Yesterday

By C. K. Kelly Martin

THEN: The formation of the UNA, the high threat of eco-terrorism, the mammoth rates of unemployment and subsequent escape into a world of virtual reality are things any student can read about in their 21st century textbooks and part of the normal background noise to Freya Kallas's life. Until that world starts to crumble.

NOW: It's 1985. Freya Kallas has just moved across the world and into a new life. On the outside, she fits in at her new high school, but Freya feels nothing but removed. Her mother blames it on the grief over her father's death, but how does that explain the headaches and why do her memories feel so foggy? When Freya lays eyes on Garren Lowe, she can't get him out of her head. She's sure that she knows him, despite his insistence that they've never met. As Freya follows her instincts and pushes towards hidden truths, the two of them unveil a strange and dangerous world where their days may be numbered. Unsure who to trust, Freya and Garren go on the run from powerful forces determined to tear them apart and keep them from discovering the truth about their shared pasts (and futures), her visions, and the time and place they really came from. Yesterday will appeal to fans of James Dashner's The Maze Runner, Veronica Roth's Divergent, Amy Ryan's Glow, Laini Taylor's Daughter of Smoke and Bone, and Ally Condie's Matched.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Random House Kids
• Release date: Sep 25, 2012
• ISBN: 9780375896446

C. K. Kelly Martin

C. K. Kelly Martin is the author of several critically acclaimed YA books: I Know It's Over, One Lonely Degree, The Lighter Side of Life and Death, My Beating Teenage Heart, Yesterday, Tomorrow, The Sweetest Thing You Can Sing and Delicate. She has also penned an adult novel titled 'Come See About Me.'Currently residing near Toronto with her husband, she's an aunt to twenty-one nieces and nephews, and a great-aunt to two great-nephews. She's a citizen of Ireland and Canada and visits Dublin as often as she can while working on novels about young people. Learn more at her website: ckkellymartin.com

Reviews for Yesterday

[readingbeader · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Dystopian, time travel, NetGalley, secrets, romance

Freya Kallas: 16 years old, father is dead, moved to Canada, feels like she’s in a fog.
Garren Lowe: 18 years old who doesn’t remember Freya even though she insists he should.

I’m not sure if this book is wanted to be a time travel, dystopian, or flashback book. I keep waiting for Freya to figure out she’s in a really alternate reality program rather than really back in the 80’s. There is a lot of information dump as one reviewer said. The ending is not a cliff hanger but there is more to come. (Sequel: Tomorrow according to her website.) The ending did seem kind of – wow what?

This is Ms. Martin’s first book I’ve read, but I have two of her contemporary books in my library. I’m not planning on buying this one – quite a few of my dystopian readers have graduated, and I would only buy it for them if I needed even more of this type of book.

[josp-7 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This book was amazing for many reasons. The story kept building and building until an interesting twist at the end. I loved how the book went from a futuristic world to a very memorable past. Being able to read a book and actually know about the things in it, because it is a true place or time in history that people know of first hand or know enough about because its so recent, is exciting. Definitely a page turner.

[vanyadrum · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

NOTE: I received this title from Netgalley.

Ummmmm... sadly, reading this book was a torture. And I truly hate saying this, but it's the truth. I don't even know why I stuck to the end, perhaps because there were moments of "Oh, I hope this turns out good after all". But it didn't. It was a complete waste of time.

So here how it goes:

The first chapter got me hooked. I loved the mystery of it and how it developed. I liked Freya's character, and her fighting spirit. But then, everything changed. It was confusing, to say the least. It was slow and boring and for the first 30-40% of the book nothing really happened. A bunch of inconsequential characters were introduced, and honestly I don't think they had any place in the story. Perhaps the author wanted to make a point (though I can't tell what it might be), but it just didn't work.

Then, Freya stumbled upon Garren, and I thought "Finally! Something's gonna happen!" But. No. More boring chapters follow, and I don't even remember what happened in them.

