Once Upon A Kiss by Robin Palmer Review

Publisher: Speak

Released: January 5, 2016

Pages: 304 

Summary:  It’s 1986 and sixteen-year-old Zoe Brenner’s world revolves around Depeche Mode, Judd Nelson, exercise-obsessed parents, and her best friend Jonah. Then one day, in a freak Fun-Dip choking accident, Zoe falls unconscious, and awakes in the year 2016. So much has changed, and Zoe needs Jonah to help her make sense of it all. But in this life, Zoe is the most popular girl in school, and she soon realizes this Zoe doesn’t associate with nerds like Jonah. As Zoe juggles new technology, attempts to hide her enthusiasm for poet blouses, and manages to keep her super jock boyfriend at bay, she tries to rekindle her friendship with Jonah and use her popularity for a good cause. Will she ever get back to 1986? And more importantly, does she want to?

My Rating:

***SPOILERS AHEAD***

My Thoughts:  When Zoe lands in this future parallel-universe she is shocked to see how different the technology/fashion etc. is!

As she adjusts, she learns that her “2016” self is not really well liked, so she makes an effort to make changes at her school as class president and learn more about the people she never really got a chance to know in 1986!

While trying to win back her best friend Jonah in this time, she also tries to find her way back. Upon learning she has to redo the events that led up to her time travel, she learns that she really likes where her life is in 2016!

By the end she decides to stay in 2016, with Jonah as her boyfriend, new found friends, and feeling more happier!

After all she went through to get back, I was surprised she decided to stay! But knowing she was happy in 2016, definitely made the ending satisfying!

I did take away 1/2 a star b/c while I am really happy with ending, it just felt weird that after all she went through, she wouldn’t be returning to her own time period :’)

This was definitely a fun and entertaining read! If you love ya-contemporary, the 80’s, and time-travel/parallel universes I would highly recommend this book!

Update (late Jan. 2016)-Since writing this review on GR I changed the rating from 4.5 to 4 stars! It really was a fun read, but I lowered it after really thinking/realizing that this was a fun book for sure, but seems more like a 4-star read!

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