The Other Valley

A lovely fine jewel box of a book. Tons of world building and quiet mystery, and a melancholy tone reminiscent of a ruminating game of some sort.

I don't know if I'll enjoy this more reading with my eyes but as an audiobook I'm not at all into it. 

What a wasted premise. This really felt more like a general fiction/coming of age drama wrapped up in a vaguely sci-fi trenchcoat. I was hoping for something more mysterious and crazy, what with the depiction of the different timeline valleys as they are, but we get none of that. Meh.

A large chunk of this book is spent in Odile's school years, where she's struggling to make friends and figure out where she fits into the larger society. Her mom is pushing her to do one thing, apply for the Conseil apprenticeship where she'd be responsible for vetting requests from residents to visit the other valleys in other timelines for closure reasons, but she's not entirely sure she wants to do that. Her friend Edme, too, wants to become a violinist, but his parents want him to do something more practical. There's some relational development, and just as things start to build up between Edme and Odile, a tragic accident takes his life. His death affects Odile and their other friends greatly, and the rest of the book is about the drastically different path her life takes.

I thought the time travel premise was interesting, but underused in the book. Most of what happens here, save the last 10-20% or so, could have happened in basically any other coming of age drama with some aspects changed. There's no mystery here, there's no intrigue, there's no thriller really, just a friend group coming to terms with the death of one of their own. Once I realized that none of this different valley stuff was going to be explored in any meaningful way, I kind of got bored with the book.

I also thought that Odile as a character was flat and boring. I can't tell if that's by intent (there's hints dropped that she's neurodivergent in some way, but it's never expressly stated) or by poor writing, but she really felt removed and distant from everything that was happening, even stuff happening directly to her. But it made even the emotional parts of the book land kind of flat, because I honestly didn't know if Odile even cared.

I kind of also didn't like the way the ending was handled. (Ending spoilers here) When Odile is meeting with Evrette at the very end of the book, I hated how the threat of unmaking yourself/others was handwaved away as just not mattering sometimes, and that they simplify things to encourage people to comply. It effectively removed any consequences of Odile's actions in saving Edme.

Finally, I listened to the audiobook, but from reading the reviews here, it sounds like the author didn't use any sort of dialogue punctuation, which I absolutely hate. Had I not listened to the book, where it's clear who's speaking when, I would definitely have put this down.

Just a mediocre book. I wasn't on board with the relational drama, and wanted more of the sci-fi, I think.

4.5

Fascinating premise, but so boring.

Warning: Don't read The Other Valley if you're expecting a Sandra Bullock-Keanu Reeves The Lake House time slip/time travel romance. The book blurb description is misleading, suggesting far more of a love story than what is actually on the pages - a bleak, disturbing dystopia-adjacent novel, whose narrator is subject to personal and professional humiliation, bullying and sexual harassment. I'm not even sure I understand the ending, but I don't read a lot of speculative fiction so readers who are familiar with the genre will likely get it right away.

Ugh, definitely not my cup of tea. I need to read something light and fluffy now.

Rating: 2.72 leaves out of 5-Characters: 3/5 -Cover: 4/5-Story: 2.75/5-Writing: 2/5Genre: Fantasy, LitFic, Magic Realism, Time Travel-Fantasy: 4/5-LitFic: 1/5-Magic Realism: 1/5-Time Travel: 4/5Type: EbookWorth?: EhHated Disliked Meh It Was Okay Liked Really Liked LovedWant to thank Netgalley and publishers for giving me the chance to read this book.Where to even start? The good? I liked the concept of the story. The going to the past and present just by something simple. There were some sad parts but the writing style ruined a good bit for me, on top the whole “love” part. It needed some clean up, in my opinion. I don't know why Scott thought that writing style was the best.

Odile is a 16 year old girl living in a valley surrounded on either side by identical valleys - except the valley to the west is 20 years in the past, and the one to the east is 20 years in the future. She competes for a seat on the Conseil, a privileged position that controls the strictly regulated travel between valleys.

One day Odile recognizes two Visitors as the future parents of her friend Edme. Approval for visitors from the future town is rare unless to visit a dead loved one, signaling trouble for Edme, with whom Odile has been growing closer. Keeping this secret is crucial for her future and the timeline itself. But as her feelings for Edme grow stronger, can she watch and do nothing?

This debut novel seamlessly blends speculative fiction and philosophical exploration. Part science fiction, part coming-of-age story, it asks you: how far you would go to save someone you love? Initially young and impressionable, Odile grapples with identity, belonging, and the nuances of relationships, transforming into a woman burdened by her past, confronting the repercussions of her actions.

The prose is gorgeous and lyrical and a pure joy to read. My only criticism is that the author doesn't use quotation marks when characters speak, which initially made it challenging to read.

As I've gotten older, stories about memory, consequences, time and regret resonate more deeply. Anyone who has experienced loss will relate to Odile's story. I lost my mother to cancer 13 years ago, and what wouldn't I do to see her one more time? What if I could change her fate at the expense of someone else? This novel raises profound questions about morality, right vs wrong, and the essence of existence.

I think this book is a beautiful and poignant read, establishing Howard as an author to watch. I promise I'll be thinking about this book for a long time to come.

Thank you to NetGalley, Simon & Schuster Canada, and Atria Books for the ARC of this title...full review to come closer to the publication date.

This is a quiet gem of a novel. Scott Alexander Howard takes a unique premise and executes it beautifully – never relying too heavily on his fantastical plot device to convey young Odile's heartfelt story.

I loved the exploration of the moral and practical reasons a citizen should and should not be allowed to visit their neighboring valley to the east (20 years into their future) and to the west (20 years into their past). A more scrupulous reader might uncover some time travel plot holes here that I tried not to think too hard about – but if you suspend your disbelief and take the story at face value, you'll find a thought-provoking and wistful tale that I, for one, greatly enjoyed.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

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