Book Review: Parallel by Lauren Miller

Parallel
Author: Lauren Miller
Reading Level: YA
Genre: Science Fiction/Time Travel
Released: May 14th 2013
Review Source: HarperTeen
Available: Amazon

Summary: (from goodreads) Abby Barnes had a plan. The Plan. She'd go to Northwestern, major in journalism, and land a job at a national newspaper, all before she turned twenty-two. But one tiny choice—taking a drama class her senior year of high school—changed all that. Now, on the eve of her eighteenth birthday, Abby is stuck on a Hollywood movie set, miles from where she wants to be, wishing she could rewind her life. The next morning, she's in a dorm room at Yale, with no memory of how she got there. Overnight, it's as if her past has been rewritten.

With the help of Caitlin, her science-savvy BFF, Abby discovers that this new reality is the result of a cosmic collision of parallel universes that has Abby living an alternate version of her life. And not only that: Abby's life changes every time her parallel self makes a new choice. Meanwhile, her parallel is living out Abby's senior year of high school and falling for someone Abby's never even met.

As she struggles to navigate her ever-shifting existence, forced to live out the consequences of a path she didn't choose, Abby must let go of the Plan and learn to focus on the present, without losing sight of who she is, the boy who might just be her soul mate, and the destiny that's finally within reach.

Parallel is one of those books that I was anxiously awaiting to read. Unfortunately, it fell a tad bit short for me. The fact that I might have hyped it up in my head a little more than necessary might have to do with why I don't love it as much. Parallel is gonna fall under my "I didn't completely love it, yet I had to finish it because the story held my attention well enough to see what happens in the end" category.

Abby Barnes has always had her whole life planned since she can remember. Perfectly set class schedule, try to get an excellent score on the SAT, get into Northwestern graduate with a degree in journalism and to tie up the perfect plan get a job at a major newspaper. That changes the first day of her senior year. Her class schedule has to be changed last minute when a certain teacher decides to cancel his class. Now Abby is faced with a choice of either taking drama methods or principles of astronomy. Of course she takes the semi-easy class, gets cast as the lead in the upcoming school play, and there happens to be a prominent casting director in the audience (nothing out of the ordinary since it is a magnet school). That same casting director calls her and asks her to audition for a big-budget film and she gets the part. Abby's so called plan goes out the door and there's really nothing she can do. She goes to sleep the day before her 18th birthday in her swanky LA hotel room, but wakes up in a dorm room in Yale! How you may ask did she end up there? Well the night that she went to sleep there was an earthquake, but really it was a collision of Parallels. It just so happens that we switch POVs to a 16 year old Abby the day before her 17th birthday (Very important to keep track of the dates) same thing happens where her teacher cancels her class, but in this parallel Drama isn't an option.

The plot was a lot more complex than I originally thought and I think that's what threw me off. The explanation for the Parallel worlds is both intriguing yet confusing. It might have gone a bit more in-depth than I think was necessary. That being said I did enjoy the way Miller weaved both parallels together. I liked the way that I didn't feel lost when I was reading Abby "Here" and "There", it flowed effortlessly. On another note, I made no connection what so ever to either of the love interest. They weren't developed at all. The one thing I truly enjoy about Parallel was that it made you think about the small stuff. How a simple lie or the smallest decision could have such a big impact & alter the course of so many things.