Book Review: The Here and Now

The Here and Now by Ann Brashares
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Publication Date:  April 8, 2014

Meet seventeen-year-old Prenna James, who immigrated to New York when she was twelve. Except Prenna didn’t come from a different country. She came from a different time—a future where a mosquito-borne illness has mutated into a pandemic, killing millions and leaving the world in ruins.

Prenna and the others who escaped to the present day must follow a strict set of rules: never reveal where they’re from, never interfere with history, and never, ever be intimate with anyone outside their community. Prenna does as she’s told, believing she can help prevent the plague that will one day ravage the earth. But everything changes when she falls for Ethan Jarves.

This was pretty good. It was kind of a different take on all the YA dystopias. Instead of the setting being in a bleak future, we have a main character who has traveled back to our time from a bleak future.

The main problem I have with time travel books is that you just can't think too hard about them. Everything just starts to fall apart when you do. So, that being said, as long as you put your thinking away for a little bit, this is pretty enjoyable.

There was some action, a bit of romance, and an ending that I'm not sure was completely satisfying, but did fit well with the storyline. I've read the first couple books of the Sisterhood series by Ann Brashares, and really loved them, but I wonder how I would feel going back and having a re-read. Maybe my tastes have changed.