When Kennedy Rhodes declines her acceptance into Windsor Academy to attend public school with her boyfriend, she never dreams she will regret her decision. Now editor-in-chief of the school newspaper, she dreams of a career in journalism and going to Columbia University. Then she catches her boyfriend kissing her best friend and wonders what life would be like if she made a different decision. The next day she visits Windsor Academy to see if she can transfers midyear. She slips and falls, hits her head, and wakes up in a different world where she not only attends, but is the most popular girl at Windsor Academy . But as she navigates this new world, she begins to see that every decision comes with a price.

Kennedy was an intense character. I understand wondering what your life would be like if you'd made another decision. I guess I don't really understand constantly obsessing about your life being different. She seemed a little self-centered and judgmental. This made it nice to see her experience the downfalls of her not so perfect life. This was a light-hearted and quick read.

I really liked the story’s concept and I stand by that statement. The idea of choices leading you on multiple pathways is not an old one, but one that used a lot in today’s media. But at the end of it all, right or wrong, Kennedy learns that people have to live with their choices and make the most of it.

I also liked how this book explores the other characters in relation to Kennedy. For instance, although Laney isn’t a main character or seen often in this book, In Some Other Life does revolve around Kennedy’s crumbling relationship with her best friend, spurring her into action and the plot of this book. And all the while, Kennedy is given a chance to reexamine her friendship and realize a couple of things about Laney. Other than these two, there are a whole bunch of characters enriching the book and making it so much more enjoyable!

Well, that’s all I have to say about In Some Other Life by Jessica Brody. If you like a lot of contemporary with a bit of scifi, then this is the book for you! Now I really want to read Jessica Brody’s other books, like A Week of Mondays!

I really wanted to like this book, but unfortunately I found it to be just okay. The book just didn't seem to hold my attention as much as I would have liked especially because it seemed really interesting. This book is all about choices and how they affected not only Kennedy’s life, but those around her. I liked Kennedy well enough, but found her decision to decline the school she really wanted to go to for a boy a little silly! I was glad for her growth throughout the book and found her to be more relatable as the book went on. I also really wanted more of Dylan and her brother! The interactions with her brother were sweet, funny, and just what you would expect of siblings. Overall, this book was not as good as I had hoped, but it did have its moments that really stood out and made me think about the what-ifs in life.

Kennedy Rhoades, high school newspaper editor, has many hopes and dreams. Some she has pinned on her boyfriend Austin, but her two biggest dreams are to attend the prestigious private school in her town and then attend Columbia University upon her graduation. After a strange chain of events, Kennedy is able to see her life as a private school student. She is again faced with choices as she strives to attain her goals while not crushing the ones of those around her. I'm thankful to the editor and NetGalley for the opportunity to be an early reader in exchange for a fair and honest review.

4 Fluffy Stars- thanks to NetGalley for the ARC! Is this book literary genius? No. Is it fun? YES. Does it sound like every overachieving teen I know? YES!
Everyone has made a decision that they look back on and wonder if their life had been different if they decided to make a different choice. So Avery made a decision not to go to prep school, choosing public high school instead. It didn't just change her life, but all her friends and family.

DNF at 31%

I kinda liked the concept of this book, but the characters was just infuriating and very sexist, being horrified at the fact that she became a "girly girl" in her other life, like it was a bad thing (along with the fact that she is obviously too good for make up, because it's "fake and misleading"). Anyway, I could keep reading this book but I don't want to spend my time reading some sexist lines.

Jessica Brody is the perfect YA voice. This book is a great story that shows how decisions affect everyone involved. It shows sacrifice, dedication, weariness. Kennedy is a little whiny at times, but the other characters help the story along, and you don't get too frustrated with her. I think many times growing up, when we are given decisions to make ourselves, we all have the "what if?" Moment. This is a great lesson for middle school and high school students to learn and experience with a great story line. Freaky Friday meets Gilmore Girls.

Kennedy "The Closer" Rhodes made a decision just over three years ago that put her on course to resurrect the school newspaper, become editor-in-chief, win prestigious awards, and set her course to Columbia University to major in Journalism.

That decision was essentially choosing a guy over the most coveted spot in Windsor Academy, a prep school that has an 89% acceptance rate to Ivy League schools. For the last three years, she's never regretted her decision. She's got a fantastic best friend, a great boyfriend, and an amazing high school journalism career.

Until she catches her best friend and her boyfriend making out.

Now she wonders about her decision. She wonders if things would be better if she'd chosen the school instead.

Then she falls... literally.

When she wakes, she's now Kennedy "The Crusher" Rhodes, who crushes at everything she does. She's top of her class at Windsor Academy. She never worked the school paper. She never dated that guy. She never lost her best friend.

Everything is similar, but different. Now Kennedy has the chance to redeem her choice from three years before and be the girl she's always wondered if she could be. But it looks like The Crusher has a lot more secrets and a lot to hide.

