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DNF: The Here and Now by Ann Brashares
The Here and Now
written by Ann Brashares
published by Delacorte Press (Random House)
release date: April 8, 2014
find it here: (affiliate links) Barnes & Noble, Amazon, iBooks, Book Depository, Goodreads
Why did I pick this book: I was pre-approved to review this book by the author via NetGalley. (I received a copy of this book for review purposes.)
Where I stopped reading: 39% on my Kindle
Why I stopped reading: It was blech. I didn’t care about any of the characters, the plot, what was going on. I didn’t want to finish it. I didn’t want to read it. And that made me sad. I loved The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. I liked The Last Summer (of You and Me). I even enjoyed My Name is Memory. But this one, The Here and Now, totally missed the mark. I didn’t get it. I understood what was going on, and what was probably going to happen. BUT . . . it didn’t make sense. Prenna kept alluding to all of these issues and problems. And, yes, I could figure out what they were, but she didn’t tell me. She didn’t let me in on her secrets. All I heard was that she wasn’t allowed to say anything. Come on!!! You have to give the reader something, let me in on a few secrets. The portion that I read felt choppy and just didn’t make sense. I wanted to like this book. Sadly, I didn’t even dislike it enough to finish it and give it a low-star rating. 
What others have rated this book: According to Goodreads, the average rating for The Here and Now is 3.39. It looks like a majority of readers gave this book 4 stars. There was one 3-star, one 4-star, and one 5-star review on Amazon. Just because I didn’t finish this book doesn’t mean you won’t.
About the book – from Goodreads: An unforgettable epic romantic thriller about a girl from the future who might be able to save the world . . . if she lets go of the one thing she’s found to hold on to.
Follow the rules. Remember what happened. Never fall in love.
This is the story of seventeen-year-old Prenna James, who immigrated to New York when she was twelve. Except Prenna didn’t come from a different country. She came from a different time—a future where a mosquito-borne illness has mutated into a pandemic, killing millions and leaving the world in ruins.
Prenna and the others who escaped to the present day must follow a strict set of rules: never reveal where they’re from, never interfere with history, and never, ever be intimate with anyone outside their community. Prenna does as she’s told, believing she can help prevent the plague that will one day ravage the earth.
But everything changes when Prenna falls for Ethan Jarves.
From Ann Brashares, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series, The Here and Now is thrilling, exhilarating, haunting, and heartbreaking—and a must-read novel of the year.
6 Comments
by Lisa Mandina
Interesting. I am not a fan of the normal books by this author, although I did somewhat enjoy the first Traveling Pants book. I also have this from Netgalley. I’ll probably still give it a try, but am interested now to see if I see the same things you did.
by TheEveryFreeChanceReader
When you read it, let me know! I’ve read some mixed reviews after I was done with it.
by lissiet
I have read a lot of reviews that agree with you!
by TheEveryFreeChanceReader
I took a look at some other reviews as well after I wrote mine, and I saw that, too. It’s disappointing because I really enjoyed some of her other books. I had high hopes for this one. =/
by Cait
I’ve seen this around a little, aaaand, meh, I’m not very intrigued. It’s a shame the characters are kind of flat and hard to care about. :((
by TheEveryFreeChanceReader
I loved the characters in the Traveling Pants books. Maybe I shouldn’t compare them. But you expect certain things from authors. And I didn’t expect this. But, what can you do? =D