ARC, 449 pagesRelease Date: March 5, 2019Published by: Katherine Tegen Books
Read from: March 7-13, 2019Stand-aloneSource: Edelweiss (I received a copy of this book from the Publisher in exchange for a just and honest review. This did nothing to influence my review.)TW:For fans of: Contemporaries, Realistic Fiction, Fantasy, Time Travel, Romance, YA
Jack Ellison King. King of Almost.
He almost made valedictorian.
He almost made varsity.
He almost got the girl . . .
When Jack and Kate meet at a party, bonding until sunrise over their mutual love of Froot Loops and their favorite flicks, Jack knows he’s falling—hard. Soon she’s meeting his best friends, Jillian and Franny, and Kate wins them over as easily as she did Jack. Jack’s curse of almost is finally over.
But this love story is . . . complicated. It is an almost happily ever after. Because Kate dies. And their story should end there. Yet Kate’s death sends Jack back to the beginning, the moment they first meet, and Kate’s there again. Beautiful, radiant Kate. Healthy, happy, and charming as ever. Jack isn’t sure if he’s losing his mind. Still, if he has a chance to prevent Kate’s death, he’ll take it. Even if that means believing in time travel. However, Jack will learn that his actions are not without consequences. And when one choice turns deadly for someone else close to him, he has to figure out what he’s willing to do—and let go—to save the people he loves.
*MY THOUGHTS*
I'm not normally a time travel person, but everything else about this is a "me" book. I love romance, contemporaries, and anything with great characters. In the end, I 'm glad I didn't skip over this book because only one part didn't appeal to me. I would have missed out on something amazing!
Because big lesson number one is this: all the time travel in the world can't save the people you love."pg. 3
When Jack and Kate meet at a party, they fall for each other.... Hard. But instead of the fun romance they should have had, things get complicated. Kate is sick and then she dies. But instead of mourning her, Jack is sent back to the beginning. Jack has no idea what he's supposed to do, just that something has to be different. It takes awhile, but Jack must repeat these few months over and over until he can get things right.
"Death isn't like I expect. [...] Death, it turns out, feels a lot like waking up."pg. 139
The ONLY thing I didn't care for about this one was the time travel aspect. I knew this was going to be an issue for me, so I'm not going to dwell too much on it. It's not that it was bad, but it was repetitive. And for it to be 450 pages, it was a bit much. I liked the way some of the aspects of the story changed with each "respawn" (for lack of a better word lmao) but after 5 times, again, it was a bit much.
"...everyone needs a Silly Rabbit, or a Cap'n, or even a chocolate-loving Count in their lives. Everyone deserves to taste magic."pg. 156
Everything else I adored. There are NO books about African Americans and romance and there are especially none with a male lead, so I LOVED this. It was super original and not like anything I'd read before. This book will definitely stand-out from other contemporary romances for various reasons.
"Because time, there's none to waste."pg. 266
I also adored the romance. Kate brought such an amazing presence to this story and I thought she was so good for Jack. They were so cute together and I was hoping they made it so they could boh get what they wanted.
"The only thing worse than losing someone you love is losing them again.."pg. 361
Lastly, if you're planning on reading this one, get some tissues ready. It takes alot for me to cry real tears when I'm reading, (normally I get teary eyed but that's it) but this time I shed actual tears. And it wasn't just the one time lol It was every time they had to "respawn." Everytime it was so heart wrenching. Even after reading it four times I still wasn't ready for when it came up again.
"Time heals all wounds. Isn't that what they say, Jack? [...] Although I know Time is likely to inflict wounds."pg. 403
It's hard to believe this is a debut book because of how good and memorable it is. This book will definitely be one that I will remember because of the characters, the romance, and the time travel for a long time coming. I hope that you all will read and love this as much as I do.
Overall, I give this
