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A review by pagesplotsandpints
Just Like Fate by Cat Patrick, Suzanne Young
4.0
4 stars
Cat and Suzanne!!! How could you end it like that!? You kill me. And yes it was the perfect ending.
Okay so four stars, right? Yes. It was a nice book to breeze through -- simple, funny, had a good twist with the two timelines. Timelines were just a tad confusing at first when they were so similar but things quickly diverged and regardless, each chapter has "Stay" or "Go" on the bottom so if you get confused, you can keep up.
I LOVED how Caroline was. not. perfect. She's a runner. Not like track. She runs from her problems and that's constantly pointed out to her but I actually liked that. She had serious flaws and it was actually kind of nice to see.
Loved Chris's character. Never trusted Joel. Both were well laid out with their good sides and their bad sides, but everything turns out right in the end.
I was confused how this book could possibly end because clearly we HAVE to know which decision Caroline makes and which story line is the true one. I will tell you this --- It ended the only way it could have. Perfectly.
I'd recommend it! It wasn't earth shattering but I really enjoyed reading it, especially after the ending.
Review originally posted on The Book Addict's Guide: JUST LIKE FATE was a really fun read for me! I pretty much love anything with alternate universes/co-existing realities so I was really excited to see exactly how this story plays out. Here's the gist: Caroline's grandmother just suffered a stroke and as it seems her clock is ticking down, Caroline devotes all her spare time to staying at her grandmother's bedside. When her friend calls her to invite her to a party to help lighten her mood, JUST LIKE FATE splits into two possible story lines: Whether Caroline chooses to stay with her grandmother or go to the party.
I want to say before I start my full review, though, that don't get confused: The only people aware of these two alternate paths are us, the readers. I'm actually not 100% sure how to categorize the book since the readers are just getting two different stories none of the characters, including Caroline, are aware of the split. I felt like it was mostly contemporary but the fact that there is a split brings in a tiny element of paranormal/sci-fi so I'd be interested to hear how you guys feel about that!
I won't say TOO much about each story line, but I will say that each option presents Caroline with different reactions and relationship-altering situations from her family, an interesting new romance possibility, and friendships put to the test. I will say that I appreciated that the two paths were in fact very different with some minor things and of course people that overlapped. When the story first split, it was a tiny bit confusing to keep the two separated because they were so similar, but as Caroline digressed in two opposite directions, we end up with different situations and different settings so things quickly solidify into separate stories.
One thing we definitely see about Caroline as reiterated by her family and friend is that she's a runner. No, not like a track star, but she has a tendency to run and hide from her problems. Caroline seems to be running unconsciously so naturally it's shocking and painful when that's brought to her attention and I really think this is the way we see her grow the most. I actually liked seeing a blatantly obvious character flaw in Caroline. It was kind of nice to be shown that issue right off the bat and constantly witness Caroline's progress with addressing conflict and standing up for herself. I think it made me that much more proud of her when I saw her making strong choices near the end of the book!
So the boys. There are two boys in this book. Firstly there's Joel who is Caroline's long-time crush. His relationship with Caroline is dominant in the "Stay" part of the book. Obviously we'll all make our own opinions of Joel but I was always a bit... wary. And I think the authors made me feel that way for a certain reason. It's all cryptic now, but of course I don't want to give away any major spoilers! The other love interest is the new guy Chris who dominates the "Go" part of the book. Chris is a cute guy who Caroline meets at the party and he is my kind of crush! He's snarky but sweet and you know I love that banter and joke-flirting. Personally, I was rooting for the Chris story to work out... But....
JUST LIKE FATE is written so well because each path has some serious upsides and some MAJOR issues that Caroline will have to deal with in either path she chooses, so of course the whole time I'm wondering, "Which path does Caroline actually choose and how does this story end!?!?!" I was totally itching to know at the very end. So which one does she pick? Of course I'm not revealing that answer BUT I will say that I think the end was done perfectly. Cat Patrick and Suzanne Young did a great job of closing the story in the only possible way they could have and it was a good surprise!
