by Parker Peevyhouse
Penguin Random House, 2016
ISBN 9780803741607 (hc)
$23.99, 304 pp, ages 12+
www.penguinrandomhousecanada.ca/
This story is about five different teenagers and two different worlds, but each story is set in a different time going more and more into the future. The characters are: Dylan, who learns that he can see the other world with his vorpal; Brixney, who has to get more views on her feed or risk her brother going into a debtor’s colony; Epony who is a character who scrubs her online profile and becomes a singer with her lover, Reef, who tries to survive in world gone virtual video game. Finally, there is the character Quinn, who is left with a big choice and finds out what ties the teens all together. My favourite thing when I was reading this, was seeing how much the previous story had affected the next person’s life. For example, when Brixney gets Dylan’s journal and posts the stories online, Epony is obsessed with reading the series and with The Other World. I found this interesting because it shows that something little can make a big difference. I found it really easy to visualize what each character was doing during the story. The writing is fantastic and hooks you in as you try to figure out what the character does to affect the story. Then in the end it leaves you breathless wondering what exactly went on in the story and yet you know every single detail of it! I recommend this story for anyone who likes mysteries or sci-fi, any gender or age.
Review by Rosie, age14, grade 9.
This review is from Canadian Teacher Magazine’s Jan/Feb 2017 issue.