by Jessica Shirvington
Publisher: HarperCollins Australia
Release Date: May 1st, 2013
Format: Paperback, 336 pages
Above all else, though I try not to think about it, I know which life I prefer. And every night when I Cinderella myself from one life to the next a very small, but definite, piece of me dies. The hardest part is that nothing about my situation has ever changed. There is no loophole.
Until now, that is...
For as long as she can remember, Sabine has lived two lives. Every 24 hours she Shifts to her ′other′ life - a life where she is exactly the same, but absolutely everything else is different: different family, different friends, different social expectations. In one life she has a sister, in the other she does not. In one life she′s a straight-A student with the perfect boyfriend, in the other she′s considered a reckless delinquent. Nothing about her situation has ever changed, until the day when she discovers a glitch: the arm she breaks in one life is perfectly fine in the other.
With this new knowledge, Sabine begins a series of increasingly risky experiments which bring her dangerously close to the life she′s always wanted... But just what - and who - is she really risking?
Until now, that is...
For as long as she can remember, Sabine has lived two lives. Every 24 hours she Shifts to her ′other′ life - a life where she is exactly the same, but absolutely everything else is different: different family, different friends, different social expectations. In one life she has a sister, in the other she does not. In one life she′s a straight-A student with the perfect boyfriend, in the other she′s considered a reckless delinquent. Nothing about her situation has ever changed, until the day when she discovers a glitch: the arm she breaks in one life is perfectly fine in the other.
With this new knowledge, Sabine begins a series of increasingly risky experiments which bring her dangerously close to the life she′s always wanted... But just what - and who - is she really risking?
While the concept was so creative (kudos to
Jess for thinking up such an imaginative and unique concept!), I couldn’t quite
engage with the story. Sabine is meant to take on the role of two completely different characters 1) Herself in Roxbury 2) Another self in Wellesley. Despite being 2 different people, Sabine sounded exactly the same in both
worlds. Now, this can be interpreted as both a good thing and a bad thing. On
one hand, I liked how she sounded the same because it obviously meant she never
‘lost’ herself during the shift and she’s still the one and only Sabine. On the
other hand, I felt her thoughts, actions and image in Wellesley were so
contradicting, there was no way she could be this perfect, materialistic rich girl. It didn’t help either,
that her voice was so bland and indistinguishable from so many other YA
heroines.
I’m legitimately starting to loathe
psychiatric wards now. Not for the first time, I wonder how many patients are
there not because they need to be there, but because the psychiatrists believe
anyone ‘special’ or ‘different’ requires help. *sigh* Our male lead Ethan is a
total sweetie, no doubt, but I couldn’t feel the chemistry between him and
Sabine at all. No spark, no chemistry, no nothing. Just a guy and a girl who
supposedly fall in love. Yes, I should love him because he’s so understanding,
selfless..etc. but I couldn’t root for them. I just didn’t feel a connection
with these two characters unfortunately.
Some readers/bloggers might’ve cried at the
end; I’d be lying if I said I didn’t feel anything, because well…I was sort of
sad. I’m certain many readers will absolutely adore this standalone novel by
everyone’s favourite Aussie author, however, this wasn’t my cup of tea. It’s a
story I enjoyed, but not one I would read again.
A massive thank you to HarperCollins Australia for providing a copy of Between The Lives for review!