Cat and Suzanne!!! How could you end it like that!? You kill me. And yes it was the perfect ending.
Okay so four stars, right? Yes. It was a nice book to breeze through -- simple, funny, had a good twist with the two timelines. Timelines were just a tad confusing at first when they were so similar but things quickly diverged and regardless, each chapter has "Stay" or "Go" on the bottom so if you get confused, you can keep up.
I LOVED how Caroline was. not. perfect. She's a runner. Not like track. She runs from her problems and that's constantly pointed out to her but I actually liked that. She had serious flaws and it was actually kind of nice to see.
Loved Chris's character. Never trusted Joel. Both were well laid out with their good sides and their bad sides, but everything turns out right in the end.
I was confused how this book could possibly end because clearly we HAVE to know which decision Caroline makes and which story line is the true one. I will tell you this --- It ended the only way it could have. Perfectly.
I'd recommend it! It wasn't earth shattering but I really enjoyed reading it, especially after the ending.
Review originally posted on The Book Addict's Guide: JUST LIKE FATE was a really fun read for me! I pretty much love anything with alternate universes/co-existing realities so I was really excited to see exactly how this story plays out. Here's the gist: Caroline's grandmother just suffered a stroke and as it seems her clock is ticking down, Caroline devotes all her spare time to staying at her grandmother's bedside. When her friend calls her to invite her to a party to help lighten her mood, JUST LIKE FATE splits into two possible story lines: Whether Caroline chooses to stay with her grandmother or go to the party.
I want to say before I start my full review, though, that don't get confused: The only people aware of these two alternate paths are us, the readers. I'm actually not 100% sure how to categorize the book since the readers are just getting two different stories none of the characters, including Caroline, are aware of the split. I felt like it was mostly contemporary but the fact that there is a split brings in a tiny element of paranormal/sci-fi so I'd be interested to hear how you guys feel about that!
I won't say TOO much about each story line, but I will say that each option presents Caroline with different reactions and relationship-altering situations from her family, an interesting new romance possibility, and friendships put to the test. I will say that I appreciated that the two paths were in fact very different with some minor things and of course people that overlapped. When the story first split, it was a tiny bit confusing to keep the two separated because they were so similar, but as Caroline digressed in two opposite directions, we end up with different situations and different settings so things quickly solidify into separate stories.
One thing we definitely see about Caroline as reiterated by her family and friend is that she's a runner. No, not like a track star, but she has a tendency to run and hide from her problems. Caroline seems to be running unconsciously so naturally it's shocking and painful when that's brought to her attention and I really think this is the way we see her grow the most. I actually liked seeing a blatantly obvious character flaw in Caroline. It was kind of nice to be shown that issue right off the bat and constantly witness Caroline's progress with addressing conflict and standing up for herself. I think it made me that much more proud of her when I saw her making strong choices near the end of the book!
So the boys. There are two boys in this book. Firstly there's Joel who is Caroline's long-time crush. His relationship with Caroline is dominant in the "Stay" part of the book. Obviously we'll all make our own opinions of Joel but I was always a bit... wary. And I think the authors made me feel that way for a certain reason. It's all cryptic now, but of course I don't want to give away any major spoilers! The other love interest is the new guy Chris who dominates the "Go" part of the book. Chris is a cute guy who Caroline meets at the party and he is my kind of crush! He's snarky but sweet and you know I love that banter and joke-flirting. Personally, I was rooting for the Chris story to work out... But....
JUST LIKE FATE is written so well because each path has some serious upsides and some MAJOR issues that Caroline will have to deal with in either path she chooses, so of course the whole time I'm wondering, "Which path does Caroline actually choose and how does this story end!?!?!" I was totally itching to know at the very end. So which one does she pick? Of course I'm not revealing that answer BUT I will say that I think the end was done perfectly. Cat Patrick and Suzanne Young did a great job of closing the story in the only possible way they could have and it was a good surprise!