Tuesday, February 18, 2020

Julie's Review: Oona Out of Order

Author: Margarita Montimore
Series: None
Publication Date: February 25, 2020
Publisher: Flatiron
Pages: 352
Obtained: publisher
Genre:  Contemporary Fiction, Women's Fiction
Rating: 3.5/5
Bottom Line:Great concept but just fell flat for me

Grab, Just get it at the library, or Remove from your TBR list? Grab

Summary: It’s New Year’s Eve 1982, and Oona Lockhart has her whole life before her. At the stroke of midnight she will turn nineteen, and the year ahead promises to be one of consequence. Should she go to London to study economics, or remain at home in Brooklyn to pursue her passion for music and be with her boyfriend? As the countdown to the New Year begins, Oona faints and awakens thirty-two years in the future in her fifty-one-year-old body. Greeted by a friendly stranger in a beautiful house she’s told is her own, Oona learns that with each passing year she will leap to another age at random. And so begins Oona Out of Order...Hopping through decades, pop culture fads, and much-needed stock tips, Oona is still a young woman on the inside but ever changing on the outside. Who will she be next year? Philanthropist? Club Kid? World traveler? Wife to a man she’s never met?
Surprising, magical, and heart-wrenching, Margarita Montimore has crafted an unforgettable story about the burdens of time, the endurance of love, and the power of family. ~amazon.com

Review: Oona time travels to different parts of her life every year on New Year's Day. She never knows what order/age she'll end up at but the premise is that she will get to every age. She leaves herself a letter just giving herself a heads-up but never many details. The idea is that she really should experience all the ups and downs herself; no matter how heartbreaking. What Oona doesn't know is just how heartbreaking some years will truly be but not only for her but for those around her.

Some of the relationships she makes are fleeting and won't be around for more than one leap but others stay the course. Few people know about her leaps because honestly who would believe her? Her mom is her truest confidant plus her personal assistant Kenzie but at times it feels a bit lonely for Oona. Who can blame her? No matter how much she tries she just doesn't even know who will be in her life. What decisions can she make? Will it alter her future? Is that always so bad? How will she know if it changes the outcome?

What made me sad is that she never really gets to know herself in the same way we do. She doesn't get to grow emotionally the same way. Does she ever really get to experience full and meaningful love if her life it out of order?

I really liked Oona and felt for her plight. I will say though for me though for me was the supporting characters of Madeleine and Kenzie. They were the heart and soul of the novel and of Oona's life. I did feel like something was missing because I felt that it didn't elicit a lot of emotion from me and I really expected it to do something for me.

I would be curious to see what the author does next because I did enjoy the way she told the story and her unique point of view.


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