There Will Come A Time (Carrie Arcos) -- Book Review + GIVEAWAY!

 

"There Will Come A Time"

(Carrie Arcos)

Mark knows grief. Ever since the accident that killed his twin sister, Grace, the only time he feels at peace is when he visits the bridge on which she died. Comfort is fleeting, but it’s almost within reach when he’s standing on the wrong side of the suicide bars. Almost.

Grace’s best friend, Hanna, says she understands what he’s going through. But she doesn’t. She can’t. It’s not just the enormity of his loss. As her twin, Mark should have known Grace as well as he knows himself. Yet when he reads her journal, it’s as if he didn’t know her at all.

As a way to remember Grace, Hanna convinces Mark to complete Grace’s bucket list from her journal. Mark’s sadness, anger, and his growing feelings for Hannah threaten to overwhelm him. But Mark can’t back out. He made a promise to honor Grace—and it’s his one chance to set things right.

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I initially read this book without knowing that Mark is actually a half-Filipino character. And so when I figured that one out, it became an added bonus since even just by the first 2 to 3 pages, the book will already be able to get your attention--which I think is very important to make sure that one keeps on reading a story. The author was able to inject things about a Filipino community and some Filipino traditions without being O.A. or without making that the whole focus of the story.

THERE WILL COME A TIME is poignant, smart and creatively written. It's a story that has many layers to it. For one, it's a story about dealing with one's death. Mark was truly devastated by the sudden death of his twin sister, Grace. I think the author did really, really great in captivating the emotions that are needed to make this book effective. 

It's also a story about family. How one family tries to mend the broken pieces that were torn apart by one's death. It's great to see a non-stereotypical family where in the step-parent is not considered a nuisance and where in the step-parent is actually really nice instead of just pretending to be nice. It's great to read a story that would let you understand that while not all families are the same, it's not really a problem. It's also a story of how sometimes, you have no idea about what the people around you really think about and what they really feel. 

Then it's also about the lines between friendship and love. What makes this story realistic is the fact that teen feelings are really being discussed. How they could be naive or "crazy" sometimes, and how they choose to deal with the people in their lives.

But the most important aspect of this story, in my opinion, is that it's about forgiveness. More often than not, our lives are marred by the fact that we often find it hard to forgive. And oftentimes, it's ourselves that we need to forgive more than anyone or anything else, and yet, we fail to do so. That aspect of one's character is well-played in THERE WILL COME A TIME. 

Oh, and another thing about this book: I love it because I love lists and there's a lot of those in here. And in line with that, I'll create my own list...

THE THINGS I'D DO WHEN THERE ARE NO REPERCUSSIONS/CONSEQUENCES WHATSOEVER and JUST BECAUSE I COULD:

1. Go Sky-diving. I'm a scaredy-cat sometimes but why not? I've always had a thing about wanting to skydive ever since I could remember.

2. Walk around naked all the time. No, not a perv or whatever but is seriously just hate the heat so...

3. Have a huge, huge, room-like huge fridge full of foooooood. BECAUSE FOOD DUH

4. Travel the world and not come back to Manila for a long, long, long time.

So there. Read THERE WILL COME A TIME because you surely won't regret it.

***GIVEAWAY TIME!!!***

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