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Book Summary and Reviews of Time of My Life by Allison Winn Scotch

Time of My Life by Allison Winn Scotch

Time of My Life

A Novel

by Allison Winn Scotch

  • Critics' Consensus (0):
  • Readers' Rating (15):
  • Published:
  • Oct 2008, 288 pages
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About this book

Book Summary

From the outside view, Jillian Westfield has a pitch-perfect life. Her cherubic 18-month old daughter, her wildly successful investment banker husband, a four-bedroom, five-bath, lemon-scented home with landscaping and neighbors to match. But that doesn’t stop her from mulling over the past, from pushing away the “what ifs” that haunt her when she allows them to seep into her consciousness. What if she hadn’t married Henry? What if she hadn’t abandoned her job at the first sign of pregnancy? What if she’d never broken up with Jackson ? What if she answered her mother’s letter? Because underneath the shiny veneer of her life, Jill waddles around in a faltering marriage, brewing resentment, and an air of discontentedness.

But after an ethereal massage in which her therapist releases her blocked chi, she wakes up to discover that she’s been whisked seven years back, back to her old life, her old self, back to the moments in which she made decisions that charted her future course. And now that she’s back, she’s faced with the same roadblocks and obstacles, only this time, armed with hindsight, she can choose a different path and finally lay to rest all of her “what ifs.”

Time of My Life is much more than a story about a real life desperate housewife. Instead, it speaks to so many of our tiny, lingering doubts, the same doubts that send us googling old friends and exes or wistfully pulling out pictures of days gone by. And through Jillian’s journey, in which she rediscovers the mother who abandoned her, reacquaints herself with the strengths she once deemed important, and may literally rewrite her future, we all get a chance to peek inside the windows of our own “what ifs,” and consider if the path we took was the one that has granted us the most happiness.


Read an excerpt at the author's website.

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Reviews

Media Reviews

"Time of My Life is a fabulous, madcap read, but don't be fooled: Allison Winn Scotch's narrator is wrestling with some tough issues: how do I find my place in the world? Can I become a wife and mother without losing myself? Would I have been happier if I had chosen another path? Scotch's book is hilarious and true. I loved it." - Amanda Eyre Ward, author of Sleep Toward Heaven, How To Be Lost and Rescue Me.

"Time of My Life is for anyone who has asked the question "what if?", which is to say that this book is for everyone. This story of one woman's big regrets and choices will keep you reading all night, and guessing till the very end. An honest and engaging tale about how hindsight may not be twenty-twenty, and how our decisions are rarely black and white. I loved it." -Julie Buxbaum, author of The Opposite of Love.

"Scotch keeps one dexterous step ahead of page-flipping readers eager to guess the outcome." - Publishers Weekly.

"If you've ever wanted your own do over, this cute, light read by a debut novelist will keep you guessing 'til the end. Recommended for women's fiction collections." - Library Journal.

This information about Time of My Life was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.

Reader Reviews

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Mary (Greeley, CO)

Revisiting Choices
Even though I am generally a little too much of a realist to comfortably read and enjoy stories of time travel, I was nonetheless very excited to read Allison Winn Scotch's new novel. I have to admit that the concept of the main character (Jillian) retreating seven years and reliving (possibly even altering) events did strain my brain at times. That aside, I really responded to the emotional honesty of Jilly as she worked her way through issues, and the writing itself was crisp, clever, and engaging. Toward the end, I almost couldn't wait to see how it all resolved, and I always love when I feel that kind of uncertainty and anticipation in a book. It was a great read and a book I will definitely recommend to my friends.

La Deana

The Road Not Taken
Time of my Life is a nicely written book of "what ifs" that many women face. What if I chose a different guy? What if I didn't have this child or this job? Do our choices ultimately matter or does how we handle our choices matter more? I enjoyed this somewhat lighthearted look at the road not taken. Ms. Scotch gives us a fun story wrapped around the premise that sometimes what really needs to change is us.I would recommend this book for anyone looking for a quick read with a little twist!

Sue

A great read
I really enjoyed Time of My Life, I had a hard time putting it down. When Jillian is transported back seven years into her old life she is confronted with the ability to change her life. This story caused me to reflect on my own choices I have made and question the "what ifs". Through Jillian's journey, we learn that hindsight is twenty-twenty and we can learn from our mistakes. I highly recommend this book.

Carol

Time of my LIfe
What gal or guy hasn’t thought – what if I had only chosen Lonnie instead of Jim or Cindy instead of Sue, what if? Or in the case of Jill Westfield, the main character in Allison Scotch’s funny, but honest and latest novel, “Time of My Life” – Jackson instead of Henry. This tale, based on the 1940’s idiom - hindsight is anything but twenty-twenty. Jill finds herself seven years in the past and is given a chance to revisit her life as a highly paid advertising executive, a stay- at-home wife and a devoted mother. Through trial and error Jill rethinks her biggest decisions and find that life’s decisions are rarely black and white. Good vacation read!

Mary

Time of My Life
This book asks the big question among middle-agers, the what ifs. "What if I had chosen the other path? What would have been the consequences? Would my life have been more satisfying and happier? What if . . ., what if . . .?" It's a question we wrestle with daily. Time of My Life lets you "see" what happens when a wife and mother does have that opportunity to revisit the past. Are the consequences of second-chance decisions any better? Are they satisfying?

This is a good book to read for fun and pleasure, but it also has a deeper side. It will nudge you to think of the decisions in your life and perhaps put the "what ifs" in their proper place.

I also must add I love the cover!

Helen

Reflections
Boy, did I enjoy this book. I wonder at the age of Allison Winn Scotch for she has so much life information and she relates it in a manner we can all hear. I felt her tears and I heard her laughter. The arrangement of the novel is no small feat and we, her readers, are the winners. You cannot help but reflect on your life as you share Jillian's.The ultimate what if. Good read.

...9 more reader reviews

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