by Matt Haig

A Fantasy, 2020 by Viking, 304 Pages

What I Didn’t Like:

Content Warning: Suicidal thoughts, planning, and actions. Be wary of picking this one up when you’re in a dark place.
A little cliche. There are parts of this story that you’ve heard before and things that will remind you of other stories. This is true in some parts more than others.
A little heavy-handed with the life lessons. Of course, that was expected with a story of this nature, but there were a few moments where it felt like it was a bit much. I will say it isn’t that this one feels like it’s preaching at you (it actually does a good job of staying away from a particular religion) but it feels like our main character is repeating the life lessons a bit much, if that makes sense.

Beautiful premise. The idea that an infinite number of lives exist for you and you can play in any one of them is fascinating, even if I do think making Nora go in as she was with no skills, background, or information she would’ve had in that life is cheating in some way.
Emotionally driven story. From the depression and suicidal thoughts to the bright moments of life, this story is packed with emotions.
Nora. She’s an excellent character. She’s relatable, intelligent, and a generally good person. She’s someone most readers will be able to relate to in at least some ways. She’s also someone you’d easily see yourself being friends with. This makes her a wonderful character to follow through this journey.
I appreciated the scientific discussions surrounding parallel lives that popped into this one.

Fans of second chance at life stories where the main character gets a chance to see things differently (think Butterfly Effect or A Christmas Carol).