Latest Read: Fair Coin

Here are the basics ...
Fair Coin (#1) by E.C. Myers
Publication date: Mar. 27, 2012
Publisher: Pyr
Category: Young Adult - Science Fiction
Source: Borrowed from library

Summary: An exciting adventure across parallel worlds! Ephraim discovers a strange coin that makes his wishes come true each time he flips it. His best friend becomes obsessed with the coin, and the world begins to change in unexpected ways. (Adapted amazon.com) 

My thoughts…

The good:  What if you found a coin that could grant wishes? That could change anything in your life. Undo any decision you've made. I don't know about you but I can think of a couple things I might've done differently. Maybe I would've chosen a different major but then I might not have met my best friends. Or maybe a new job but then.. actually, there's no buts on that note. A new job would be amazing. But I digress. This magical coin is EXACTLY what Ephraim Scott finds and he quickly learns that you really do have to be careful of what you wish for.

I thought the concept but more importantly, how the author executes this concept was so well-done.  Some of the science fiction books I've read lately had so much potential and great premises but when it came to carrying out those ideas? They fell flat. That was not the case here. It's clear a lot of thought went into the details of this world and the surprising twists along the way. I enjoyed watching everything unfold, especially through Ephraim's eyes. His voice was typical guy, someone I could imagine myself going to high school with. He's definitely not the most popular person and I envisioned him as being slightly geeky. But also nice, a good friend and someone who just wanted to get the girl. In other words, totally relatable. As he's making all these wishes, it brings about consequences but also more people into the story. Like his best friend Nathan and the girl he's been crushing on Jena. Even though it's a sci-fi heavy book, it makes you think about the little details that make a person unique to you and how maybe some things are just meant to be and you shouldn't mess with that.

(Some) reservations: As much as I did like the characters - I felt a bit distanced from them. I wanted more time in their heads and in their relationships. We're thrown into the action almost immediately and I wish certain things, particularly certain romances (yes plural), had taken longer to develop. Everything in general just happened so quickly.

Do I recommend?: It was definitely an entertaining read with interesting characters so if the premise appeals to you, I do recommend checking it out. There's also a sequel which I might look into later on. But this book ended on enough of a conclusion (yay no cliffhanger!) that I don't feel a particular rush to grab the next one just yet.

Happy reading!