The Here And Now by Ann Brashares
Reviewed by Maggie Devero
Seventeen year old Prenna James' life takes a supposed change for the better one day: she and a few other specified people from the time period 2090s travel back in time to the year 2014. Their plan is to change the future without affecting the present, as hard as that will be. They must eradicate the mosquito-borne epidemic that dominates the world in futures, leaving the world and the little people left alive, fortunately immune to the disease, in tatters. But in order for this to work out, they must not interfere with too much of the future, lest they change everything in the course of their history. So they strictly follow twelve rules, but the thing is....Prenna begins to question their means. Little by little she stops listening to the people she's with, and begins following this boy that has taken her under his wing since the beginning, Ethan Jarves. The two of them must save the future, and make the most of the present.
Okay, so when I first started this book, the intro really had me getting into the idea of the storyline. Time travel, bending time and space, saving the world from a disease that is ruining the earth and destroying its people?? Sounds so cool, and interesting and action packed! And then literally within the next couple chapters, you could tell the entire story was going to revolve around the relationship between Ethan and Prenna, and it just got SO ANNOYING. I was so excited for this action, thriller type book with maybe a little bit of romance, but then that was all it was and it just killed the story for me. Everything seemed to play out too easily, and too well, and it was just too convenient. I guess that's the reason I ended up giving it two stars, because I was hoping for a four star book. I just wish they had played a little more on the scifi aspects of the book, instead of the romance. But if you're into romance with a twist of something unusual, then I would recommend this book for you!
1 comment:
I think I might have rated it higher than you for a change!
3.0 out of 5 stars - YA with a hint of sci-fi, a report of time travel and a forbidden love.
Prenna travels back in time from a future world where millions have died from the plague as the result of politics and environmental meltdown.
Ethan sees Prenna when she appears in front of him while he is fishing by a local creek and instantly falls in love.
But they cannot be together, for Prenna is part of a secret community that has developed rules so as not to interfere with the current time natives. The main rule is that members cannot fall in love or be intimate with anyone outside their enclave. But Prenna, age 17, and her classmate, Ethan, bond during a shared class in high school and find themselves drawn into a plan to save the world on May 17, 2014.
Very predictable with stereotypical one-dimensional characters, this novel seems to be the start of a series. The action and developing plot require a great deal of suspension of disbelief. With themes of loss and identity that are never fully developed, Prenna's past life is only hinted at and the full reasons for the community's return to circa 2014 are not adequately explained enough to make it all believable. The narrative includes some political posturing and attempts moralistic commentary on the lifestyles and habits of contemporary society.
I'll see what the teens think of this one but I'm not likely to read the follow up. I'm pretty sure I know how it's all going to end.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Children's Publishing for the e-book ARC to review.
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