Moriah McStay

3.5 stars

I really liked how this book was made up of two different versions of a character's life; it was interesting to see where each of the characters fit into each narrative - that's ultimately what kept me reading.

There was some profanity, including Lord, Jesus, etc. used flippantly. There was also vulgar humor and brief sexual content, though nothing detailed.

The characters - especially the male ones - weren't exactly believable. But, what else could really be expected from a YA book?

Certainly not life-changing, but a fun read, just the same.… (mere)

I didn't really buy this book. I finished it because I wanted to know how the lives were reconciled, but was ultimately disappointed.

This book honestly could have been two separate books, except that without that premise there'd be nothing very interesting to keep anyone reading. I'm usually super excited about the idea of multiple perspectives and the idea that a single event can change a life, but I kept wondering while reading this what the point was.

I was perpetually having to remind myself which character Fi was and which character Fiona was and what roles the people in their lives played correspondingly. And I didn't care enough about either to have to do this. Fi was kind of obnoxious and two-dimensional, obsessed only with lacrosse, and Fiona was bland and unintriguing.

Really, the most interesting character in the book was Marcus, the boy Fiona begins dating, and even his premise isn't the most unique in YA right now.

Fiona's half-scarred face wasn't really described and I was unsure how extensive the damage from a childhood accident really was, but as she eventually gets surgery and a skin graft to fix the scarring, that didn't even play much of a role.

I found the plot to be predictable and didn't even feel excited when I guessed something correctly.

I was excited for this premise, but it fell completely flat for me.
… (mere)

This is a strange and wholly original debut from Moriah McStay. EVERYTHING THAT MAKES YOU tackles that question: Does one moment define you? Can a singular moment in time set you on an irreversible path? What happens if you miss that moment?
The story went on, and everything got even more connected and intertwined and complicated and messy the more I loved it. I love seeing both the similarities and differences between Fiona and Fi because they have the same people in their life, but at the same time, those people were different, and she was different. The way that she looked at the world was different... it was shaped by her mom treating her differently plus her brother not feeling responsible for scars on her face or just even the boy that she had a crush on being her best friend. Both versions of Fiona changed a lot in this one. They learned a lot about themselves and what they love as well as their identity. That's all of the people you love, how you love them, and I guess the face that you put on to the world. They both went through some hard things. They were totally different hard things, but it shaped him to be a powerful person, love deeply, and feel grief deeply.

I loved the fast pace and Moriah McStay's writing I know that I will read more of her books.… (mere)

An ambitious, inventive, and daring book. This is McStay’s first novel and I am impressed.

This is the story, or should I say stories, of Fiona, a teenager whose life seems destined to derail no matter what her choices. The author simultaneously tells two stories of Fiona’s life as if we are watching her live in parallel universes. In the first chapter Fiona is a young girl whose face has been horribly scarred in an accident. In the second chapter, we begin a different story where Fiona, Fi, escapes this accident only to eventually encounter a different misfortune.

The book explores how our choices, experiences, and friends affect the path we travel. Although the characters are similar for both Fiona and Fi, her interaction with them differs according to her experiences. At the core, however, Fiona and Fi are the same person. She is frustrated, angry, and heartbroken, but also resilient and brave.

The book requires focus in order to keep the separate lives comprehensible but it is worth the effort.… (mere)