by Roxanne St. Claire
Publication: July 10, 2012
Pages: 368
Author: website | Facebook | Twitter
Publisher: Delacorte Books for Younger Readers
Buy it: Amazon Hardcopy | Kindle | B&N | Book Depository
When plain and unpopular Annie Nutter gets zapped by one of her dad’s whacked-out inventions, she lands in a parallel universe where her life becomes picture-perfect. Now she’s Ayla Monroe, daughter of the same mother but a different father—and she’s the gorgeous, rich queen bee of her high school.
In this universe, Ayla lives in glitzy Miami instead of dreary Pittsburgh and has beaucoup bucks, courtesy of her billionaire—if usually absent—father. Her friends hit the clubs, party backstage at concerts, and take risks that are exhilirating . . . and illegal. Here she’s got a date to lose her V-card with the hottest guy she’s ever seen.
But on the insde, Ayla is still Annie.
So when she’s offered the chance to leave the dream life and head home to Pittsburgh, will she take it?
The choice isn’t as simple as you think.
At first glance, this is the typical story where the outcast girl is not satisfied with her life and wants to be one of the popular girls. Then something happens, and she finds herself on the other end of the spectrum–and then wishing for her old life back. And it is. What made this worthwhile is in the way the story is told.
Annie is a real, relatable character. I didn’t attend a school like hers, but it wasn’t necessary to understand her feelings of wanting to belong, of finding love, and of having everything. If my mom suddenly found herself dissatisfied with our lifestyle, I would have wanted to upgrade too. And if I then found myself living the “dream” life, I would go with the flow and try out things that I never did before.
Which is what Annie does. At first it’s exciting, being the girl that everyone wants to be, but as Annie learns more about Ayla Monroe, the less sure she is that she wants Ayla’s life. Although she’s rich and gorgeous in Ayla’s life, she still remembers being a nobody. Plus, there is cute, sweet Charlie who’s the lowest on the social ladder because he used to live in a box (as the rumors say). Note: He’s the guy I want for my soulmate.
My heart is still fluttering from the ending. It is so cute! I’d talk about how much I love it, but that involve giving spoilers–which I can’t do because it would ruin the surprise. If you’re open to a cute, fun contemporary read with a sci-fi/fantasy twist with the parallel universe aspect, I recommend reading Don’t You Wish!
Disclaimer: I received an ARC of this book from the publisher. No payment was received in return for a review. The receipt of the book had no influence on the opinions expressed in my review.
Author: Crystal
A story girl at heart, Crystal is a bibliophile who can easily spend the day immersed in a good read. She writes under the name Kristy Wang. You can follow her writing adventures on X and Instagram @_kristywang.
Gaby says
I love the cover. I first saw this book on Goodreads and thought it sounded like a great read so I would love to get my hands on it 🙂
May says
Aww, sounds so good! Thanks for the review!
Pauline Tolentino says
I better read this book! 😀 I think I can relate to Annie. SO MUCH.
chani says
This looks like such a good book! Your review makes me want to read it so bad!
Lili says
Oh gosh, you make me want to read this book even more! The way an author writes and tells a story is everything. If this is what sets it apart from other cliches, then I am totally down to give it a chance!
Thanks for sharing!
alicia marie says
This is really the first I've heard about this book. Thanks for the great review!! I'll definitely have to read this book : )
Tiffany says
I loved the ending to! It was really cute. I'm actually surprised by how much I love this book 🙂
Anonymous says
thanks for sharing.
Anonymous says
I read this book before and I'm really glad you liked it! I loved it as well and it really needs some more recognition in the blogging world. And I'm oh, so glad you liked it! 😀
Crystal says
I absolutely adored this book. I agree that it deserves more attention!
Giselle says
This sounds awesome I have this one from NG actually and plan to read it n a few days so I'm really looking forward to it. It's actually only the 2nd review I read on it, too 🙂
Crystal says
It's a really cute read. I'm looking forward to seeing your review! 🙂