If you could turn back the clock, would you choose a different life?
Ben’s always loved the month of December, but this year, with his relationship with Daphne on the rocks, it’s missing its usual magic. And then his old friend Alice gets back in touch. Ben’s always thought of Alice as the one that got away, and he can’t help but wonder: what if he’d done things differently all those years ago?
But as soon as that thought arose, I swept it away. That’s not how I’ll end up. I just know it. I’ve spent too long drifting, allowing myself to be a passenger in my own life, blaming other people for the mistakes I make. It’s not Daff’s fault or Alice’s fault or my dad’s fault that I screwed up; it’s mine. I’m the one in control here. I need to remember that. If you don’t like your life, you can change it.
He never imagines he might get to find out… but when a stranger sells Ben a mysterious watch one winter’s night, he’s astonished to wake up the next morning on 5th December 2005: the day he first kissed Daphne, leaving Alice behind.
Now Ben must make the biggest decision of his life, all over again. But this time around, will he finally find the courage to follow his heart?
All About Us is a love story for anyone who’s ever wondered about what might have been. Perfect for fans of One Day and Me Before You, it’s a novel of heartbreak and loss, friendship and hope – and how the choices we make throughout our lives will shape our destiny.
Tom Ellen is the co-author of three critically acclaimed Young Adult novels: Lobsters (which was shortlisted for The Bookseller’s inaugural YA Book Prize), Never Evers and Freshers. His books have been widely translated and are published in 15 countries. He is a regular contributor to Viz magazine, and as a journalist he has written for Cosmopolitan, Empire, Evening Standard Magazine, Glamour, NME, ShortList, Time Out, Vice and many more. All About Us is his debut adult novel. Tom lives in Paris.
This book, based on a Christmas Carol, was well written and an interesting concept, what if you could go back in time and change your decisions, listen to the little things you’ve missed and see what others really said. What if you got to spend one more day with your late mother? What if you made a different choice today, what would your future look like and how would you feel?
Time-travel isn’t really my thing and if I realised before I started reading, I probably wouldn’t have chosen it but overall, I enjoyed it and was glad to have read it. A romance written by a male author is also a massive change to the norm so was worth reading if only for that and he’s done a great job with it too.
However, for me it felt a bit of a struggle at times, there were times when I wondered if we all would want to go through this, but I really don’t think I would. Ben feels insecure and bored with his relationship and I felt that he had learnt a lot through the book and came out a better person for it but the ending was a bit too “happily ever after for me”, his wife, Daphne was a bit too understanding and, although the story wasn’t about her, it would have been nice to hear more about her and how things had been for her.
It was a good lesson in being thankful for what you have, for the need to talk to others and share your thoughts and feelings and for that most of all I think it’s worthwhile reading for many people.
Thank you to Net Galley, the Publisher and the Author for a free advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
| Title | All About Us |
| Author | Tom Ellen |
| Series | N/A |
| Format | eARC |
| Page Count | 400 Pages |
| Genre | Romantic Comedy |
| Publisher | HQ |
| Release Date | 15th October 2020 |
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