It wasn't until we neared the 50% mark that things kind of got moving. But we never get any glimpse in this absolutely confusing world until Freya goes to the hypnotherapist. Then guess what happens? More. Boring. Chapters. Why, in the name of a white cuddly bunny, did the author dedicate so many (like 20) pages to just droll on and on and on in a newspaper monotone voice about the world where Freya and Garren are really from? I mean, all those hundreds of facts are suddenly poured down on the reader, and it's just incredibly irritating and not to mention, confusing! I was lost in the first page, and had to just skip around till I found the place where they were talking about characters. Honestly, it didn't take me more than 2 lines to catch up to the stuff I'd skipped over. So, umm.. yeah..

And, keeping to my honesty policy, I'm also going to share that I didn't like the characters. Not one of them. They were distant to me. The way they spoke bothered me. Their behavior displeased me. And even their supposed outer beauty nauseated me.

Which all leads to just one conclusion: I would not be reading the sequel. It's unfortunate, I know, especially since putting together a book is a lot of hard work. But at least, when you're going to work on it so much, make it interesting. That's all I'm saying.

[pussreboots · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Yesterday by CK Kelly Martin is a YA science fiction that's part dystopia and part time travel. Freya wakes up in 1985 after escaping from something awful in the "not to distant future" (with apologies to MST3K). Except, 1985 Freya has no memory of what she has escaped from, believing instead that she and her mother and sister have recently moved to Canada after her father's accidental death.What begins, thus, as a high action, in media res, dystopian science fiction, settles into being a rather drab YA angst fest set in 1985 — I suppose for the adult women who are feeling nostalgic and like to read YA fiction. Sure, I fit that bill and yes, I can assert that the details are convincing for it being 1985 but I'm not sure how all this attention to detail is going to play with the intended readership. I'm not saying that today's teens can't or won't get something from reading books published in previous decades but this book reads like nostalgia — and not a period piece. And it's nostalgia for a decade that was over for years before today's teen readers were even born.Eventually, though, Freya begins to get her memory back. She sees a boy she thinks she recognizes — Garren. After stalking him until he's forced to give in to her craziness, they realize that something is, in fact, amiss with the stories they've both been told. This realization finally heralds the return of the long missing action.But wait, there's more! Two thirds of the way through the book, when things should be moving towards either a resolution or the set up for a cliffhanger, Yesterday goes into info-dump mode. Rather than being filtered through Freya's point of view (as the rest of the plot before and since), the narration moves into third person omniscient and we are given pages and pages and pages and pages and pages (yawn) of the history between 1985 and the future year that Freya and Garren are from. After that were told why people are sent back in time and Freya and Garren have to decide wether or not they want to play along with their newly assigned roles.Up until this point, I really expected 1985 to be some sort of Matrix-style simulation. There are parts where Freya and Garren are too easily found and their piece of Canada seems much too small and much to simplistic to be the real thing. Time travel, though, for me, doesn't fit.For better versions of the same story I recommend:"Phineas and Ferb's Quantum Boogaloo" from season 2 of Phineas and FerbBack to the Future IIMeanwhile by Jason Shiga (a CYBILs winner)

[midgeworld · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A refreshing change from most YA and dystopian fiction where the protagonist seemed more grounded in her world, which is an odd thing to say about a book where the characters increasing sense of unreality leads her to discover the truth about who she is, and less angsty about friends, crushes, etc. I think her obsessive pursuit for the truth is what gives me this feeling.

[a_reader_of_fictions · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Originally reviewed on A Reader of Fictions.

My second C. K. Kelly Martin book has me convinced that I need to write every single thing she writes. Martin has a very distinct style. Her writing is wonderful and her concepts, at least for the two books I've already read, are entirely original. Yesterday didn't remind me of any other dystopia, a very rare experience.

Yesterday is one of those stories where you'll spend most of the book confused, unsure what the heck is going on. However, rest easy with the knowledge that you WILL be given answers; Martin will explain everything. Her vision of the future is dark and complex, taking into account various ways that humans could destroy the world. Not only that, but, of course, the meddlesome government will take charge in a harsh way to try to control everything.

I really cannot say much of anything else about the world building aspect of Yesterday, because spoilers would be unavoidable. The only other things I need to point out in this regard are the reasons I rated it down a little bit. First, there was the clunky info dump when Freya realized what was going on. I'm not sure if there was a better way to do that, but that chapter read like a history text. I also felt like her memories came back too quickly and easily. Second, the time travel aspects were questionable, but, then again, I almost always have big suspension of disbelief issues with time travel.

