teen book). It was fine for me, but I will say if you're extremely sensitive to child abuse, sexual assault, racism, homophobia or school shooting imagery, you might want to wait a bit on this book.
I genuinely love this book!
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Loved this story!
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