This review originally appeared on the book review blog: Just One More Pa(i)ge.

This was lovely. I mean, with a title and cover like this, it really sets some high standards for itself. But truly this is one book that you can definitely judge by its cover. Gorgeous inside and out, this tale made me feel all the feelings.

The story itself, the way it was told, and the many stories it incorporated were all perfectly aligned in their mystical, religious depths. And when I say religious, I mean in the spiritual sense, not the rules and regulations of ceremony sense. This book is a mix of traditional coming of age and an almost fable-like depiction of love and creation.

Although we watch as our protagonist, Natalie Cleary, experiences so many of the normal challenges of growing up, naturally extra nuanced since she is adopted and has experienced some kind of mysterious secondary trauma, we also get to see another layer. Natalie is starting to see “wrong things,” glimpses of places or times that aren’t hers, is visited by an old woman she calls Grandmother who knows far too much to just be a figment of her imagination, and meets a mysterious new boy named Beau who she has more in common with than she realizes. When one night Grandmother appears and gives Natalie a cryptic warning, she is set down a path of self-discovery that will change her past, present, and future.

There was a lot I loved about this book. I felt like the representation of the high schoolers was fairly nuanced, considering the length of the book and the number of characters introduced. The majority of them, honestly minus the best friend (Megan), were multi-faceted and pretty realistically written. In a general sense, the entire presentation of the high school experience seemed realistic. I think perhaps there was a little more drinking present than would be normal (Short aside: I’m biased a bit due to my job, but I know that the majority of students report that they do not drink or do drugs. And this book really overly promoted the saturation of alcohol culture, if you’ll pardon the pun, and encouraged the misconception that that’s all high schoolers do.), but otherwise things seemed authentic to my memory. I also loved that many types of families and resulting stresses were presented. Often, I feel that YA literature tends to over-represent the Beau or Rachel-like characters – those from broken homes or dealing with very difficult issues. And while those stories are real and should absolutely be recognized and told, I also love that here we see some more “normal” or less traumatic stressors, like truly learning to be in your own skin or dealing with pressures relating to grades or sports, that can be damaging in different ways, even with incredibly supportive and well-meaning family and friends. It was very representative in that way. In addition, I adored the Native American, and other, cultural stories, myths and fables that appear throughout. They are told in such a supernatural and otherworldly way that perfectly matches the tone of the main plot – Natalie and Beau’s story. And the way they are used as a parallel or foreshadowing device is deftly done – suggesting certain things but never giving away too much. I truly felt like, while I was reading, that I was in a transcendent sort of place.

I was less a fan of the scientific side of things that was presented. It was a very original spin to put on the story, as many theories do exist regarding time travel, parallel worlds and the psychological basis for vivid dreams/visions, and it’s not something I often see in the YA genre. But it was at times quite technical. I applaud the author for her obvious research and effort in addressing such a complex concept, it just wasn’t for me. I loved the spirituality of the rest of the story and I felt that the juxtaposition of that aspect with the technical element was a bit jarring. I also would love to hear from the Native American community their thoughts on the representation of their culture in this novel. I thought the stories were beautiful and something that I do not see much, so having that in such a popular [young adult] mainstream publication was new for me, and fascinating to read. But I readily acknowledge my lack of knowledge in this field and therefore hesitate to make any definitive statements on how authentically they were told or how well the rest (i.e. Natalie’s adoption details), or lack of the rest (there is very little specific information about Natalie’s heritage included, which kind of made it seem a little too much like just as a plot device) was handled. I did a little googling after finishing, but wasn’t able to find much about the heritage of the author or reactions regarding that aspect of the book, either positive or negative.

This was almost a one-sitting read for me – a compelling story with quick pacing. I’m not ashamed to say that I cried at the end (no spoilers on whether they were happy or sad tears – if you know me, you know how much of a toss-up that truly is). If you are looking for a fast, satisfying YA story about love, with a bit of the magical and dream-like thrown in (i.e. – if you were a fan of Strange the Dreamer), then this book is for you.