In
a World Just Right
by Jen Brooks
Release
Date: 04/28/15
Simon & Schuster Book for Your Readers
Simon & Schuster Book for Your Readers
432
pages
Summary
from Goodreads:
Imagination takes on new meaning for a uniquely talented teen in this debut novel that is a breathtaking blend of contemporary, fantasy, and romance.
Sometimes Jonathan Aubrey wishes he could just disappear. And as luck—or fate—would have it, he can. Ever since coming out of a coma as a kid, he has been able to create alternate worlds. Worlds where he is a superhero, or a ladies’ man, or simply a better version of himself. That’s the world he’s been escaping to most since sophomore year, a world where he has everything he doesn’t have in real life: friends, a place of honor on the track team, passing grades, and most importantly, Kylie Simms as his girlfriend.
But when Jonathan confuses his worlds senior year and tries to kiss the real Kylie Simms, everything unravels. The real Kylie actually notices Jonathan…and begins obsessing over him. The fantasy version of Kylie struggles to love Jonathan as she was created to do, and the consequences are disastrous. As his worlds collide, Jonathan must confront the truth of his power and figure out where he actually belongs—before he loses both Kylies forever.
Imagination takes on new meaning for a uniquely talented teen in this debut novel that is a breathtaking blend of contemporary, fantasy, and romance.
Sometimes Jonathan Aubrey wishes he could just disappear. And as luck—or fate—would have it, he can. Ever since coming out of a coma as a kid, he has been able to create alternate worlds. Worlds where he is a superhero, or a ladies’ man, or simply a better version of himself. That’s the world he’s been escaping to most since sophomore year, a world where he has everything he doesn’t have in real life: friends, a place of honor on the track team, passing grades, and most importantly, Kylie Simms as his girlfriend.
But when Jonathan confuses his worlds senior year and tries to kiss the real Kylie Simms, everything unravels. The real Kylie actually notices Jonathan…and begins obsessing over him. The fantasy version of Kylie struggles to love Jonathan as she was created to do, and the consequences are disastrous. As his worlds collide, Jonathan must confront the truth of his power and figure out where he actually belongs—before he loses both Kylies forever.
Excerpt
Step one: Squeeze eyes closed.
Step two: Picture world. (That would
be the real world this time.)
Step three: Open eyes.
That’s all there is to it.
I’m standing perfectly still in the
woods behind Pennington High School, sensing the world around me. Nothing seems
out of place. Relief carries away my tension like rain washing down a roof.
Whatever was worrying me last night has passed.
I trudge up a path through the woods to
the school. Because my house is pretty far away, there wasn’t enough time to walk
here and still get to class by the bell, so my sacrifice for a few hours
earlier with Kylie is a shower at school.
The back door is always open in the
morning, so I sneak inside, grab stuff from my gym locker, and clean up. My
shampoo’s not coconutty or pineappley, but it squelches any thoughts my scalp
might have about starting a dandruff habit. I wore (mostly) clean jeans to
Kylie’s last night, so they’re good to go again today, and the T-shirt I pull
out of my backpack smells much better than the one I slept in. Okay. Ready to
face another day.
I push open the locker room door as
someone else yanks from the outside. There’s a second of shock before I
recognize the other guy and try to lighten things with a “Hey, Mark,” but he
brushes past me like I’m not there. Not even a grunt of acknowledgment from the
kid voted this year’s class chatterbox.
This real-world invisible treatment,
after so many years, has lost its sting. The locker room door shuts behind me,
sealing me in the empty hallway. I shortcut to my E-Hall locker through the
weight room, and a wall of mirrors announces that I, Jonathan Aubrey, do in
fact exist. I create a reflection in a real mirror in the real world, so I can
only assume I’m not actually invisible.
Granted, invisibility would be a
great superpower to have, but world-making will have to do, since it’s the
power I got.
About
the Author
Jen
has a habit of being deeply moved by profound ideas, and her writing reflects
her interest in exploring human goodness, relationships, and the feeling of
being a part of something greater than oneself. She loves the science
fiction and fantasy genres because of their dazzling possibilities for
portraying characters and ideas. She credits her undergraduate experience
at Dartmouth College, her MFA at Seton Hill University, and her fourteen years
of English teaching with shaping her writing. She is grateful to her
family, friends, and students for inspiring her to write.
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