Groundhog Day Meets Final Destination. This was an interesting take on the time loop/ premonition concept of those two franchises in that as more of a women’s fiction take (and book form to boot), we get a more drama-based view of the idea rather than comedic or thriller based. The first time Mia dies is gut-wrenching, and the final pages of the book get back to that in their own way, but in between we get a view of her dying so many times it has an effect akin to the multiple-death montage of Tom Cruise in Edge of Tomorrow/ Live Die Repeat. So obviously with so many pop culture references here (maybe I could even throw in another one in that I kept thinking early on that this would be a Family Man-esque “glimpse” scenario), I thoroughly enjoy this particular trope, and Fenton and Steinkle did it true justice in this book. One of the better executed takes on it I’ve ever seen, perhaps because of the nature of the medium we’re able to get inside the main character’s head a bit more explicitly, Very much recommended.
This review of How To Save A Life by Liz Fenton and Lisa Steinkle was originally written on July 7, 2020.