Title: A Second Chance for Yesterday [on Amazon | on Goodreads]
Series: None
Author: R.A. Sinn [Twitter | Goodreads]
Genres: Sci-Fi
Year: 2023
Age: 18+
Stars: 4/5
Pros: Intriguing, inventive sci-fi twist on the Merlin Sickness trope. Relatable lead.
Cons: Requires some suspension of disbelief. The temporal disruption and its consequences can get confusing. The family issue resolution feels unearned. The ending doesn't give straight answers (if that's something that bothers you).
WARNING! A few scenes involve vulgar/inappropriate male nudity.
Will appeal to: Those who enjoy narratives that play with time. Those who love redemption arcs and star-crossed romances.
Blurb: Nev Bourne is a hotshot programmer for the latest and greatest tech invention out there: SavePoint, the brain implant that rewinds the seconds of all our most embarrassing moments. She’s been working non-stop on the next rollout, even blowing off her boyfriend, her best friend and her family to make SavePoint 2.0. But when she hits go on the test-run, she wakes up the next day only to discover it's yesterday. She's falling backwards in time, one day at a time. As things spiral out of control, a long-lost friend from college reappears in her life claiming they know how to save her. Airin is charming and mysterious, and somehow knows Nev intimately well. Desperate and intrigued, Nev takes a leap of faith. A friendship born of fear slowly becomes a bond of deepest trust, and possibly love. With time running out, and the whole world of SavePoint users at stake, Nev must learn what it will take to set things right, and what it will cost. (Amazon)
Review: First off...DISCLAIMER: I requested this title on NetGalley. Thanks to Rebellion Publishing for providing an ecopy. This didn't influence my review in any way.
SERIOUS FUN
Here's the thing: I love narratives that play with time because they're great fun (even the tragic ones, if you get my meaning). But I also love them because, at the same time (no pun intended), they're perfect to vehiculate philosophical concepts, or simply, to make you think. This one, while I'm not thrilled about the direction it went with regard to the family angle (more about that below - I'll try to keep the spoilers to a minimum), had a lot to say about ethics, redemption, and becoming, if not the best, at least a better version of yourself - and mind you, it managed to stay entertaining and to throw a few surprises at the reader in the process (though I should probably have seen at least one of them coming - but even if I didn't because I was engrossed with the story, and not because the twist was difficult to figure out, that's still a good thing!). [...]