Final thoughts: Cotton candy "Sliding Doors" type of book. Flowed pretty well, but VERY predictable. That predictability doesn't make it an impossible read, but it can get frustrating when the lead can't see what is so obvious to the reader.

Rating: 3/5

ARC provided by NetGalley

I love Jessica Brody. This was another good book. The only thing I struggled with is how predictable it was. I felt like I knew what was going to happen before it happened. Still, a good story.

Jessica Brody also wrote A Week of Mondays, which is a 2017 Lone Star novel, which is why I asked to read this novel. The committee, including me, chose her novel for the list because it was fun and interesting. I wanted to read something else by her. This novel’s release date is August 8, 2017.

Kennedy Rhodes is driven--she knows exactly who she is and where she is going in life. She will be a journalist after attending Columbia University. A few years ago, she had an opportunity to go to the school of her dreams, the Windsor Academy but chose to stay at her public school because she wanted to stay with her boyfriend. Life has been great--she started a newspaper, the Southwest Star, for Southwest High that is award-winning, she still has her boyfriend, she has a best friend who supports her with everything, and she has a loving family. Despite these wonderful parts of her life, Kennedy cannot stop thinking about Windsor Academy, even following a couple of the popular girls on a social media platform. Had she chosen Windsor, she would be a shoe-in for Columbia!

Everything changes when she finds her best friend kissing her boyfriend. Oddly, she’s not upset with them; she’s more upset that she made the wrong choice. She should have attended Windsor and lived the better life. Low and behold, she falls, hits her head, and awakens to a parallel universe where she did choose Windsor Academy. She’s now the best friend of one of the most popular girls at the school and Kennedy is known as “The Crusher” because she crushes everything she attempts. She ranked #1. This is the life Kennedy was meant to live. It looks great, but is this life really better? As Kennedy navigates this new world, she discovers the costs that choices bring.

I thought there was a great lesson--just like in her other novel--about life. We deal with the choices we make and try to hold on to the identity we have for ourselves--hopefully, an honest identity--and hold on to relationships because we treat people well. Her best friend was really too good to be true, and her boyfriend had no development. Neither of those drawbacks are particularly important because the novel is focused squarely on Kennedy. No one else truly matters because this novel is her transformation. I did like her family, especially her brother. Overall, I enjoyed the novel; if you liked A Week of Mondays, definitely read this novel because you will like it as well. If you haven’t read Ms. Brody before, give her a try.

In Some Other Life by Jessica Brody, Brody nails the "what if" scenario that plagues many. Kennedy Rhodes thought she had it all, but when two of her closest friends betray her, she's forced to reconsider the choices that led her to the moment it all falls apart. Desperate to rewrite her story, Kennedy rushes over to Windsor Academy, an elite private school she chose to decline acceptance and convince the Dean to allow her to attend. A tumble down the stairs renders Kennedy a whole new life, the life she might have had if she'd accepted the slot at Windsor. "Parallel Universe" theory aside, this realistic portrayal of teenage life and the old adage "the grass is always greener" is put to the test. With the addition of sassy and intriguing characters, this is a must purchase for your YA collection!

In Some Other Life by Jessica Brody is such a fun read! I loved how the author imagined Kennedy's two lives/alternate universes. Senior Kennedy Rhodes is a super high-achiever in a not-so-wealthy public school who could have attended the prestigious private school, but chose not to because of her boyfriend. Suddenly she seriously regrets her decision, and after falling and hitting her head, she "wakes up" as a student at the private academy. But is this other life really all that she imagined? And how do Kennedy's choices affect those around her, especially her parents and best friends? Kennedy's emotional growth is believable and keeps the story moving. You'll be rooting for Kennedy and hoping she can figure out how to live her best life in whatever universe she ends up in.

Kennedy Rhodes is convinced she is on the wrong path; this idea is reaffirmed when she catches her boyfriend (a boy she gave up going to a very accomplished school for) and her best friend kissing. Trying to decide if she can salvage her life, Kennedy slips on some stairs and wakes up in an universe where she has attended the school of her dreams for the last three years. Thrilled to be living the life that she deserves, Kennedy tries to overlook how different her family, friends and herself are in this new universe. A fresh, funny and touching take on the idea of the could haves in you life if you had only chosen differently.

I really enjoyed reading a book that did not have horrible parents and a disruptive home life. This was a good book with the added twist of the multiple universes. I really could not wait to finish this just to see what was going to happen with the mail character.

I think this will resonate with a lot of teen readers, particularly the overachievers. It's really easy to get caught up in the pressure to succeed. Kennedy, at one point, regrets a decision she made as a 14 year old, which changed the course of her life. However, moving that line a mere four years later can still be incredibly stressful. I think a lot of teens do feel that pressure to plan out their lives and in some cases it can lead to extreme measures (cheating, drug abuse, etc.). I liked that while Kennedy's decisions had consequences, the book showed how two different choices could lead to the same outcome.

While some plot elements were predictable, I thought the book was fun.