About the Book
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Author:
- Lygia Day Peñaflor
- Voices:
- Cis Boy
- Cis Girl
- Filipino Diaspora
- Straight
- White
Cover Story: Kaleidoscope
BFF Charms: Torn, True Love, Eventually
Talky Talk: Days Left
Bonus Factors: Time Travel, Art, Holidays, Loyal Pets
Anti-Bonus Factors: Toxic Masculinity, Addiction, Infidelity
Relationship Status: Back To The Cutting Room Floor
Cover Story: Kaleidoscope
That is a very surreal cover, but it doesn’t tell me much – beside the fact that something surreal happens in this book.
The Deal:
Tia Cruz Adlon lives in New York City, working as a dog walker and playing the lead in a student film project. Sounds fun, right? Not always. Something happened a year and a half ago that grieves her deeply, and she doesn’t talk about it. Since then she’s felt unable to think about her future, even as her “gap year” between high school and university has turned into a year and a half. Could a mysterious time-traveling portal in Central Park help her move forward – or lose herself even more?
BFF Charms: Torn, True Love, Eventually
Tia’s often accompanied by cute dogs, which is already a good reason to be friends with her. On the other hand, she has a habit of being late or not showing up for her commitments when her grief gets the better of her. She gets alarmingly careless of other people’s feelings when she’s numb to her own. As a reader it’s understandable, but if I knew her in real life, it would be something of a challenge.
Natty, the boy Tia falls in love with the summer after graduation, is the sweetest nerd you can imagine. He confesses in his valedictorian speech that he wishes he’d made more friends in high school – and it works! You’ve got to love emotional honesty.
I had my doubts about Razor, the director who gives Tia a role in his film in the present-day timeline. He seems like a pretentious nepo baby (although his parentage isn’t his fault), and he is. He’s also kind to his little sisters, respects Tia’s acting skills and is surprisingly patient with her when she doesn’t show up on set.
Swoonworthy Scale: 5
I can’t decide what I enjoy more: the innocence of a first crush, or the courage it takes to fall in love again after losing someone. Tia lives through both.
Talky Talk: Days Left
This story is told in two timelines: the present day in New York, and the past. The latter chapters are all titled with a countdown: “60 Days Left”, etc. You know something terrible happens, but not what.
Bonus Factor: Time Travel
The time portal has rules. You can never go back to the same moment twice, people in the past will not be able to perceive you, and traveling too often leaves you exhausted. Too high a price? Not for Tia, who will do anything to see Natty again.
Bonus Factor: Art
Natty and Razor both love creating things, whether it’s building architectural models or finding the perfect lighting for a scene.
Bonus Factor: Holidays
In the past, Tia and Natty’s first kiss happens at a Fourth of July party. In the present, Razor invites Tia to his family’s Thanksgiving dinner. Even for this non-American reader, the barbecue, fireworks, family music night and taster-sized pies really do sound like a great time.
Bonus Factor: Loyal Pets
Natty’s basset hounds, George and Ridgeley, howl in sympathy when he raises his voice and pounce on Tia out of sheer excitement. They even perceive her future self when no one else does.
Anti-Bonus Factor: Toxic Masculinity
One of Tia’s friends in the past timeline has a nasty ex-boyfriend doing his worst to ruin the group’s summer.
Anti-Bonus Factor: Addiction
In the past, Natty’s mom is in and out of rehab. In the present, Tia tells herself that she can manage her time traveling habit, even though she knows it’s burning her out.
Anti-Bonus Factor: Infidelity
It may be common in the entertainment industry – at least according to the media – but it’s no less painful for the people involved.
Relationship Status: Back To The Cutting Room Floor
I enjoyed most of this book very much, but the ending felt a little too sudden. After a year and a half of being unable to say goodbye to Natty, Tia says it awfully quickly. We don’t even see her apologize to any of the people she’s hurt. Just one more chapter would have been enough.
Literary Matchmaking
In Holloway by Elena Arnold, another grieving young woman finds a portal into the past.
Charming as a Verb by Ben Philippe also features a dog walker in New York.
Pandemonium (Delirium #2) by Lauren Oliver is another dual-timeline story about second love.
FTC Full Disclosure: I received no compensation for this review.
