Title: All Our Yesterdays
Author: Cristin Terrill
Pub Date: September 3rd, 2013
Publisher: Disney Hyperion
Page Count: 368 Pages
Being a teenager that watches a lot of Doctor Who in her spare time, I was very open to this book and its idea. I, myself, don't actually understand the laws of time, nor have I really wanted to. The laws of time are very bent as everyone has a different perspective of what can or can't be done.
Personally, "time" as a topic (associated with "travel") has to be "dumbed down" if used for a book in YA. The laws the author creates has to be easily explained as well as an understandable concept. If you make it so only theorists can get it, no one's going it. That being said, Cristin Terrill was wonderful about the way she wrote and how much she explained. I could understand very well what was going on and how time worked in her novel. It also didn't give me a headache so that is also a plus.
The main plot is "fix the past, fix the future." Something in the past went wrong to lead to a downward spiral of horrible future events and it's up to Em and Finn to travel back to the past to kill the person who started it all. This is the person who invented time travel before it should've been invented.
I'm sorry if my summary sucks, but this should be better explanation wise:
This novel is written in Em and Marina's point of view. Let's get something straight. This novel gets very confusing if you don't read it slowly. Marina and Em are basically the same person in two different timelines. This isn't really a spoiler because if you don't get this, the novel will be TOO confusing. Because you've got a future and past version of the same character, addressing them in a way where they're distinguishable can be difficult.
The reason it's 4.5 stars is because of the ending. Near the end, past and present meet in a "showdown" of sorts, but that's where it got REALLY confusing for me. It was like Young Marina and Marina; Young James and Old James; Young Finn and Finn. I didn't like that and I was like "which is which?" It was very confusing and kind of hard to understand at that point.
The thing that sticks out to me the most in this novel is how interesting it is writing from two characters who are technically the same. Their knowledge of certain things is different. Like Em knows what's going on, but Marina's like "I need to figure out what's going on". It can be a bit hard because you're flipping between two minds with limited knowledge. It's also very interesting because the story could've probably sufficed with just Em's point of view. It was Marina's point of view that gave readers the chance to fall in love with the villain, even though he was the villain.
But it wasn't dependent on just Marina as a character. The supporting characters were very important in helping the story progress. That's something that's happening less and less in YA. It isn't supposed to be the "Marina Show" and if it was, the reader won't feel any attachment to the characters and ultimately, just give up on the novel.
The story itself is really good though. Cristin Terrill's writing was captivating, detailed and far from awkward. I really cannot believe this is a debut novel. It's heartbreaking and only because I'd only gotten so close to the characters that I was like:
Author: Cristin Terrill
Pub Date: September 3rd, 2013
Publisher: Disney Hyperion
Page Count: 368 Pages
"You have to kill him." Imprisoned in the heart of a secret military base, Em has nothing except the voice of the boy in the cell next door and the list of instructions she finds taped inside the drain.
Only Em can complete the final instruction. She’s tried everything to prevent the creation of a time machine that will tear the world apart. She holds the proof: a list she has never seen before, written in her own hand. Each failed attempt in the past has led her to the same terrible present—imprisoned and tortured by a sadistic man called the doctor while war rages outside.
Marina has loved her best friend James since the day he moved next door when they were children. A gorgeous, introverted science prodigy from one of America’s most famous families, James finally seems to be seeing Marina in a new way, too. But on one disastrous night, James’s life crumbles apart, and with it, Marina’s hopes for their future. Now someone is trying to kill him. Marina will protect James, no matter what. Even if it means opening her eyes to a truth so terrible that she may not survive it. At least not as the girl she once was.
All Our Yesterdays is a wrenching, brilliantly plotted story of fierce love, unthinkable sacrifice, and the infinite implications of our every choice.
All Our Yesterdays is that kind of story where you know heartwrenching decisions must made but you still hope that at the end, it'll end in happy ever after. Cristin Terrill grabs readers and throws them into this brilliantly created world before readers even realize they've grown attached to the characters.
Personally, "time" as a topic (associated with "travel") has to be "dumbed down" if used for a book in YA. The laws the author creates has to be easily explained as well as an understandable concept. If you make it so only theorists can get it, no one's going it. That being said, Cristin Terrill was wonderful about the way she wrote and how much she explained. I could understand very well what was going on and how time worked in her novel. It also didn't give me a headache so that is also a plus.
The main plot is "fix the past, fix the future." Something in the past went wrong to lead to a downward spiral of horrible future events and it's up to Em and Finn to travel back to the past to kill the person who started it all. This is the person who invented time travel before it should've been invented.
I'm sorry if my summary sucks, but this should be better explanation wise:
This novel is written in Em and Marina's point of view. Let's get something straight. This novel gets very confusing if you don't read it slowly. Marina and Em are basically the same person in two different timelines. This isn't really a spoiler because if you don't get this, the novel will be TOO confusing. Because you've got a future and past version of the same character, addressing them in a way where they're distinguishable can be difficult.
The reason it's 4.5 stars is because of the ending. Near the end, past and present meet in a "showdown" of sorts, but that's where it got REALLY confusing for me. It was like Young Marina and Marina; Young James and Old James; Young Finn and Finn. I didn't like that and I was like "which is which?" It was very confusing and kind of hard to understand at that point.
The thing that sticks out to me the most in this novel is how interesting it is writing from two characters who are technically the same. Their knowledge of certain things is different. Like Em knows what's going on, but Marina's like "I need to figure out what's going on". It can be a bit hard because you're flipping between two minds with limited knowledge. It's also very interesting because the story could've probably sufficed with just Em's point of view. It was Marina's point of view that gave readers the chance to fall in love with the villain, even though he was the villain.
But it wasn't dependent on just Marina as a character. The supporting characters were very important in helping the story progress. That's something that's happening less and less in YA. It isn't supposed to be the "Marina Show" and if it was, the reader won't feel any attachment to the characters and ultimately, just give up on the novel.
The story itself is really good though. Cristin Terrill's writing was captivating, detailed and far from awkward. I really cannot believe this is a debut novel. It's heartbreaking and only because I'd only gotten so close to the characters that I was like:
 |
| after I had to actually put the book down |
I absolutely loved this book and thought the author did such a great job, both with the plot and the characters. I loved the end, where you find out the conversation between Em and Marina that takes place in the beginning of the book. Great review! ~Pam
ReplyDeleteOkay, you're killing me with that Tennant meme! *Sniffles*
ReplyDeleteThis really does sound like an awesome book though - I love the idea of time machines and just really the whole concept of time travel.
Also, The Terminator is one of my favourite movies, so if it even slightly resembles that in any way, shape or form then there's no way I can not check it out!
- Allie @ Little Birdie Books
Yeah after reflecting on the book I definitely finally figured out what the ending was about, but the past and present versions of themselves were certainly disconcerting, if not super fascinating. Cristin definitely handled the whole time travel aspect well, and this was actually one of the only books I've given a rating higher than three stars in the last month.
ReplyDeleteI just read this one. I didn't find it confusing at all, except for that one scene where all the characters were in the same room together. I may have had to re-read some sentences to keep things straight. Other than that, though, I thought it was a good time-travel story that didn't require the reader to have an advanced degree in physics.
ReplyDelete