Book Review: You Must Not Miss by Katrina Leno

Title: You Must Not Miss

Author: Katrina Leno

Series/Standalone: Standalone
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Magical Realism

Pages: 304

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Year Published: 2019

Format: Audiobook (Library Copy)

"Magpie Lewis started writing in her yellow notebook the day her family self-destructed. That was the night Eryn, Magpie's sister, skipped town and left her to fend for herself. That was the night of Brandon Phipp's party.

Now, Magpie is called a slut whenever she walks down the hallways of her high school, her former best friend won't speak to her, and she spends her lunch period with a group of misfits who've all been socially exiled like she has. And so, feeling trapped and forgotten, Magpie retreats to her notebook, dreaming up a place called Near.

Near is perfect- somewhere where her father never cheated, her mother never drank and Magpie's own life never derailed so suddenly. She imagines Near so completely, so fully, that she writes it into existence, right in her own backyard. It's a place where she can have anything she wants... even revenge."

My Rating: 2/5

This wasn't what I expected from this novel, which was my own fault. If I had done any research about this book, I would have read that there were elements of magical realism. For me, that is either a real hit or a real miss. I'm guessing you can see which one it was for me. This book felt long for me and just didn't have the momentum I was hoping for. I would be curious to read more work by the author, but if this is her normal writing style, I can't guarantee no DNFS.

Thanks for reading,

Sidny