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A review by theengineerisreading
Opposite of Always by Justin A. Reynolds
4.0
After waiting for months to get my hands on this anticipated 2019 debut novel by Justin A. Reynolds, I finally had the courage to flip the pages of Opposite of Always and well, let's see what my key takeaways are with this book.
First thing that got me interested in this book is the idea of time travel. Pitch me something that has time travel and I'll surely put it up on my TBR. And I've read a lot of good time travel novels and this one is a cute, contemporary gem that is surely remarkable and is on my Top 5 list of favorite time travel books.
The characters. Ughhhh. I love them all. From Jackie Ellieson King to Kate Edwards to Jillian and Francisco to Abuela and even annoying Reggie Edwards, everyone in this book stood out with their own unique characteristics and they are all lovable as hell. My most favorite (though I know we should not pick favorites) is Jack King because his character is spontaneous and though he sometimes has personality issues when it comes to making decisions, his final act clearly showed up how genuine of a person he is in doing his best for the person, er, people he love. I hope I have the same courage and confidence as his because that would be totally cool. And am I the only one who noticed but are the main characters names derived from the Titanic's MCs, Jack and Rose (Kate Winslet)?
There are a lot of enjoyable moments in this book that I just found myself giggling and blushing for our main characters but I particularly love Jack and Kate's cereal moments. With Kate being the eternal Cap'n to Jack's Crunch and that impulsive, massive cereal shopping... I wished I can be with them during that time because that sounds so fun in my head.
Moreover, I love how this one sounded so innocent and mature at the same time. Though the main focus of this story revolved on Jack King's attempt to save the love of his life in a series of looping time travel, the bigger picture showed a lot of obstacles a teenage can encounter during the journey to adulthood. Like Franny's conflict with his father, Jillian and her family issues, and Jack's sort-of-misadventure when it comes to choosing the right path to saving Kate. All in all, this book shows that we all have different battles in our own circle that's why we should always be more mindful and sensitive before we speak or act towards others.
Lastly, if I am going to point out a possible area of improvement for this book I think it would be the pacing of each time travel. There were times that the loop seems to happen for a time longer than four months and it was confusing at first but overall, the story was really enjoyable and it was a cute, fluffy read that will make you question, Are you willing to relive the worst parts of your life just to save the one you love? It's definitely a yes for me.
RATING: 4stars
First thing that got me interested in this book is the idea of time travel. Pitch me something that has time travel and I'll surely put it up on my TBR. And I've read a lot of good time travel novels and this one is a cute, contemporary gem that is surely remarkable and is on my Top 5 list of favorite time travel books.
The characters. Ughhhh. I love them all. From Jackie Ellieson King to Kate Edwards to Jillian and Francisco to Abuela and even annoying Reggie Edwards, everyone in this book stood out with their own unique characteristics and they are all lovable as hell. My most favorite (though I know we should not pick favorites) is Jack King because his character is spontaneous and though he sometimes has personality issues when it comes to making decisions, his final act clearly showed up how genuine of a person he is in doing his best for the person, er, people he love. I hope I have the same courage and confidence as his because that would be totally cool. And am I the only one who noticed but are the main characters names derived from the Titanic's MCs, Jack and Rose (Kate Winslet)?
There are a lot of enjoyable moments in this book that I just found myself giggling and blushing for our main characters but I particularly love Jack and Kate's cereal moments. With Kate being the eternal Cap'n to Jack's Crunch and that impulsive, massive cereal shopping... I wished I can be with them during that time because that sounds so fun in my head.
Moreover, I love how this one sounded so innocent and mature at the same time. Though the main focus of this story revolved on Jack King's attempt to save the love of his life in a series of looping time travel, the bigger picture showed a lot of obstacles a teenage can encounter during the journey to adulthood. Like Franny's conflict with his father, Jillian and her family issues, and Jack's sort-of-misadventure when it comes to choosing the right path to saving Kate. All in all, this book shows that we all have different battles in our own circle that's why we should always be more mindful and sensitive before we speak or act towards others.
Lastly, if I am going to point out a possible area of improvement for this book I think it would be the pacing of each time travel. There were times that the loop seems to happen for a time longer than four months and it was confusing at first but overall, the story was really enjoyable and it was a cute, fluffy read that will make you question, Are you willing to relive the worst parts of your life just to save the one you love? It's definitely a yes for me.
RATING: 4stars