Tagged: shannon eckrich
Spotlight: Other Side of Forever by Shannon Eckrich
Spotlight is my weekly feature in which I highlight a book I’m looking forward to or really enjoyed. This week I want to do the latter and talk to you about an amazing book: Other Side of Forever by Shannon Eckrich.
Seventeen-year-old Allie Anderson’s telekinetic powers are anything but useful–she can’t bring her father back, can’t stop her mother’s downward spiral into alcohol, and can’t keep her from falling in love with Ethan Bradley. Loving Ethan is easy, but it comes with a hefty price: Ethan is prohibited by his people from interacting with mortals–because he isn’t mortal himself. When Allie and Ethan’s love is discovered, there’s someone who will do anything to keep them apart. If Allie can’t learn to control her powers and fight to save Ethan, this dark entity will make every attempt to stop her beating heart. And if that happens, not even the energy of an immortal can bring her back.
I know, I was just gushing over this on Wednesday, but it warrants repeating: Other Side of Forever is that extremely rare YA book that avoids clichés like love triangles and completely happy endings. The heroine, Allie, was smart and resourceful but also had a vulnerable side when it came to Ethan. Ethan himself was a complete gentleman, not the total ‘hot jerk’ stereotype you see so often in YA. We need to see more male leads like him, that’s for sure!
Not only is the plot fast-paced, but unpredictable. Honestly, just when you think you know what’s going to happen, Shannon Eckrich sends another plot twist your way. Sometimes authors sacrifice character development in the name of pacing, but not in Other Side of Forever. Both Allie and Ethan were fully developed and had believable character arcs as well as a sweet, completely genuine romance. It didn’t feel forced at all, another rarity.
Seriously guys, you need to read this book right now.
Other Side of Forever by Shannon Eckrich
(Cover picture courtesy of Avery Olive.)
Seventeen-year-old Allie Anderson’s telekinetic powers are anything but useful–she can’t bring her father back, can’t stop her mother’s downward spiral into alcohol, and can’t keep her from falling in love with Ethan Bradley. Loving Ethan is easy, but it comes with a hefty price: Ethan is prohibited by his people from interacting with mortals–because he isn’t mortal himself. When Allie and Ethan’s love is discovered, there’s someone who will do anything to keep them apart. If Allie can’t learn to control her powers and fight to save Ethan, this dark entity will make every attempt to stop her beating heart. And if that happens, not even the energy of an immortal can bring her back.
[Full disclosure: Shannon Eckrich sent me a free ebook in exchange for an honest review.]
Well, that wasn’t at all what I expected. And considering I was expecting a typical YA book with a love triangle and a helpless heroine, that’s a good thing!
There was no love triangle. I’m still trying to process this amazing fact. I haven’t encountered a YA book without a love triangle in years, ever since the Twilight craze began. Other Side of Forever also doesn’t end in the way you expect it to either. Shannon Eckrich didn’t go for the stereotypical ending I would expect from a book with immortals. Heck, even her characters didn’t fit into the archetypes they appeared to.
If I’m not being very articulate right now it’s because I’m still trying to process this new development. Avoidance of clichés and stock characters? I’m having a tough time with this.
The plot was fast-paced and took some pretty unpredictable twists, both Allie and Ethan were believable characters, there was no Insta-Love and the immortals in this book are unique. If it had been my choice, I would not have stopped reading Other Side of Forever for anything: food, drink, etc. It quite literally kept me on the edge of my computer chair, reading frantically to find out how thing would turn out. Shannon Eckrich’s premise was also unique and Allie’s discovery of the secret world of immortals helped move the plot along as external forces tried to wrench her and Ethan apart.
The characters, oh the characters! Allie was not a poor, helpless damsel in distress. She was resourceful and strong, but not your stereotypical kick-butt heroine either. She’s just an average girl who has some emotional scars from a pretty awful childhood. Ethan was not your stereotypical bad-boy immortal jerk. No, he was sweet and kind and never pressured Allie into anything or treated her badly at any point in the story. Both characters were obviously well developed and their relationship didn’t go in the typical Insta-Love arc you find in YA. There were roadblocks along the way and the characters overcame them instead of acting like immature idiots. As you guys know, I’m not a big fan of romances. But I absolutely loved this one.
I don’t care what type of books you normally read. You need to read Other Side of Forever right now. You’ll love it.
I give this book 5/5 stars.