One Past Midnight - Hardcover

Shirvington, Jessica

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0802737021 ISBN 13: 9780802737021

Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Childrens, 2014

Synopsis

Sabine isn't like anyone else. For as long as she can remember, she's had two lives. Every twenty-four hours she ‘Shifts', living each day twice. In one life, Sabine has everything: popular friends, expensive clothes, perfect grades, and the guy everyone wants. In the other, Sabine's family struggles with finances, and she and her friends are considered rebels. But then she meets Ethan. He's gorgeous, challenging, and he makes her feel like no one ever has before.

All Sabine really wants is the chance to live one life. When it seems like this might finally be possible, Sabine begins a series of dangerous experiments to achieve her goal. But is she willing to risk everything―including the one person who might actually believe her?

About this title

About the Author

Jessica Shirvington is the author of Embrace and Entice. She lives in Sydney with her husband of ten years, FOXTEL presenter and former Olympic sprinter Matt Shirvington, and their two daughters.
www.jessicashirvington.com

Reviews

Gr 8 Up—Sabine has everything: the perfect house, the perfect friends, the perfect car. Everything is exactly as it should be for the 18-year-old queen bee reigning supreme in her wealthy Boston suburb. However, every night at midnight, she Shifts to her other life where she has nothing: an increasingly difficult family life, hard relationships with peers, an unrewarding after school job in an as-yet-to-be gentrified Boston suburb. Sabine has two lives—living each day twice—and has kept it a secret for as long as she can remember. That is, until she meets Ethan. By developing a rich and nuanced mythology of Sabine's experience, Shirvington invites readers to consider what it means to struggle with the social pressures of being a teenager. The short, action-packed chapters move readers swiftly from day to day and life to life. The story is fresh and focused and would be a welcome addition. A complex and compelling tale.—Pete Smith, Pioneer Valley Performing Arts CPS, South Hadley, MA

What if you had to choose between the perfect guy and the perfect life? Every night at midnight, Sabine “shifts,” getting pulled endlessly back and forth between two parallel but very different lives. One is defined by struggle: her parents work long hours to make ends meet, and Sabine’s expectations of life are low. The other is defined by privilege: she drives an Audi and is starting Harvard in the fall. Exhausted by the constant stress of living an unwanted double life, Sabine begins a dangerous experiment, seeking a way to stop shifting. Just when it appears that she has found a solution, she meets Ethan, and choosing between lives suddenly becomes impossible. This psychological mystery will hook readers with its compelling protagonist and philosophical questions. Don’t get caught up in the mechanics of shifting; it exists only as a point from which teens can explore classic themes of choice, responsibility, and self-actualization. This is perfect for readers who like to ponder life’s deeper questions, and the romance adds a nice spark. Grades 9-12. --Summer Hayes

Edition details

• Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Childrens
• Publication date: 2014
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0802737021
• ISBN 13: 9780802737021
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 352