All Our Yesterdays Published by Disney-Hyperion Published: September 3rd 2013
Buy on Amazon
Add to Goodreads
What would you change?
Imprisoned in the heart of a secret military base, Em has nothing except the voice of the boy in the cell next door and the list of instructions she finds taped inside the drain.
Only Em can complete the final instruction. She’s tried everything to prevent the creation of a time machine that will tear the world apart. She holds the proof: a list she has never seen before, written in her own hand. Each failed attempt in the past has led her to the same terrible present—imprisoned and tortured by a sadistic man called the doctor while war rages outside.
Marina has loved her best friend, James, since they were children. A gorgeous, introverted science prodigy from one of America’s most famous families, James finally seems to be seeing Marina in a new way, too. But on one disastrous night, James’s life crumbles, and with it, Marina’s hopes for their future. Marina will protect James, no matter what. Even if it means opening her eyes to a truth so terrible that she may not survive it... at least, not as the girl she once was. Em and Marina are in a race against time that only one of them can win.
All Our Yesterdays is a wrenching, brilliantly plotted story of fierce love, unthinkable sacrifice, and the infinite implications of our every choice.
Flipping fantastic is the first thought that comes to mind when thinking about All Our Yesterdays. The book was really freaking FANTATSTIC. I really can’t think of one thing that I didn’t like about this book. As a person that usually has trouble with time travel(Back to the Future series aside) I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this book or if I would have my usual time travel aversion. But All Our Yesterdays is written and developed in such a way that I actually forgot there was time travel going on. It felt almost like a parallel life book and that right there is my jam!
All Our Yesterdays is a story about a world that has been changed by a time machine and the person that created it. Em and Finn are prisoners, trapped in cells where they are tortured because they know something. They know how to use the time machine to go back and try to stop it from happening. They have tried many times and have failed. They have one shot left and they know what they have to do even if it is the hardest thing they have ever had to face. But if they fail, not only does it affect them, but it will affect people they will both do anything to protect because things staying as they are are just not an option.
Like I mentioned in the first paragraph, All Our Yesterdays really had a parallel life feel to it for me. A lot of it actually reminded me of Pivot Point by Kasie West and you know how I feel about that book. There were a lot of twists and turns and surprises that I wasn’t expecting but kind of was, if that makes any sense. The plot was really solid and kept me 100% involved in the story. But what was even better than the plot was Em and Finn. They were two of me most fantastic characters in YA. As a reader you don’t know much about them from the start. You are thrown into their world, see their struggle and go from there. But that really didn’t matter in the long run because from the very beginning I was invested in both of these characters and wanted to know how they fit into the world of Marina and James and what the real connection was. And for the record, that connection was kind of a doozy that I didn’t really see coming.
I guess I can’t accurately put into words my love of All Our Yesterdays without giving something away and I don’t want to do that. This book should be read without spoilers to ruin the effect that Terrill crafted so masterfully in her debut. This book legit rocked my world and changed my thoughts on time travel to and extent…well especially if she is writing it. 😉 But seriously, Em and Finn are magic, Marina and James bring their own special story to the table, and the way it all connects is superb. I highly recommend this one. I loved it and I think you all will too.
[…] […]