Yesterday made a really nice change from most of my other reads, because of the unique setting. For one thing, the book is set in Canada, taking place largely in Toronto. Very few books I've read have had a Canadian setting, though I'm a bit surprised by that. Even more uncommon, Yesterday is set primarily in the 1980s. I loved all the mentions of music, like The Smiths, and other bits of pop culture from that time period. Also, picturing everyone in the horrific clothes greatly amused me.

Freya won my affections early on. She's gorgeous, in a way that could have made her completely obnoxious; literally, everyone stares at her. However, she is completely uncomfortable with that. She doesn't try to be popular; instead she befriends the goths, and even does a makeover on herself so people will pay less attention to her. I loved that, despite her beauty, she doesn't take advantage of it nor does she deny it.

Freya has premonitions, visions of the near future. These really could have felt out of place, and I am curious about them, but Martin made them work. They did not come off as an unnecessary paranormal addition to the plot, thank goodness. I love Freya for her intelligence, her forthrightness, her courage and her anger. She feels so real. It also entertained me that in this case, it wasn't a heroine falling for a vaguely creepy, gorgeous guy who stalked her; she does the stalking, although she does have her reasons.

Garren definitely was less dear to me, but I liked him because Freya did. I still question him a bit, because he had a girlfriend at the beginning. The switch of his feelings from Janette to Freya seemed rushed and unnatural. However, I can accept it, since, though they get close to one another VERY quickly, they don't instalove all over the place. In such a stressful situation, emotions developing is not a surprise, but I would have punched everything if they were declaring eternal love for one another. Thankfully, they did not. As an added bonus, Martin is a genius at writing steamy scenes, as evidenced here and in My Beating Teenage Heart.

Reading Yesterday was a pleasure from beginning to end, a refreshingly original addition to dystopian fiction. Now I need to go add her other books to my wishlist...

[flashlight_reader · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I have to tell you, this was a little hard to follow at times. I am not a huge fan of sci-fi books, so I had to work hard to stay with it in places. Overall though, I enjoyed this book. I found it ironic that the "then" this book took place in was 1985. Of course, the future was far beyond 2012, so I guess it made sense to think of 1985 as a distant past. But still, it made me chuckle. The author did a great job weaving in the subtle 80s references from the characters' point of view. Reading about the popular jock having "Flock of Seagull hair" was highly entertaining. I think the highlight though, had to be the music references. So yes, all my 80s music lovers out there... Yesterday does have 80s musical references. In fact, when I read the first mentioning of Duran Duran, I had to post it on Facebook for my co-workers (Duran Duran fans). We had a good laugh over it. Ok, so funny 80s references aside, this book did have a pretty suspenseful plot. The characters are transported back to 1985 with no memory of their former lives. Except one of them does remember--sort of. The whole plot of the book centers on putting the pieces of this great mystery together. Where are they from? Why are they here? Why can't they go "home"? That final question really grabbed my attention as I read. As I think about the world we live in, I can't help but think how close to the truth the author really was. The bio-terror that erupted in the future world was horrific. Zombies have nothing on what was created in this book! Sci-fi fans will find plenty to enjoy in this futuristic dystopian. There was one pretty hot and heavy scene that would make this better suited for older YA readers.

