An interesting premise for a book for when you feel stuck in life. The story dragged in some places and the main character wasn’t always likeable but overall an interesting read.

I wanted a little bit more from this book. I’m not quite sure what I needed but I loved the premise of this story!
I can relate on almost every bullet point but I just didn’t find the story as gripping as I wanted it. Maybe it was too relatable. LOL

Olivia Strauss Is Running Out of Time by Angela Brown is a really interesting novel. When Olivia is nearing her 40th birthday and simultaneously finds out her expected date of death, her life is out into a tailspin and she has a bucket list to pursue suddenly. This book was not what I expected but I absolutely adored it. The themes of life, grief, and friendship are so beautifully woven in this book. I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher with no obligations. These opinions are entirely my own.

Great story, fun plot, and easy to read. I really liked the book! I would recommend it to others looking for an easy novel to enjoy.

I liked the premise of Olivia Strauss is Running Out of Time. I did find some parts a bit predictable and I really thought Olivia could have had more character growth at the end! I found this to be a quick read and it was enjoyable. Fairly good beach read for me that's not romance focused.

We all get to that point in our lives where we wonder, how much time do I have left.. what have I done and what should I be doing.
The layout of the story was cute, but it dragged a little bit for me.

I like the concept of this book but I felt like the character was not relatable or likeable in anyway. Felt that the character was too self-absorbed and not realistic. Made this a difficult reading experience when the character is not likeable. Also felt the beginning of the book was slow and dragging and that made it difficult to want to keep reading.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC of this book. This was a special book and I enjoyed it! What would you do if you found out if you only had one year to live? That's the premise. I loved how she changed her life in small increments. This was in a way an uplifting read.

I enjoyed the book, but wasn't wowed by it. I thought the premise was good, but I thought they writing could've been a bit better to really make it great.

In Angela Brown's captivating debut novel, "Olivia Strauss Is Running Out of Time," a woman on the cusp of her 39th birthday finds herself reevaluating her priorities after receiving an unusual birthday gift.

Olivia Strauss's journey into her late thirties is marked by the realization that her long-held aspirations, such as reigniting her passion for poetry and reconnecting with her best friend Marian in the city, continually take a backseat to the demands of daily life nurturing her young son and fulfilling her role as a teacher at the local high school. However, a visit to a spa offering genetic tests that predict one's lifespan forces Olivia to confront the brevity of her existence, prompting her to confront the poignant question: If time were suddenly limited, what would she change?

Brown skillfully weaves elements of contemporary midlife crisis with a touch of speculative fiction, blurring the lines between reality and imagination. The narrative is imbued with mystery and drama, while the characters grapple with self-discovery amidst life's complexities. Olivia's relationships with her husband Andrew and son Tommy are portrayed with warmth and depth, subverting the clichéd trope of unfulfilled women in their forties. Flashbacks to Olivia's college days juxtaposed with her present circumstances add depth to her character and highlight the nuances of her friendship with Marian. While some plot twists may feel slightly contrived, the novel's overall impact remains profound and resonant, serving as a poignant exploration of self-discovery and the pursuit of fulfillment in the face of uncertainty.

This was such a great book!

What would you do if after a ''medical exam'' you realize you will die in a year? That's the whole plot of this book. The changes Olivia makes to her lifestyle because of this start as little things. Even if it will take lots of time to make things better, she starts small... and the result is impressive.

I really enjoyed reading this book. The writing style made it easier even in the harder parts. I will love to read more from you in the future.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book.

I could appreciate what this book was trying to do, but ultimately it didn’t land. I was interested enough to keep reading, however I couldn’t wait for it to end. I did have an affinity for the side characters - that was well done. Ultimately, I just wanted Olivia to land the plane.

Title: Olivia Strauss is Running Out of Time
Author: Angela Brown
Publisher: Little A
Pub date: 01/01/2024

Olivia set aside her career for her marriage and her son. Now, she’s turning 39 and wondering if her dreams to be something other than a mother and wife are unattainable. At her age, what can she still attain?

For her birthday, her friend Marian, gives her a gift that sends her spiraling down a rabbit hole. Marian always pushed Olivia out of her comfort zone but, has she gone to far this time?

