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Published Apr 2014
256 pages
Genre: Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Speculative, Alt. History
Publication Information
Follow the rules. Remember what happened. Never fall in love.
This is the story of seventeen-year-old Prenna James, who immigrated to New York when she was twelve. Except Prenna didn't come from a different country. She came from a different time - a future where a mosquito-borne illness has mutated into a pandemic, killing millions and leaving the world in ruins.
Prenna and the others who escaped to the present day must follow a strict set of rules: never reveal where they're from, never interfere with history, and never, ever be intimate with anyone outside their community. Prenna does as she's told, believing she can help prevent the plague that will one day ravage the earth.
But everything changes when Prenna falls for Ethan Jarves.
From Ann Brashares, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series, The Here and Now is thrilling, exhilarating, haunting, and heartbreaking - and a must-read novel of the year.
"Brashares focuses on Prenna and Ethan's burgeoning romance, rather than the nitty-gritty details of her time-travel premise, and her fans will be happy to find that her prose is as resonant and realistic as ever." - Publishers Weekly
"This quirky tale of love and time travel demands that readers totally suspend disbelief to enjoy some of the more contrived plot elements." - Kirkus
"Brashares, author of the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series and other YA novels, builds on her adroit adolescent characterization and ear for teen dialogue and ports them into an exciting time-travel adventure complete with murderers to thwart and mysteries to solve. The book's environmental message won't be missed by readers, but this is a cautionary tale rather than a didactic screed. Grades 7-10." - Booklist
"The author's younger fans will enjoy the relationship between Prenna and Ethan, and adult fans will appreciate the moral gray areas complicating their lives. It would be a solid introduction to sf for YA and adult readers curious about the genre." - Library Journal
"This gripping story is set in a world unlike any other and inhabited by beautifully imagined characters that stay with you long after the last page. As always, Brashares expertly captures the wonder of love's enduring power." – Sara Shepard, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Pretty Little Liars
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Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Photo: Peter Freed
Ann Brashares grew up in Chevy Chase, Maryland with
her three brothers and attended a Quaker school in the DC area called Sidwell
Friends. She studied Philosophy at Barnard College, part of Columbia University
in New York City. Expecting to continue studying philosophy in graduate school,
Ann took a year off after college to work as an editor, hoping to save money for
school. Loving her job, she never went to graduate school, and instead, remained
in New York City and worked as an editor for many years. Ann made the transition
from editor to full-time writer with her first novel, The Sisterhood of the
Traveling Pants.
When asked where the idea for the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants came
from she replies:
"It started with a conversation. A woman I used to work...
... Full Biography
Author Interview
Link to Ann Brashares's Website
Name Pronunciation
Ann Brashares: br-shares
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