Initial Reaction: 7 

Characters: 8 

Setting: 9 

Plot: 7 

Pace: 7 

Style: 8 

Ending: 7 

Enjoyment: 6 

59 / 16 = 3.6875 

Rounded Rating = 3.75 

Initial Reaction: 9 

Topic: 7 

Pace: 7 

Style: 5 

Enjoyment: 8 

36 / 10 = 3.6 

Rounded Rating = 3.5 

Initial Reaction: 4 

Characters: 6 

Setting: 6 

Plot: 7 

Pace: 7 

Style: 8 

Ending: 3 

Enjoyment: 7 

48 / 16 = 3.0 

I’m not usually one to reach for nonfiction in general, especially when it comes to memoirs, but I read Matthew Perry’s book and got this one soon after from the library and I figured it would just be a quick and easy read. It is quick, but it is absolutely not easy. Britney is just slightly before my time, my older sister is probably more on top of everything that went on, but I recognized so many of the events that she talked about. It was eye-opening to see things from her point of view for the first time ever. The voice of this book sounds exactly how I imagine her, and her memory is so vivid that it feels like listening to her right in that moment while she was trapped in a box. Because of this, her journey back to normalcy is so rewarding as the reader, rooting through the mud and being reminded not to give up on working towards what you really want.

Initial Reaction: 9 

Topic: 10 

Pace: 9 

Style: 10 

Enjoyment: 8 

46 / 10 = 4.6 

Rounded Rating = 4.5 

Initial Reaction: 10 

Topic: 10 

Pace: 8 

Style: 9 

Enjoyment: 10 

47 / 10 = 4.7 

Rounded Rating = 4.75 

Initial Reaction: 8 

Topic: 10 

Pace: 8 

Style: 7 

Enjoyment: 9 

42 / 10 = 4.2 

Rounded Rating = 4.25 

Initial Reaction: 6 

Characters: 5 

Setting: 7 

Plot: 4 

Pace: 4 

Style: 7 

Ending: 2 

Enjoyment: 7 

42 / 16 = 2.625 

Rounded Rating = 2.75 

Thank you NetGalley and Independent Publishers Group for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own. 

I think this is my favorite of the ARC’s I’ve gotten so far!! I raced my way through part 1 which serves to introduce you to Sam’s world and purpose with a peek into her history so far. I love being thrown right into the story without a ton of pre work and this was exactly that, you’re just thrown right into the thick of everything. 

Then going into part 2, you get to know all of the characters a bit more. I wouldn’t exactly say that I would’ve liked the time jump to not exist at all, I think the book would’ve been way too long if all of that time was included, but I am intrigued by that gap and I think it would make a great novella maybe. But going into part 2, you’re once again thrown right into a problem as well as a reconnection. I loved the rallying of friends to get to the bottom of everything, how the characters sacrificed for each other, and every bit of the action. 

The reason for some of the lost points below were mostly style things related to me personally. I tend to read young adult writing, specifically because of how romance is written for that age group (to be blunt, I’m not a smut girlie), but this was a little too YA at some points. None of it took away from the overall story, I am obsessed with this book, but that’s why I have a rubric system! 

This was an absolute page turner and the description is definitely correct in that you don’t need to read the other works that Aileen Erin has done, but I have added them to my TBR list and I’m eager to see where this story continues! 

Initial Reaction: 8 

Characters: 9 

Setting: 8 

Plot: 9 

Pace: 7 

Style: 6 

Ending: 10 

Enjoyment: 10 

67 / 16 = 4.1875 

Rounded Rating = 4.25 

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own. 

I wish that I’d had more time to listen to this audiobook so I could fully immerse myself in this book and take one chapter per day as suggested by the author, but even having listened over a few days, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I love the format, taking things slow and really building the skill of time blocking over time. Each topic was clearly explained and I enjoyed taking the time to sit down and write as I listened along and practice as I went. I felt like all of my questions and concerns about time blocking were answered (often soon after they came to mind) and the examples were helpful for developing and adjusting how I block out my time each week. 

The quality of the audiobook is great, I was able to get up to 1.75x speed and listen comfortably (note that I did still pause to do each exercise). My only critique of the audiobook format itself is that the narrator was a bit flat, so when listening for long periods of time, I found myself drifting away from the book and needing to go back to reread. 

Initial Reaction: 9 

Topic: 10 

Pace: 8 

Style: 8 

Enjoyment: 9 

44 / 10 = 4.4 

Rounded Rating = 4.5 

Initial Reaction: 8 

Characters: 8 

Setting: 8 

Plot: 7 

Pace: 7 

Style: 9 

Ending: 9 

Enjoyment: 7 

63 / 16 = 3.9375 

Rounded Rating = 4.0