A review by dani17731
Where I Can't Follow by Ashley Blooms
4.0
4.5 stars
Walk through the door and leave all your problems behind...but you don't know what's on the other side. And once you leave, you'll never come back. Will you go through?
Maren Walker has a lot going on. She doesn't make much money, her grandmother is sick, her friend is spiraling, and she doesn't know what to do with her life. Everyone knows that when your door appears, you have a choice to make; take the door and leave your problems behind, or stay and try to make things work. What will Maren do?
This book was amazing! The cover really doesn't do the story justice. I knew there would be magical realism here, but the cover made me think of more fluff and less grit, which this story has much more grit than expected. Maren and her loved ones are quite poor, and options are few. She really wants more for her life, but many external factors, as well as internal ones, hold her back. Maren's mother took the chance to walk through her door when Maren was nine, and it's affected her life ever since, so when her door appears, the dilemma begins.
I loved the relationships in this book. They felt very real and included pain along with the happy moments. At times the characters were frustrating, especially Maren's best friend, but it felt very true to life. This was very thought-provoking as I kept wondering if I'd take my door if I ever had one. I highly recommend this book!
Thank you to NetGalley for the advance copy.
Walk through the door and leave all your problems behind...but you don't know what's on the other side. And once you leave, you'll never come back. Will you go through?
Maren Walker has a lot going on. She doesn't make much money, her grandmother is sick, her friend is spiraling, and she doesn't know what to do with her life. Everyone knows that when your door appears, you have a choice to make; take the door and leave your problems behind, or stay and try to make things work. What will Maren do?
This book was amazing! The cover really doesn't do the story justice. I knew there would be magical realism here, but the cover made me think of more fluff and less grit, which this story has much more grit than expected. Maren and her loved ones are quite poor, and options are few. She really wants more for her life, but many external factors, as well as internal ones, hold her back. Maren's mother took the chance to walk through her door when Maren was nine, and it's affected her life ever since, so when her door appears, the dilemma begins.
I loved the relationships in this book. They felt very real and included pain along with the happy moments. At times the characters were frustrating, especially Maren's best friend, but it felt very true to life. This was very thought-provoking as I kept wondering if I'd take my door if I ever had one. I highly recommend this book!
Thank you to NetGalley for the advance copy.