Review: The Here and Now by Ann Brashares

Posted April 9, 2014 by Charlotte in Reviews / 0 Comments

The Here and Now by Ann Brashares

I received this book for free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Review: The Here and Now by Ann BrasharesThe Here and Now by Ann Brashares
Published by Delacorte Press on April 8, 2014
Genres: Fiction, Romance, Science Fiction, Young Adult
Pages: 256
Format: E-Arc
Source: Netgalley
Buy on Amazon
Goodreads

An unforgettable epic romantic thriller about a girl from the future who might be able to save the world . . . if she lets go of the one thing she’s found to hold on to.
Follow the rules. Remember what happened. Never fall in love.
This is the story of 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 Prenna falls for Ethan Jarves.
From Ann Brashares, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series, The Here and Now is thrilling, exhilarating, haunting, and heartbreaking—and a must-read novel of the year.

I’ve never read Barshares’ Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants series, so I cannot comment on whether I find this style preferable. However it would probably be unfair to do a comparison to The Here and Now.

While the objective of the story was to avert the future (which is described in detail) the focus is on the ‘here and now’. Mainly focusing on Penna and Ethan and what they will to to ensure the future is safe.

One of the rules Prenna has to follow is: Never to develop a physical or emotional relationship with anyone who is not part of the community – so they cannot be a “time-native” but must have come from the future. This makes the reader root more and more for the possibility of a relationship to succeed between Penna and Ethan. And that they will find a way to overcome the barrier.

The characters were beautifully written, making the relationship between Ethan and Prenna seem believable. After all Ethan witnessed Prenna time travel so it makes sense for him to care about her – or at least to have an interest. And for Prenna, he is someone outside of the community who takes an interest in her activities and well-being. The secondary characters are also believable, making it easy for the reader to feel dislike and sympathy as required.

As this is a time-travelling book, you should not look to closely at the premise. Otherwise you will end up questioning the motives and the logicalness of time travel. However, if you ignore these issues you will cruise quite nicely through this book.

Will Prenna and Ethan be able to change the future? Is it all so simple? And do they stand a chance of being together? I seriously recommend that you pick up this book and find out!

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