"James leans against the wall, letting it takes his weight. "You two agree on this?"
" I know, it's weird," Finn says. "I feel dirty."

[b:All Our Yesterdays|13514612|All Our Yesterdays|Cristin Terrill|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1370046261l/13514612._SX50_.jpg|19070336] has been lingering in my mind for almost 2 years now. That's why it deserved a real review, even if talking about the plot is pretty challenging without spoiling anything. I tried my best, okay?



Let's talk about the plot....

... without really talking about the plot??

(yes, I can do this?)

*sharp intake of breath*

[b:All Our Yesterdays|13514612|All Our Yesterdays|Cristin Terrill|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1370046261l/13514612._SX50_.jpg|19070336] brings us in a shattered world where time travel is not only a reality, but also a oh so frightening weapon when hold by delusional and powerful hands.

Time travel, REALLY? Okay. I must admit that while I often like time-travel stories except when they involve old Scottish marriage rules because really, what the fuck I usually spend a great time suspending my disbelief something fierce - of course I know that I'm reading a science-fiction book, hey, I'm not a fool but I need to be able to rely on some believable explanations or I'm not buying it.

I mean, lazy much?

So, [b:All Our Yesterdays|13514612|All Our Yesterdays|Cristin Terrill|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1370046261l/13514612._SX50_.jpg|19070336]? I have to congratulate [a:Cristin Terrill|5767141|Cristin Terrill|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1373743906p2/5767141.jpg] because I find myself accepting and believing the explanations The Doctor gives us - The Doctor aka The Evil, and no, I won't say anything else about him, except he's the creator and user of the time machine, Cassandra (I can't be the only one noticing a messed-up joke in that name?? Cassandre? Reaaally?)

Verdict : I finished that book with the *almost* absolute certainty that it could be possible to create such a dreading machine - and what a scaring possibility, I'm telling you!

About the ending :

Spoiler

this is REAL spoiler, open at your own risk

Spoiler

I know that some readers were annoyed by it, but it made sense to me at the time. If I remember correctly, I think what I understood is this : as the version of James who killed Finn doesn't exist anymore, Finn didn't die. I think? There was more, but I can't remember? Sorry? It involves a lot of James#1, James#2, James#3, and honestly, it took me a long thinking AT THE TIME to get it, so 2 years after? Well... I cannot explain??? I'm sorry?

There's no denying that I loved these characters. WHY?

That's pretty simple actually : they're so realistic I could almost grasp them. Throughout the story we witness their evolution and I enjoyed their growth a lot : Call me cynical, but I never believed in this bad guys/good guys dichotomy. Indeed I think that sometimes people drive on a thin ice without knowing it, and as we say in French, l'enfer est pavé de bonnes intentions, understand : even if we think we're doing the right thing, unexpected really bad things can arise from our so-called good actions.

We're in real life here, and from a sci-fi novel, I say bravo. Both Em or Finn grow fiercer and fiercer, all the events and suffering they have to go through making their final resolution completely believable and understandable.

"I glance at Finn to see if he's starting to sweat and shake the way I am, but he seems unaffected. He's probably been working out in his cell, the vain little bastard."

How can we recognize a good characterization?
Huuuum, Let's see :

☛ Option 1
Character A is character A at the beginning of the story.
Character A is put in the middle of a war-a wild and frightening world-whatever, OKAY?
Character A never changes and stays Character A in the end of the story.
Character A is a robot. He bores me to no end. I want him to die or to come back in his little village (you know who I mean, don't you?)

☛ Option 2
Character A is character A at the beginning of the story.
Character A is put in the middle of a war-a wild and frightening world-whatever, OKAY?
Character A evolves through the story and becomes Character A'.
Character A' is believable. I love Character A'.

As you can guess, in my opinion [b:All Our Yesterdays|13514612|All Our Yesterdays|Cristin Terrill|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1370046261l/13514612._SX50_.jpg|19070336] belongs to the second option. Plus, icing on the cake, I loved Finn's character from beginning to the end, from the sarcastic and loyal best-friend to the adorable and fierce cell-mate.

Saving the world is not easy, but if I had to choose a teammate, Finn would seem a really great option. Trust me.

To sum-up, what do we have here?

- A compelling, fascinating and fast-paced plot served by a never boring writing enlightened with sparks of humor.

- The underlying issue of the natural attraction humans feel for Power and the changes it can lead to.

- Flawed, believable and fierce characters including a heart-warming and funny male-lead.

Convinced?

"But maybe it's simpler than that. Maybe it's that Finn has this magical ability to make you smile even when things are grim."

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