Reviews with content warning for Addiction - Oona Out of Order

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Oona Out of Order by Margarita Montimore

20 reviews

hellovivi_'s review against another edition

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emotional funny mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

This book was mind numbingly boring.

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imogenthemog's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring medium-paced

3.25

While the book is thoroughly enjoyable, with good character development, twists and turns, and settings that are easy to visualise, there are issues. Some may find the actions and thoughts of the main character, Oona, quite frustrating. Also, some of the pacing is a bit off, too long focussed on one topic and not enough time focussed on another, for example.

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becca_thegrimreader's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny lighthearted reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

This book has been on my to-read list for over a year, and I was really looking forward to finally reading it. Unfortunately, this book fell flat for me. There were many things I enjoyed, but overall there was very little that kept my interest.

Now, that already sounds very negative so I’m going to try and add some positivity into this review. The premise for this book is intriguing and showed a lot of promise. Oona is celebrating New Year’s Eve and her birthday with her boyfriend and friends. At the stroke of midnight, she is transported to another year of her life yet hasn’t aged internally. She finds out that every year at the stroke of midnight she will wake up in another year of her life, transporting her back and forth in time. Interesting, no? Now, where this fails is that it grows very tiresome. Oona repeatedly makes terrible decisions, and though she is warned by herself from the previous year, she still goes ahead with them. Then as the book progresses there are combining plot points and cliches that just seemed over the top and unbelievable. (Cos time-travel is totally believable?)

Then we move on to our characters. Oona isn’t a likeable person, she comes across as very selfish and self-pitying. We keep hearing about the wise older version of Oona throughout the book, yet we never get to meet her. Any friends that she makes along the way are brief as hanging on to them while jumping through time would be impossible. Yet having said that, Oona has multiple relationships and never with nice men. The only two characters I did like were Madeline and Kenzie, who Oona did not appreciate at all and it infuriated me how badly she treated Madeline. If I’m being totally honest there were a lot of things Oona did in this book that made my blood boil.

I hate giving negative reviews, but there was a lot to be said after reading this book. It was one that I think could have been executed a little better. There were some lovely moments, but they did not make up for the many glaring issues the book had.

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kiaramarie28's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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kathleenivy's review against another edition

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hopeful lighthearted mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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christy_0909's review against another edition

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adventurous funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

There were some parts that were a bit dry, that I skimmed over but overall I loved the story it was so unique and light hearted.

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sweetsugatam's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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kelly_e's review against another edition

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lighthearted reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Title: Oona Out of Order
Author: Margarita Montimore
Genre: Fiction
Rating: 4
Pub Date: February 25 2020

T H R E E • W O R D S

Reflective • Time travel • Light-hearted

📖 S Y N O P S I S

December 31st, 1982 - on the eve of her nineteenth birthday, Oona has her life in front of her, and is facing down a difficult decision that could ultimately change her life. But at the stroke of midnight, Oona faints and awakens thirty-two years down the road, in her fifty-one-year-old body. What she comes to learn is she's afflicted with a condition in which she skips to a different year of her life with each turn of the calendar; living her life out of order. Oona Out of Order is an exploration of life and time, of love and loss, and what it means to live.

💭 T H O U G H T S

I went into this novel not knowing what to expect. Not typically being a fan of time traveling books (I end up confused), but Oona Out of Order was a unique and pleasant surprise, that had me both laughing and crying. In fact, I didn't want it to end! After reading the first chapter, I knew I wanted to know what Oona would experience in each different year, never knowing where she'd end up. Time travel can sometimes be confusing and scientific it takes away from the story - not the case here. It definitely gave me 13 Going on 30 and 50 First Dates vibes. The descriptions and references to pop culture, and technological changes over the years, were a fun addition to the story. I couldn't help but feel attached to Oona, her mother, and Kenzie, and especially for Dale. A poignant and moving story so beautifully written and thought-provoking it left me thinking about what life would be like to live it out of order, and a reminder of everything taken for granted, and the importance of living in the moment.

📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• those who enjoy time travel/alternate reality stories
• fans of The Midnight Library & Maybe in Another Life
• readers that likes 13 Going on 30 and/or 50 First Dates

🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S

"All good things end, always. The trick is to enjoy them while they last.

"Anger can be energy. Don't burn, soar."

"They'll be peppered in with the years you do have me. It'll be easier in some ways. If you were living a normal person's chronology, I'd be out of your life forever. At least you'll be able to look forward to seeing me again. And when I'm not here, you'll have Kenzie."

"Imperfect was better than unspoken."

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beccaruthe's review against another edition

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adventurous funny relaxing sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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znvisser's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional mysterious medium-paced

Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Although the premise wasn't the most creative, I did enjoy its execution. The book actually avoids most technicalities regarding the time travel and focused more on the relational effects, and I didn't mind at all.

Just when I started to wonder how the story would be wrapped up considering the chosen pace and events, there was a plot twist that took care of that. Didn't see it coming but wasn't too surprised about it either, since the hint dropping was so obvious you knew there was more to it.

Would probably have enjoyed it more if I didn't read it right after Matt Haigs Midnight Library, but nevertheless the story captured my attention and turned out a very decent read.

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