Some faraway place

Saga: The bright sessions #3

Número de páginas: 304

Editorial: Tor Teen

Fecha de publicación: 28 de Septiembre del 2021.

Autor: Lauren Shippen

Synopsis

Some Faraway Place, the third Bright Sessions novel from creator Lauren Shippen, features Rose, who has her humdrum life flipped upside down when she starts to travel into dreams.

Rose Atkinson’s mother can see the future. Her father can move things he doesn't touch. Her brother, Aaron, can read minds. And Rose, well, she makes a mean spaghetti bolognese.

Everyone else in her family is Atypical, which means they manifested an ability that defies the limits of the human experience. At 19, well past the average age of manifestation, Rose is stuck defending her decision not to go to college and instead working in the kitchen of a local restaurant, hoping to gain the experience she needs to become a chef.

When a rollerblading accident sends her to the hospital, she meets a girl she can't forget, and she starts to feel like maybe her life isn't quite so small. But when she starts falling asleep mid-conversation, she thinks, "Then again maybe I’m doomed to never have good things."

Rose should be happy to learn that she’s Atypical after all - that diving into dreams makes her a part of her family in the way she always wanted. But the more time she spends in the dreamworld, the more complicated her ability becomes. Trying to balance her work, her power, and a girlfriend who doesn’t know about Atypicals, Rose seeks help. But she soon discovers that being Atypical comes with dangers she never could have imagined. Even her carefully constructed dreamworld isn’t safe.

This is the story of Atypical Rose, who discovers that your dreams coming true isn’t always a good thing.

Review 

I really liked this book, it has a good combination of science fiction, family drama and young adult novel. The author's writing has improved over previous books and shows us a point of view that is hardly explored in the podcast.
The protagonist, Rose, is unbearable, but that's the point and I think she builds this aspect of the story very well. That Rose is so imperfect and her interaction with Damien is what makes this book so special. I really liked the way the characters' feelings were captured and how they can come to a personal conclusion even if things remain unresolved.
I also liked the subject of powers a lot, the different points of view and how each atypical lives his life is wonderful. In addition, the different narrative resources that are used to tell the story (blogs, newspapers, reddit) are very interesting and make the reading more dynamic.
On the other hand, it gave me the feeling that at times the story became low and lower, especially in the first few pages. Some characters that seemed important are left in the middle of the road, and time jumps or skipping some situations affect the experience.
However, I find the point of view where being an Atypical is the rule refreshing. I loved Rose's family and I wish they had more moments in history.
This book can be read individually, but I wouldn't recommend it, because without the information from the previous books and the podcast it feels incomplete. However, as a companion story it works very well and if you are fans of the series, you are going to love it.

Stars: 4/5

Reseña en español. 

Este libro me gustó mucho, tiene una buena combinación entre ciencia ficción, drama familiar y novela juvenil. La escritura de la autora ha mejorado con respecto a libros anteriores y nos muestra un punto de vista que casi no se explora en el podcast. 
La protagonista, Rose, es insoportable, pero ese es el punto y creo que construye muy bien este aspecto de la historia. Que Rose sea tan imperfecta y su interacción con Damien es lo que hace este libro tan especial. Me gustó mucho la forma en que se plasmaron los sentimientos de los personajes y cómo pueden llegar a una conclusión personal aunque queden cosas sin resolver. 
El tema de los poderes también me gustó mucho, los diferentes puntos de vista y cómo cada atípico vive su vida es maravilloso. Además los diferentes recursos narrativos que se utilizan para contar la historia (blogs, diarios, reddit) son muy interesantes y vuelven la lectura más dinámica. 
Por otro lado, me dio la sensación de que en ocasiones la historia se volvía monótona, en especial en las primeras páginas. Algunos personajes que parecían importantes se quedan abandonados a medio camino y los saltos temporales o la omisión de algunas situaciones afectan la experiencia. 
Sin embargo, encuentro refrescante el punto de vista donde ser un atípico es la regla. La familia de Rose me encantó y me gustaría que tuvieran más momentos en la historia. 
Este libro se puede leer de manera individual, pero no lo recomendaría, porque sin la información de los libros anteriores y el podcast se queda algo corto. Sin embargo, como historia complementaria funciona muy bien y si son fans de la saga, les va a encantar.

Calificación: 4/5