Review: Yesterday

Info:

Title: Yesterday
Author: C. K. Kelly Martin
Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: September 25, 2012

Blurb:

THEN: The formation of the UNA, the high threat of eco-terrorism, the mammoth rates of unemployment and subsequent escape into a world of virtual reality are things any student can read about in their 21st century textbooks and part of the normal background noise to Freya Kallas’s life. Until that world starts to crumble.

NOW: It’s 1985. Freya Kallas has just moved across the world and into a new life. On the outside, she fits in at her new high school, but Freya feels nothing but removed. Her mother blames it on the grief over her father’s death, but how does that explain the headaches and why do her memories feel so foggy?

When Freya lays eyes on Garren Lowe, she can’t get him out of her head. She’s sure that she knows him, despite his insistence that they’ve never met. As Freya follows her instincts and pushes towards hidden truths, the two of them unveil a strange and dangerous world where their days may be numbered.

Unsure who to trust, Freya and Garren go on the run from powerful forces determined to tear them apart and keep them from discovering the truth about their shared pasts (and futures), her visions, and the time and place they really came from.

My Thoughts:

Yesterday had some good things going for it, but I just couldn't fall in love with it. My favourite part of the book was the concept. To be blunt, the future sucks. A lot. Climate change has altered the world's landscape and politic policy has alienated almost everyone except rich North Americans. Nobody actually does anything anymore, it's all just simulated reality.

But Freya doesn't remember. She just knows something doesn't feel right when she wakes up in 1985. Her sister doesn't feel like her sister, her memories don't feel real and she's inexplicably drawn to a boy she doesn't even know.

But that's where my love for this book stopped. The characters weren't bad. I didn't have a strong connection with Freya and Garren, but I didn't dislike them either. The first of my two issues with this book was the pacing. It felt slow. Sure some exciting things happened, but it dragged in between them. I feel like the book would have been a lot better if it had been 100 pages shorter. All of the same things could have happened, but it would have kept me more engaged in the story.

The second issue I had was the ending. Sure it was action-packed and exciting, but it also got very sappy. Don't get me know, I enjoy a good love story, but it felt like a very abrupt shift from an action movie to a very sappy chick flick occurred at the end. The ending also had some major deus ex machina going on. I won't say more than that to avoid spoilers, but if you read it, you'll see what I mean.

On the Cover:

I really like this cover. It's very eye-catching and cool looking, BUT the majority of this book takes place in 1985. This cover does not feel like 1985 (not that I was alive yet). Also, the face on the cover doesn't look entirely human.

Rating: 3 Hearts

Source: I received an eARC from the publisher through Netgalley

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