Review and Giveaway: I Remember You by Cathleen Davitt Bell

Review and Giveaway: I Remember You by Cathleen Davitt Bell I Remember You by Cathleen Davitt Bell
Published by Random House Children's Books on February 10th 2015
Pages: 320
Format:eARC
Source:Copy provided by publisher for review, via Netgalley

For fans of THE FUTURE OF US comes an engrossing story of two teens, whose love for each other is tested by time and fate.

Lucas and Juliet couldn’t be more different from each other. But from the moment Lucas sees Juliet, he swears he remembers their first kiss. Their first dance. Their first fight. He even knows what’s going to happen between them—not because he can predict the future, but because he claims to have already lived it.

Juliet doesn’t know whether to be afraid for herself or for Lucas. As Lucas’s memories occur more frequently, they also grow more ominous. All Juliet wants is to keep Lucas safe with her. But how do you hold on to someone you love in the present when they’ve begun slipping away from you in the future?

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When I first read the synopsis of this one, I was thinking it was going to be a run of the mill time travel romance book. Admittedly, I hadn’t really read many of those, so it was fine with me. But it ended up being much more than that.

The book is written as though Juliet is writing a letter to Lucas. Maybe a journal to him would be a more appropriate comparison, since it is the length of a book, after all. Either way, I thought it was the perfect way to write the story. The reader is able to experience the story from Juliet’s thoughts, but with the details that Juliet finds important. It’s a great (and plausible) way to jump ahead to more important bits rather than having to deal with daily minutiae. We’re able to get right to the heart of the story through Juliet’s feelings and recollections.

Juliet is a really lovely main character. She is smart, she has her head on straight, and she is really quite likable. Lucas is also likable most of the time, and I can’t really explain to you when/why he isn’t, because it would give things away. Let’s just say you’re rooting for these two. We also get to see Juliet’s other relationships evolve. Her best friend Rosemary is not always the easiest character to like, but she and Juliet were such opposites that it was easy to see what drew them to each other. Juliet also has to deal with her changing relationship with her mom, which was a nice addition to the story (and quite refreshing- no Parent-in-YA Syndrome here).

The romance, of course, plays a huge part in the story. I liked the majority of it, but there were times that I kind of wanted to give Juliet a little shake to remind her that she is a smart, strong young woman. The romance develops a bit quickly for my taste, but I don’t know if I’d really call it full blown insta-love, since Juliet did question things, and was wary of jumping right in to actual love. The one thing that I have mixed feelings about is Juliet’s behavior in the middle of the book, when they were already in love, and together. She blows off her friends and family, as well as her interests and her school responsibilities. On one hand, um no. No one needs to be doing that. However, there are young women who make this mistake, and I can’t help but wonder if this was supposed to be a cautionary measure? Either way, it didn’t sit well with me.

The plot was very enjoyable, and since Juliet jumped ahead and skipped the details that could have dragged it down, it moved nice and quickly. I really enjoyed the twist on typical time travel that the author used in this story. There were a few things that I did see coming, but I still had no idea how everything would turn out in the end. And there were tears shed. Quite a few of them, really.4strs

Additional book links: Kobo | iTunes | Barnes & Noble


About Cathleen Davitt Bell

I was born in Princeton, NJ in 1971 and lived there until I was twelve, when we moved with my mom moved to West Hartford, CT.

My dad and mom had been divorced when I was two, and my dad lived in Williamstown, MA. I spent summers and school vacations with him.

I went to college in New York, at Barnard, and stayed in New York after I graduated. I worked as a newspaper reporter for three months, as a salesperson for a multimedia publisher for three years, and as a market researcher, and finally a copywriter.

I’m married and have two awesome kids ages two and five. I lived in Manhattan for sixteen years, but now am in Brooklyn, living downstairs from my sister and her family. I have two dogs named Oscar and Oprah. My favorite food is pizza and, strangely, in my thirties, I’ve developed a great love for playing catch. Slipping is my first book.

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Win (1) of (10) finished copies of I Remember You by Cathleen Davitt Bell (US Only)

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If you could travel back to your past self, what would  future you tell past you?

Posted February 6, 2015 by Shannon @ It Starts at Midnight in Giveaway, Review , / 14 Comments

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14 responses to “Review and Giveaway: I Remember You by Cathleen Davitt Bell

  1. Love when they are written like that, it seems to flow easier and you get to know the character on a deeper level, most of the ones I’ve read like that (though admittedly not a lot) work for me. Juliet as a character? YES. Lucas? I’m not so sure about now. no Parent-in-YA Syndrome here. I think I might like this book. Until the romance, noooooooooooooooooo. Why? WHYWHYWHY? You were doing so well, book. Overall, it sounds like a good read, I’ll just ignore the romance. I’m ignoring you, romance.

  2. I love novels that go back and forth from the past/future/present, and this sounds like a magical and emotional romance. The love-story is probably what has me most excited! Thanks for the giveaway!

  3. Alexis Cameron

    This sounds like a really emotional book and it sounds like something I would love to read. Thank you for this giveaway!

  4. Kim

    I’m glad that you liked this book, but I just didn’t. The only part that I liked was the last 20% of the book. “She blows off her friends and family, as well as her interests and her school responsibilities.” <- I really, really hated this one too! Great review! 🙂
    Kim @ Divergent Gryffindor: BLOG || VLOG

    • I LOVED the last 20%! And yes, that really pissed me off, but I think maybe it was trying to explain why you SHOULDN’T do that stuff? That was my only thought, because otherwise, I would not understand why it’d be included.

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