Parts of this book will resonate with those who have put their career on hold and have reached a time in their life when they reflect on what could and couldn’t be. Her anxiety is felt throughout the story. You might even become a little retrospective yourself. While even Olivia sees herself as selfish, her selfishness creates some good drama.

This is also a story of friendships and how they impact us. As she struggles, she sees the people around her a little differently. If her story touches you, you may just find yourself seeing those around you a little differently too.

Thank you #NetGalley and #LittleA for the opportunity to read this moving story.

Thank you to NetGalley and Little A for the ARC of Olivia Strauss is Running Out of Time by Angela Brown.

This was a heart warming story of friendship and relationships, and growing as an individual. This story looks at the question many of us probably think about at some point or another, what if I knew how long I had left. Would you really want to know? What if you were t sure it was accurate? Or if you only knew the date but not how? These are all pieces that are explored in the book as Liv thinks she is running out time quite literally and how she wants to live differently. Ultimately we see how this impacts her marriage and her friendship with her best friend. I found this to be a bit of a tear jerker towards the end. Enjoyed this one, felt like some of the disagreements between characters was a bit repetitive.

At 39, Olivia feels like she is indeed running out of time. A fun birthday spent with her friend Marian turns a bit weird when they undertake a genetic test to determine their 'death date', and it just gets weirder from there. I was intrigued by the premise, and I could identify with feeling like Olivia does. I did find that the relationship between the two friends came across as a little strange, and the character of Olivia was a little annoying and hard to sympathise with. An interesting read overall.

Thanks to Netgalley and Little A for the ARC.

Angela Brown was “running out of time” to get my attention and move this story forward. This storyline tested my patience and was quite repetitive. How many times were we expected to believe that she could realistically run into Poppy? Were we expected to continue to care about the test results for the entire story? The ending was good and somewhat redeemed the first half of the book.

Recommended: nope
Not for much plot, not for likeable characters, a lot of angsty repetitious thoughts and the same location and complaints for most of the story

Thoughts:
Oof, God, this was tough. Honestly if this wasn't an ARC I was reading I would not have finished it. I had to speed read the last quarter of it just to make it through.

From the start I just really didn't like the main character. She was whiny and her humor is not a kind I enjoyed which was just further annoying me. For the entirety of the story she's extremely self-centered, and I realize it's like the definition of having a midlife crisis but wow. It was too annoying ended alienated me from her. Maybe I'll feel differently when I'm 39 but at 29, goodness, she was not somebody I enjoyed or could root for. I didn't like her at the end, either.

The plot itself was thin as well. I struggle to say there even was a plot. It was pretty much just her angst about her life, which as acknowledged already, annoyed the crap out of me. Most of this book is just her going "oh no I need to start living my life I can't believe I haven't yet!" Tiring. Especially when it felt like she took very few steps to actually do anything thoughtful about it.

Much more of the story than I expected takes place literally at the center where her friend takes her. It took a long time for them to get there in the story, but then once they did, they just never left. I got really tired of them saying "oh you know what we should do? Just go back to the center!" Like oh my God, move on!

As far as what the apparent twist was, I saw it coming a million miles away and I feel like the character should have too if she wasn't so stuck up her own ass the whole time. Not a fan, not for me.

Thanks to NetGalley for a free advanced copy. This is my honest review.

Solid 4 stars ⭐️

You know that feeling when you read the right book at the right time? I think Liv’s story was that for me. The author did a great job at dissecting exisitential questions in a dare-I-say fun way. While there were times when the MC was a bit annoying or selfish, I could connect with her in general, and could self-reflect while reading. At the end of the day, this is what I expect from a novel, and I got what I wanted.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

"There is no such thing as a perfect life. There are only perfect moments." If you had the chance to know the date of your death, would you want to know? Would you make changes to your life? New career? New hair? Olivia Strauss is at the end of her 30s and doesn't know what happened to all those dreams her 20-something self once imagined. Does she still have time to make them happen? Does she still want to?
This story is a really profound look at middle-age and the identity crisis most of us find ourselves in at that time. You could pretty much see the ending coming a mile away but, I enjoyed the story and the reminder that "...every woman’s dying wish was to simply spend her final days—however many of them she had left—being able to exist in the simple quietness of her life. To have more time to enjoy and appreciate the beauty in that." 3.5 stars.