Review: Between the Lives

Between the Lives by Jessica Shirvington

 

Title: Between the Lives

Series: none

Author: Jessica Shirvington

 

Published: Orchard Books; 2014*

384 pages, kindle edition

 

Source: Netgalley

 

 Description (from Goodreads):

The perfect life or the perfect love. You choose.

For as long as she can remember, Sabine has lived two lives. Every 24 hours she shifts to her 'other' life - a life where she is exactly the same, but absolutely everything else is different: different family, different friends, different social expectations. In one life she has a sister, in the other she does not. In one life she's a straight-A student with the perfect boyfriend, in the other she's considered a reckless delinquent. Nothing about her situation has ever changed, until the day when she discovers a glitch: the arm she breaks in one life is perfectly fine in the other.

With this new knowledge, Sabine begins a series of increasingly risky experiments that bring her dangerously close to the life she's always wanted. But if she can only have one life, which is the one she'll choose?

My Thoughts:

*Contains spoilers for the sake of review*

 

I don't know what to write... This was clearly heading for a two star rating from the beginning, until about 70%. The plotline while intriguing was dull and Sabine just made too many stupid decisions for me to get into her character but then... Bam!! Plot twists a plenty and I found myself completely sucked in. I was hanging on every word and my heart was pounding and I was crying my eyes out. Once I finished I just sat back and was like: The romance that was introduced was sudden but oh my Lord ho...more I don't know what to write... This was clearly heading for a two star rating from the beginning, until about 70%. The plotline while intriguing was dull and Sabine just made too many stupid decisions for me to get into her character but then... Bam!! Plot twists a plenty and I found myself completely sucked in. I was hanging on every word and my heart was pounding and I was crying my eyes out. Once I finished I just sat back and was like: The romance that was introduced was sudden but oh my Lord how I loved it! It was seriously beautiful and touching and made me bawl like a baby. I loved Ethan. He was kind and smart and sympathetic without pitying Sabine. He said the most gorgeous things and loved Sabine despite it all, despite everything. He choose to believe her and I just feel in love with him as Sabine did. What made this fall down to a three star rating was the fact that the first 70% of the book was a bore. Sabine made some really stupid decisions and said some really dumb things to all the wrong people that put her in a situation she should have seen coming. It was really frustrating to have to go through the consequences with her when you knew she should have just kept her mouth shut in the first place so she wouldn't be in out in that situation. Also in her other life I didn't understand her obsession with trying to make her and Dex work. If she doesn't like him and cannot even kiss him without counting the seconds, then why does she want to lose her virginity to him? I understand that there was a bit of pressure from her friends and family but to take it that far seems stupid and ultimately fixable. When everything came to light at the end however I was completely shocked at how it all turned out. In the end, I did find myself enjoying the concept and thought that the writing was perfectly well done. The plotline drag it down for me however so I was glad that the ending made up for most of it. I wouldn't be quick to recommend it but given the right reader, I think this could be a lot of people's bread and butter. Note: a copy was provided courtesy of Jessica Shirvington and Hachette Children's Books, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review. No compensation was given or taken during this process.

 *This new (UK) edition is to be released on the 7th of August, 2014