[booktwirps · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I have to say, I’m really torn on this one. In fact, I had to sit on it for a few days before actually writing the review. I thought maybe if I stepped back and thought about it for a while, it might be easier to write it up, but it’s not. Bear with me…We start out in 1985 in Ontario, Canada where we meet Freya. Something about her life feels off. She knows her family yet she doesn’t really feel close to them. She remembers things from her past, but the memories don’t really bring up any real emotions. What’s really freaking her out is that she can sense things before they happen. When she sees a guy who looks very familiar, she is drawn to him. Garren (the guy) has no idea who she is, but the more they talk, the more they realize they have in common. The deeper they dig into their similarities, the more dangerous things get for them and before they know it they’re on the run from some people who are determined to keep them from finding out too much. See, Freya and Garren are from the future where technology controls pretty much everything, and the evil “men in black” will do anything to keep them quiet.Let me start with what I liked about the book. First of all — 1985. I’m an 80′s kid, so the 80′s references were awesome and I felt the author did a great job placing me there. Since this is a book for teens, many of the references will probably be lost on them, but I really liked it. At first I thought it odd that she would set the “past” part of the novel in the 80′s, but then again it makes sense. We didn’t have a whole lot of technology back then outside of TV’s. We didn’t even have email or websites (the horror!) Since one of the main plot points was to show what a difference technology makes (and in the case of this book how it can control us to the point of being a weapon) it worked. Secondly, I liked the idea of the story — technology controls EVERYTHING in this future (even sex — I don’t mean gender either, but the bow chicka wow-wow kind). It was actually believable. I mean look how dependent on our smartphones a lot of people are. Anyway…I also liked the characters for the most part. I didn’t feel like either Freya or Garren were particularly unique from a lot of other characters I’ve read in other dystopian novels, and they’re probably not my favorite, but I did like them and I did feel for them. I did like how their relationship wasn’t an immediate “I’ll die without you if you ever leave me.” It felt more realistic.My biggest problem with the book was the execution. The story was moving along at a descent pace (in my opinion it could have had a little more action, but that’s just me) and then when the future is revealed it hits with a huge boat-load of information that I never felt I was able to fully process. This left me feeling a little overwhelmed and a little confused. From that point on I just felt really jumbled and I had to do a lot of flipping back and forth, which, in turn, made me start to lose interest.The writing is good, and the story unique, but Yesterday felt a little too jumbled for me. Is it worth checking out? Sure, but it’s not one I would put at the top of my list of recommendations.

[darkfaerietales_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Review courtesy of Dark Faerie TalesQuick & Dirty: Time traveling teenagers that lost their memories of the future, but try desperately to seek out the truth behind their situations. Opening Sentence: When I wake up I have a pounding headache behind my eyes just like I’ve had: every morning lately. The Review: Yesterday by C.K. Kelly Martin is a tale of futuristic dystopian madness, or is it? Sixteen-year-old Freya Kallas keeps having visions of a time far removed from good ole 1985. Is her sense of disassociation and anti-social tendencies because of her father’s untimely death and her family’s subsequent move abroad, or is it something far more science fiction? And who is this mysterious boy that she has never met before, but has a deep seated feeling of familiarity with? This is a story of fantastical realities and two kids caught up in an attempt to secure a future for the human race. Freya Kallas’s character is hard to pin down. The girl we get to know in the beginning of the book is nothing like what we are left with at the end: it is on purpose. Though she becomes obsessed with these feelings and dreams so different from the life she knows, there is a kernel of doubt lingering on the sidelines. It is as if she is either a girl from the future with her memory wiped or delusional and in need of psychiatric treatment. Lucky for Freya, she finds a kindred soul amidst the madness. Garren Lowe is 18 and happy with his lot. At least he was until a girl stumbled into his life with these totally outrageous claims of them knowing each other. Although Garren’s character is the voice of skepticism in this duo, his mere presence drives Freya to seek the truth behind their mutual pasts. He is either akin to Jiminy Cricket or a Devil’s Advocate for Freya. Any kind of sexual tension between the two is overshadowed by their discoveries and subsequent pursuit. Is there a happy ending in store for these two or will it be more akin to a Greek tragedy instead? This book reads a lot like a roller coaster ride. Slow going until half way through then BAM!, craziness ensues and you don’t catch your breath until the ride is over. It has a terrific plot, imaginative background, and extraordinary world in which to reside in. The world itself would be appealing to a much more diverse group of readers than just young adult. I personally enjoyed the mixing and usage of 1980’s pop music and famous quotes to emphasize scenes and emotions, adding to the complexity and unrealness of it all. Notable Scene: A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on. Winston Churchill’s making pronouncements in my head again, like when I woke up from my first dream about the blond boy. And what Churchill said fits. The majority of my life feels as though it’s been some kind of lie. I don’t know where I’ve picked up his words— they seem to have always been with me, a kernel of authenticity in a web of falsehoods. Is my mother in on the pretense? What does she know that I don’t?FTC Advisory: Random House graciously provided me with a copy of Yesterday. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review. The only payment received came in the form of hugs and kisses from my little boys.