About the Book
-
Author:
- E.C. Myers
Cover Story: Oh No, No
BFF Charm: Unsure
Talky Talk: Speed Read
Bonus Factors: Wishes, Parallel Universes
Relationship Status: Party Buddy
Cover Story: Oh No, No
We meet again, my old friend…GIANT FACES. I really just can’t get away from this look on covers, can I? Even though I didn’t take this one out in public, the dust jacket got taken off immediately. I refuse to subject my stuffed animals to giant faces.
The Deal
Ephraim comes home one day to discover his mother overdosed on pills, in an apparent suicide attempt. The reason? Earlier that day, she had been asked to come to the hospital morgue, to identify Ephraim’s body. So who is this deceased boy who looks enough like Ephraim to fool his own mother? When sorting through the deceased boy’s belongings, Ephraim finds a very unique quarter. Later he receives an anonymous note telling him to flip the coin and make a wish. And sure enough, Ephraim’s wishes are beginning to come true. But with unintended consequences. Is it magic? Or something else entirely? And can Ephraim figure out where the quarter came from and how to use it before he does any permanent damage?
BFF Charm: Unsure
Ephraim’s definitely a good guy, but I find myself questioning his judgment. Once he finally figured out that the coin was changing things around him, he probably should have been a little more careful. And what made him think telling his friend Nathan about the coin was a good idea, I will never know. Overall I found Ephraim and his cohorts to be a little flat, which isn’t exactly surprising in such an adventure based story.
Swoonworthy Scale: 2
Ephraim has a long-standing crush on his classmate Jena, but I just didn’t feel many sparks from that relationship. Maybe it I just wasn’t really invested in either of them as individuals, so I couldn’t be invested in them together? And Jena always felt a bit too good to be true. And while Nathan’s obsession with Jena’s friends (twins Mary and Shelley) were definitely realistic, the twins themselves seemed like wish fulfillment.
Talky Talk: Speed Read
This is another one of those books that is so plot-driven that I hardly noticed the language at all. It took me about halfway through the book before I even realized it was in the third person (I’d just sort of been assuming I was in Ephraim’s head this whole time). You will find yourself so caught up in getting to the next wish, and seeing what’s new that you too will find yourself speeding through this.
Bonus Factor: Wishes?
To keep this review spoiler free, I won’t tell you if Ephraim’s coin is magic or something else entirely. But there story definitely invokes the old saying “be careful what you wish for.”
Bonus Factor: Parallel Universes
MY FAVORITE BONUS FACTOR, ALWAYS.
Relationship Status: Party Buddy
This book is the kind of fun friend you hang out with at a party. Maybe you’ve had something to drink and this is the guy you goof off with, jump in the pool with, or end up playing Wii late in the night with. Or the kind of friend you hop into the car with (not with the drinking though, obvs) and cruise around with no plan initially but always end up having a wild ride. So, maybe not a deep, life-long friend, but totally the friend you bro out with when the opportunity arises.
FTC Full Disclosure: I received a review copy from Pyr. I received neither money nor cocktails for this review (dammit!). Fair Coin is available March 27th!
