All Our Yesterdays by Cristin TerrillSeries: All Our Yesterdays #1
Published by: Disney Hyperion on August 1, 2013
Genre: Dystopian, Science Fiction, Time Travel
Pages: 368
Source: Purchased
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Rating: ★★★★
"You have to kill him." Imprisoned in the heart of a secret military base, Em has nothing except the voice of the boy in the cell next door and the list of instructions she finds taped inside the drain.
Only Em can complete the final instruction. She’s tried everything to prevent the creation of a time machine that will tear the world apart. She holds the proof: a list she has never seen before, written in her own hand. Each failed attempt in the past has led her to the same terrible present—imprisoned and tortured by a sadistic man called the doctor while war rages outside.
Marina has loved her best friend James since the day he moved next door when they were children. A gorgeous, introverted science prodigy from one of America’s most famous families, James finally seems to be seeing Marina in a new way, too. But on one disastrous night, James’s life crumbles apart, and with it, Marina’s hopes for their future. Now someone is trying to kill him. Marina will protect James, no matter what. Even if it means opening her eyes to a truth so terrible that she may not survive it. At least not as the girl she once was.
All Our Yesterdays is a wrenching, brilliantly plotted story of fierce love, unthinkable sacrifice, and the infinite implications of our every choice.
Overall I really liked All Our Yesterdays! By far the best part of the book was the time travel. I was worried that it was going to be confusing (always a possibility with time travel), but it wasn’t. I think the author did a great job of gradually explaining things and making it super easy to follow along. Thank goodness!
I loved how the characters were confronted with alternate versions of themselves.. it was kind of a terrifying thought. Just imagine, an innocent version of you being confronted by a dark, terrifying, older version of yourself. It’s scary to imagine that darkness existing in you somewhere, just waiting to emerge! View Spoiler »
At the beginning Marina wasn’t the greatest character. She was shallow and trying so hard to fit in with the ‘cool’ girls. For the most part I brushed it off because I figured she was supposed to be young and stupid and then learn some valuable life lessons or something and change. Although, to be honest, at the end of the book View Spoiler »
I did like Em and Finn though. I think they had an amazing romance and I loved seeing how hard they fought for each other! My feelings towards them are a bit strange though… Like, I did really enjoy their romance, passion, and dedication towards each other. But I never REALLY connected with the characters themselves. I liked them, but I felt like something was missing. I just didn’t connect with them as much as I could have. I didn’t really get a ton of feels and I never cried or anything (I saw that some people did).
But that being said, I loved the subtle hint of soul mates. View Spoiler »
When everything comes together at the end, the paradoxes are INSANE! For the most part I really enjoyed them. Paradoxes are crazy to think about it and I love how they keep my mind alive just imagining the possibilities! I mean, the very nature of paradoxes is that they’re confusing and don’t make much sense, but all things considered, I think Cristin Terrill handled them brilliantly. Despite being paradoxes, they do kind of make sense.. in the context of time travel, at least.
Overall, All Our Yesterdays was an awesome book! I think I am a bit disappointed that I wasn’t able to give it 5 stars, but I still really liked it. I just think I could have connected with it a little more, and Marina could have been a bit more likable. The world building could have also used some work. The focus was so 100% on the romance, the friendship, and the time travel, that the actual world itself was left behind. I never felt like I got a clear understanding of the politics or current state of the world. But despite that, this book is definitely still worth a read!
The Verdict
I really want to read this one! I’ve heard a lot of good stuff about it. And time-travel seems a rarer thing at the moment. It’s a pity you didn’t connect with the characters, eh? That’s super important for me when I’m reading.
Aww I was hoping they would have talked a lot more about the world, but of course they always stick to the romance story. It still sounds interesting though so I will definitely borrow it from the library someday.
I wasn’t a big fan of it, but I know a lot of bloggers who loved it. I think I am just not a huge time travel fan and I felt it was confusing. Great review. 🙂
Ah, I’m so glad you liked this one! It quickly became one of my favorites of the year when I read it, though I understand your slight misgivings. The romance was definitely a sort of focus, and it was difficult to really understand the world–I think it may be because Finn & Em don’t quite understand it either? Like, they know it’s BAD and they know some stuff, but considering they’re only shadows of their actual selves, it’s difficult to sort of see the world through their eyes. Interesting thought!
Of course, I love time travel, so this book was a must-read for me! It just made me so emotional towards the end, especially that one spoilery thing you talked about. It was so intense for sure!
I definitely enjoyed this story! Like you, I was a tad worried about the time travel confusions but it was relatively straightforward — as much as a time travel book where you’re going to see your earlier you can be, that is.
I really liked this one too. I get easily confused when it comes to time travel if it’s not done right, but I also thought that this one was done well. No confusion!
The ending WAS intense! I think if the whole book was like the last 25% I would have loved this one. I’m glad that you liked it more than I did (I gave it 3 stars). The beginning pissed me off, and I despised Marina. That brought the book way down for me, sadly =/
I absolutely loved this book. I can’t wait to read the next one for sure. I was amazed at how well the author kept things straight. I can’t imagine that was easy. I am always worried about time travel books not meshing. But this one works. Have you read Extracted by Ficklin and Hall? They do an amazing job, as well.
I love this review! This is exactly how I felt after reading this book. I really liked it, but there were some key things missing that could have made it amazing. But still, it was really good and I’m excited for the next one, although I truly thought this could have been a standalone.
I love when time travel is done right. I was kinda wondering about this one. Didn’t seem too special but still fun.
This book was okay to me. I didn’t fall in love with it as much as I expected, but I agree that the whole time-travel was neatly done. Em and Finn are cute together and yes, that was pretty intense!
I was worried that the time travel aspect would be confusing, as well, and I was SO happy when I read it, and wasn’t confused, haha.
I totally get what you mean about liking the characters but not being emotionally invested in them. That’s how I felt, as well. I think it is a really awesome book, but it just missed out on five stars from me because I didn’t feel the feels, so to say.
I’m glad you liked this one, I ordered this a couple days ago and this review makes me more excited to read it. 🙂
I remember I liked this book so much! I definitely agree with you: Em and Finn were fantastic characters, and the idea of soulmates and paradoxes really fascinated me. This is one of the sci-fis that I actually really loved, and I’m glad that you enjoyed it too 🙂
Fantastic review, Ashley! <33
I really enjoyed this one. Time travel is generally very hit and miss for me, but this was time travel done right. Also, I adored Finn. I was a little surprised to hear of the sequel, though – this one pretty much made sense as a standalone for me.