*I received this E-Arc for the Hear Our Voice Tour. All views expressed are my own*
Some Other Now by Sarah Everett is the saddest book I've ever read in my adult life. The feeling is almost up there with the last pages of the Hunger Game: Catching Fire. But don't fret; there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Although the sadness shows heartbreak and guilt, it also highlights the growing pains of recovery. There's a lesson in all of what you go through in life. Some Other Now is the perfect book for any young adult reader going through something internally and feel only they can carry the burden alone.
Seventeen-year-old Jessi Rumfield knew what it was like to have a family—even if, technically, that family didn't belong to her. She'd spent her entire childhood in the house next door, with the Cohen brothers, Rowan and Luke, while their mother, Mel, watched over the three like the mother Jessi always wished she had.
It's been almost a year since Jessi last visited the Cohen's house. Rowan is gone. Mel is in remission, and Luke hates Jessi for the role she played in breaking his family apart. Now Jessi spends her days at a dead-end summer job avoiding her birth mother, who suddenly wants to play a role in Jessi's life after being absent for so long. But when Luke comes home from college and asks Jessi to pretend to be his girlfriend for the final months of Mel's life, Jessi finds herself drawn back into the world of the Cohens. Everything's changed, but Jessi can't help wanting to be a Cohen, even if it means playing pretend for one final summer.
Whew! How to unpack this story? Throughout the book, we believe that even though Jessi is not related to the Cohen's, she's an unofficial member. And as much as it drove me mad to see her questioning whether if she belongs or not, there's no denying the love Jessi received. Everett has a way of writing out every possible "what if" question. "What if I'm not good enough?" or "What if I read the situation wrong?". How she developed these cerebrations is what makes the characters human. The thoughts Everett created for Jessi's mind felt like a nagging doubt; it's the same annoying sensation that will hold you hostage, while trying to make essential life decisions. Because of this, I wish Jessi's character would loosen up a bit and live a little.
Another thing Everett did well on was keeping my engagement in the year gap. What happened between Jessi and the Cohen's for her not to be around them for a year? For someone who gushes over the Cohens', it makes you wonder what the surrounding mystery is. I devoured the pages, trying to figure out what happened.
There were some small discrepancies that I noticed while reading. While I completely forgot I received an unfinished version of this book, I hope never to see the phrase "lump in my throat" ever again. The number of times Jessi caught a lump in her throat; she should have suffocated and died. Other than that, the book is perfect! Some Other Now is available in February 2021, and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!
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