Overview: An unforgettable epic romantic thriller about a girl from the future who might be able to save the world . . . if she lets go of the one thing she’s found to hold on to.
Follow the rules. Remember what happened. Never fall in love.
This is the story of seventeen-year-old Prenna James, who immigrated to New York when she was twelve. Except Prenna didn’t come from a different country. She came from a different time—a future where a mosquito-borne illness has mutated into a pandemic, killing millions and leaving the world in ruins.
Prenna and the others who escaped to the present day must follow a strict set of rules: never reveal where they’re from, never interfere with history, and never, ever be intimate with anyone outside their community. Prenna does as she’s told, believing she can help prevent the plague that will one day ravage the earth.
But everything changes when Prenna falls for Ethan Jarves.
From Ann Brashares, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series, The Here and Now is thrilling, exhilarating, haunting, and heartbreaking—and a must-read novel of the year.
Review: So the blurb. I was enthralled by it. I was so excited to read it. Anything with high stakes and forbidden love usually has my name written all over it. The first few chapters were great, but then it started to peter out.
First was the lack of romance between the two main characters. It didn't pick up until the second half of the book, but their romance was pretty forgettable. Don't get me wrong, this book is well-written and builds up it just lacked pizazz. The whole plot kind of fell flat.
The antagonizing forces (i.e. the future society that created the social rules) were just not that scary. Instead of heightening tension, they were just annoying flies to me.
This wasn't an edge of your seat book I had expected due to the blurb, but I did finish it (albeit through many days of picking it up and setting it back down). One good thing about the book was the ending. I was afraid it was going to head into the cliche route where everything is sunshine and rainbows and everyone gets to live happily ever after, but it didn't. Which to me is more believable and ended the story at a good point.
First was the lack of romance between the two main characters. It didn't pick up until the second half of the book, but their romance was pretty forgettable. Don't get me wrong, this book is well-written and builds up it just lacked pizazz. The whole plot kind of fell flat.
The antagonizing forces (i.e. the future society that created the social rules) were just not that scary. Instead of heightening tension, they were just annoying flies to me.
This wasn't an edge of your seat book I had expected due to the blurb, but I did finish it (albeit through many days of picking it up and setting it back down). One good thing about the book was the ending. I was afraid it was going to head into the cliche route where everything is sunshine and rainbows and everyone gets to live happily ever after, but it didn't. Which to me is more believable and ended the story at a good point.
Oh, that's too bad. It sounds so exciting! I might give it a try though. Go into it with lowered expectations and see if I can get into it. :)
ReplyDeleteYeah, maybe I just didn't connect with it. If you read it, let me know what you think!
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