delicate eternity logo
A haven for lovers of the written word
separate post

wtwwf

What: When the World Was Flat (and we were in love) by Ingrid Jonach

Who: Strange Chemistry

When: September 3rd 2013

How: A copy of this novel was provided by Strange Chemistry for review via Net Galley.

Looking back, I wonder if I had an inkling that my life was about to go from ordinary to extraordinary.

When sixteen-year-old Lillie Hart meets the gorgeous and mysterious Tom Windsor-Smith for the first time, it’s like fireworks — for her, anyway. Tom looks as if he would be more interested in watching paint dry; as if he is bored by her and by her small Nebraskan town in general.

But as Lillie begins to break down the walls of his seemingly impenetrable exterior, she starts to suspect that he holds the answers to her reoccurring nightmares and to the impossible memories which keep bubbling to the surface of her mind — memories of the two of them, together and in love.

When she at last learns the truth about their connection, Lillie discovers that Tom has been hiding an earth-shattering secret; a secret that is bigger — and much more terrifying and beautiful — than the both of them. She also discovers that once you finally understand that the world is round, there is no way to make it flat again.

An epic and deeply original sci-fi romance, taking inspiration from Albert Einstein’s theories and the world-bending wonder of true love itself.

4cats2Ingrid Jonach is a mastermind.

That’s the first thing that comes to mind after finishing When the World Was Flat last night. I mean, how does someone even come up with an idea as fantastical and crazy and amazing as this one? Only a mastermind could do it – hence the first statement at the beginning of this review. Jonach is a mastermind in her ability to weave this story. There’s simply no other way to put it.

From the moment I picked up When the World Was Flat, I was hooked. The writing style was the kind that just grabs you, and Lillie’s character voice was incredible.

I went into this book not remembering anything about what I had read from other reviews; or from the blurb for that matter. All I could remember was that it was a love story, and had something to do with Einstein. It was so much more than that. It was about a normal teenage girl, who is terrified of her recurring nightmares. A girl who falls for a boy, who she seems to know. A girl who you can relate to. A girl who seems real.

With sci-fi books, and fantasy books, sometimes everything is so out there that it really does feel like you’re reading a story. But with When the World Was Flat, it was not like that at all. Everything was so normal, except for this wonderful plot that Jonach created. Lillie had a strange relationship with her even stranger mother, she had two best friends, a bully at her high school. Normal things that people in real life have, and face on a daily basis. I loved feeling that this story was real, even though for the most part the plot was crazy surreal.

I have rarely come across a main character as interesting and unique as Lillie. She is a little strange, but that makes her even more wonderful. I adored every minute of reading her thoughts and feelings. They were so completely attune to what a teenage girl in her situation would feel. It was amazing.

I have to mention Tom. And the fact that he has a slightly Australian accent. Hello, ladies! I love Tom’s character. In fact, I loved every single character in this novel because Jonach wrote them with such precision I could see them so clearly in my mind. I could see the whole book playing out in my mind, like a movie. A truly awesome movie.

As you can probably tell already, I am in love with this book. I am so glad that the expiry on my Net Galley copy didn’t run out before I had the chance to read it, because I would have missed out on a truly amazing and wonderful young adult novel that is now one of my favourites. And Ingrid is such a nice person as well! We have even fan-girled over Supernatural together. That’s how awesome she is – she can write this superb novel and then fan-girl with me over Supernatural. Again, she is a mastermind. I cannot wait to read more from Ingrid, and I shall be impatiently waiting for a new novel!

© 2013, Chiara @ Books for a Delicate Eternity. All rights reserved.

Tagged with: / /
separate post
Posted on: November 4, 2013 • By: Chiara

10 Responses to Review: When the World Was Flat (and we were in love) by Ingrid Jonach

  1. The title caught my eye as well, not going to lie here! But this does sound like an interesting book, and if the author is a Supernatural fangirl… Count me in!

    I always love it when authors pay attention to the little details, like a character’s accent or their nervous habits. It just makes them seem so real and you can really tell how much the author cares about their book.

  2. Nara says:

    I seem to recall that I was actually really bored with this book up until this MASSIVE reveal near the end that just flipped everything upside down. All the tropes- instalove, stalking etc etc could be completely forgiven after the secret is revealed. So awesome.

    To be honest, I didn’t really like Lillie as much as you did (that weird habit she had of thinking everything in threes grated on my nerves), but I suppose she was interesting enough :)

    • The secret was massive, and awesome. It was so unique! I’m glad it was able to make you like the story more :)

      Haha, yes the three repeat thing. I thought that was kind of cool, to be honest. Some people have nervous ticks, and I guess that was hers. I love imperfect characters, and Lillie was definitely imperfect, so I was drawn to her.

      Thanks for stopping by, Nara!

  3. I might add this to my TBR list, the title is just so adorable! Even though it is kinda long,

  4. Well it’s very fortunate that you adored this book, and Ingrid does seem like a really nice person! I didn’t really feel this book as much as you did, because the science behind it confused me (or I just probably over analyzed it and found LOADS of plot holes to the theories. I blame my inner geek D:) Lillie was pretty interesting, and it was cool that it wasn’t instalove, but I dunno, something I can’t remember deterred me from appreciation :( You gotta admit though…. that is one heck of a coolbeans title!

    Great review Chiara :D

    • She is – which is awesome!
      Yeah, I was a little confused with the theory at times, but when I decided to just go with it, I was able to enjoy it a lot more.
      Aw, no. That’s disappointing :( I guess there’s always things that draw people in, and also deter people. There was just that SOMETHING in this novel that made me love it!
      I know, right! So epic.

      Thank you, lovely Jasmine! ^.^

  5. And I see you’re reading The Woken Gods!! Hmm I’m awaiting your thoughts on that one XD

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *