Another great book by Susan May. The premise is not new (going back in time to prevent a tragedy) but she manages to give it a new twist, and she accomplishes to get us interested through wonderfully written characters.

It's easy to sympathise with Dawn and her anguish, her desperation. And yes, the emotional impact of the story makes it hard to read for moments, particularly if you're a mother yourself. My only complaint is that for moments it seems to slightly drag, but soon enough you are again immersed in the story and hurrying to the end.

A great read, the kind Ms May usually delivers.

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That answer is written across the pages of Back Again, by Susan May. Back Again is the story of Dawn, a mother who has a strange ability that shows up at the absolute worst of times. On one normal, regular day something terrible happens and she finds herself living the event over and over and over again.

But this tale is more than some dog day afternoon; Back Again carries determination and forgiveness- even a bit of redemption. All very good qualities to have in a novel, but was the story good? Yes.

The cogs on the cover look fab, but it didn't really take on the feel of the story to me. Good looking cover, but didn't put it all together for me, considering there were so many alternate possibilities for the story to travel. Anyway, the story was very good and emotional. To have to go through everything Dawn did, I'd have lost my mind.

Back Again was very deep and brooding at times. I found it a bit wordy at times, but nothing that hurt the story. I can say that the constant repetition was beginning to annoy me, but it was necessary for the story to finally come to it's ending. I wish there'd been more on Kylie's part. She seemed to bring more the to tale at the end, when I found out she was slightly experiencing what Dawn was going through. It was like, "Ooooo, I like that!" but then it was over. I don't know if Kylie even began to realize there was a lesson in there- other than saving a boy's life. But oh no, I"ve said too much! NO SPOILERS!

Now because I received this as an audiobook, I have to make a complaint: Anne Johnstonbrown. It's not that her voice was didn't match up or anything. She rendition of children vs teenagers and adults was awful! And then she read some portions of the narration in the child's voice! It was painful to deal with. If she was simply reading, she was fine, but those voices and not paying attention to the narration was a bummer for me. I almost switched to the ebook instead, but I did a lot of running that day. I needed the audio.

So all in all, I really enjoyed the tale. Bad narration, but good read. Check out Back Again while I move on to the next read!

*Post to hit my website soon: www.areneehunt.com ( )

Back Again by Susan May is a full length (379 pages) novel that I have been waiting to read. A long time ago I read a short story or novelette of the same name by the same author. In that story a mother named Dawn witnessed the death of her son Tommy in a horrible accident in which her son was hit by a car driven by Kylie, a recently unemployed cashier who was paying more attention to her phone than to her driving. Dawn would undoubtedly grieve for a long time. But she didn’t. Only ten days after Tommy’s death, Dawn returned to the day of her son’s death and relived it. After seeing it again she lived for another ten days only to be returned again to the death scene. She was in a time never-ending time loop. She believed it to be never-ending and if she had to choose, she preferred to spend time with her son even though she knew the grim outcome.

In this novel, she has made the return trip in time hundreds of times. She is conscious of her actions and reasons that if she can change anything, no matter how minor, she can alter all subsequent effects. If this were a movie it would be The Butterfly Effect. Most of the novel deals with Dawn’s attempts to make any changes that will allow her son to live and for both of them to escape the time loop. It might interest a writer to read the novelette then this novel and make comparisons. The reader will see the phrase “fleshing out a story” as it is implemented.

In this longer story, we learn that Dawn was born with a “gift” that allows her to change events. She only has to say “If only I had …. (done this).” After saying this or, as she gets older, thinking it, Dawn “slips” in time back to a time preceding an unfortunate event. In her younger life, she had been able to see alternate possibilities appear as if in a set of folders. Dawn had been able to choose an alternate reality, return to it, and avert a disaster. She had been able to save her sister Anna, who had originally died in a fall on one of their adventures. Now it was Anna’s turn to help her get through Tommy’s death.

Dawn was not always successful in choosing and applying alternate realities that appeared to her. There was her time slip as a teenager when she had witnessed the brutal death of a dog in a public park. Despite going into a fugue state and disappearing from reality for seven days, the dog had died. Dawn could not account for her failure. Closer to the present time after her divorce and while raising Tommy, she had slipped in time to an event where she had witnessed and thought she caused, an accident where a woman’s daughter died. When she returned to real time, she could find no evidence the accident had occurred. She had altered events, but she didn’t know how.

But earlier actions were just a practice run for this one. What could she do to get her son back? The novel explores all the ways that Dawn tries to manipulate time to arrive at a fairer outcome. She won’t be able to do it by herself. She might need the help of Kylie, the Goth girl who had killed Tommy.

This is a fascinating and fast read. The novelette with this name was not intended as a teaser but it guaranteed that I would read further works by Susan May. ( )

This is the first book that I have read about time travel. The main character Dawn had to keep repeating her sons death over and over. Can she change the outcome? Will she live in this horrible loop in time forever? This is an exciting adventure of a read. The one thing that keep me from giving it the fifth star was that the ending could have been better. What really did happen at the end?
( I recieved this book from Susan May for a honest review) ( )

Back Again by Susan May

I received this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is the second book I have read by author Susan May and definitely not my last. I am thrilled to have found her and doubly thrilled that she has graciously sent me a copy of this book. She did not ask for a review in exchange but because I want others to start reading her I am reviewing this book.
Have you ever said to yourself “if only”? If only I could not have done that. If only that had not happened. If only I could change…. Fill in the blank but be careful what you wish for. In Back Again Dawn finds herself reliving an event in her life over and over again. But for what? Will she be able to change the events of that horrific day? You will have to read the story to find out as I am not going to tell you.
I will tell you that reading Back Again is worth your time. It will make you question events in your life. It will make you wonder why some things happen the way they do. Are they meant to be? In Judaism there is a word “b’shert” meaning meant to be. It is one way of explaining painful events in one’s life. But for Dawn was her sister meant to die? Was her son meant to die? Was she meant to say “If only…” and change the course of events in their lives and in hers?
Susan May is an excellent writer. From the very beginning of her story she grabs the reader. She immediately makes you want to keep going to find out what is going to happen next. While in this book I feel she brings Dawn back too often; she could have accomplished the same message with a few less returns, she gets her message across clearly and strongly.
Read Back Again. You will not be disappointed. And if you haven’t read anything else by Susan May go read Deadly Messengers…a must read! ( )