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Odile is going through the vetting process to become a member of the Conseil, who decide whether people can travel out of their valley to other valleys beyond. This is speculative fiction, so the other valleys are twenty years ahead or twenty years behind.

I liked this, although I‘m glad I listened on audio, as many readers complained about the lack of “” in print.

I‘m also not sure if there were huge plot holes or if I‘m just a bit daft! 🤪

August 2024 Wrap Up
• The Other Valley ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
• Baby X ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
• Zora Books Her Happy Ever After ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
• Do What Godmother Says ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
• The First To Die At The End ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
• All This & More ⭐️⭐️⭐️
• Pet ⭐️⭐️⭐️
• Craft: Stories I Wrote For The Devil ⭐️⭐️⭐️

It is an interesting premise, and overall, the story was compelling, but it felt slow, and I feel like it was missing depth to the characters. A soft pick.

Odile‘s town is in a valley with the same town 20 years ago in the next valley and 20 years in the future in the other direction. Travel between the town is strictly controlled. This is a fascinating premise and a completely absorbing listen, but there‘s a huge plot hole that‘s impossible to ignore. Between pick and so-so.

This story was quite original and a times a tad confusing, but I really enjoyed it. I found it to be both sad and incredibly thought provoking. The author has created this interesting world where the valley to either side holds the same world 20 years earlier or later. Managing such a society, where someone can change the present if they were allowed to go back, results in a complex set of morality issues. This story will stay with me. 4/5 stars!

Odile lives in an unnamed valley close to a lake. East of the valley is the exact same valley, just 20 years in the future. West of the lake is 20 years in the past. Citizens can petition to visit the valley to the East or West under special circumstances and after consideration and under strict security conditions by the Conceil.
Odile notices such visitors one day after school and identifies who they are, and by that... ⬇️

Perhaps because Part 1 of this book read as YA, it gave me The Giver vibes. I liked the premise with adjoining valleys living the same lives separated by 20 years from the valleys east and west. Part 2 jumps twenty years which was intriguing my issue was the story didn‘t didn‘t have the tension needed to make the premise unforgettable.

An isolated town is neighbored by its past to the West and its future to the East. The Conseil regulates travel between towns, giving few the chance to see lost loved ones. Odile‘s life changes forever when she glimpses a friend‘s parents, visiting from the future. While the premise is strong and the ideas about fate and free will interesting, I was disappointed that grief is utterly misunderstood here and frustrated at the lost opportunity.