Cassandra in Reverse reminded me of a couple of other books I’ve read where the main character was given the opportunity to explore what would have happened had they made a different choice. This one reminded me of those books, but with the distinct difference that, here, the main character can actually travel back in time. Now, time travel can be a very tricky thing, and, indeed, Cassandra discovers all of it, and it was as entertaining and thought-provoking as I expected. I was a little on the fence about this book for the first few chapters, but it rapidly grew on me to the point where I absolutely adored it.

There’s so much to like about Cassandra. She’s clearly different from everyone else, but has no idea she’s on the autism spectrum. Having worked with children with autism, I picked up on it as soon as I started reading about her, and having no idea of the author’s own background. Her daily experiences are impeccably described to the point where I felt like I was stuck in her head and being as overwhelmed as she was by everything. It was so overwhelming at one point that I had to put the book down and just breathe. But, as overwhelming as it was, I loved how it really worked to capture what it might be like for a person with autism to have to live in a world where everyone around them is utterly not like them. Beyond that, I just adored Cassandra. She’s diligent and detail-oriented, but she does become overwhelmed quite easily. She has trouble understanding other people, and her time traveling ability came in quite handy when her first choice(s) didn’t pan out the way she had hoped. I had been afraid this novel would be all about a young woman constantly changing herself to fit what everyone else wanted her to be, but, while there was a bit of that going on, it really showed how strong she is to grow away from that and instead find acceptance for herself and who she is. I loved her growth, and really enjoyed her romps back and forth in time as things slowly unraveled around her. But I think my favorite thing about her was her knowledge of Greek mythology, especially as it pertains to her name, and I absolutely delighted in it because I adore Greek mythology, and this felt like a leap into the mind of someone who loves it as much as I do. I hate it when people mix up Greek and Roman mythology, so I loved that I never had to worry about it once in this book, because the author has impeccable attention to detail.

I have no idea how the time traveling works, though, and, honestly, I don’t care. It may be a big part of the book, but how it works was not really important and, if Cassandra wasn’t going to question it, I saw no reason to question it myself. It did have parameters, though. I liked that she could only travel so far back in time, and her time traveling back kept adding up. I was a little horrified that there were some days where she was awake and functioning for something like eighteen hours because time just kept adding up for her. I can’t imagine how exhausted she must have been, but I admire how dogged and determined she was, and how it led to certain consequences.

Initially, Cassandra began traveling back in order to keep her job and keep her boyfriend and to not get kicked out of her apartment. All of them are fairly miserable circumstances. She actually hates her job and her roommates seem to dislike her and she and her boyfriend just don’t really seem compatible, which was actually kind of excruciating to read because they could not be more different. But she wants to keep it all, so she keeps traveling back in time to tweak her responses to every situation. It sometimes made me feel sorry for her, what with her desperation leading to her frustration, but I really enjoyed how things still just kept unraveling around her and made her adjust because making changes like that can be difficult for even neurotypical people.

But I really enjoyed how Cassandra in Reverse evolved beyond that. It became more about Cassandra growing as a person and learning to accept who she is. She always seemed like the odd one out, and she had to learn to love that about herself. It was also a lovely story of family. The description doesn’t touch on it, so I’m reluctant to say anything about it here, but I really loved that piece of the story, and maybe that was the reason for her ability to time travel all along. There’s a surprising character I wasn’t expecting and, at first, I wasn’t quite sure about them, but my intense curiosity about it all just kept mounting because it was so perfectly and so deftly woven in, like an important little detail that just keeps growing until you can’t ignore it anymore.

Cassandra in Reverse could easily have spun way out of control. There’s a lot to keep track of and multiple time lines to reconcile. It sometimes boggled my mind, and I really have no idea how Cassandra was able to keep up the way she did. Well, until she didn’t. It could have turned this book into a confusing mess. But, because I’m familiar with autism, I put my faith into the author, and she did not fail me once. Everything tied up perfectly. Nothing was forgotten or overlooked. All the ends matched up and everything made perfect sense. Not one detail was astray or relegated to that box I think of as that place where authors put details they don’t want to deal with so pretend they don’t exist anymore. Smale absolutely paid completely attention to detail. This story stood on two very strong legs and never once failed me. It was a dream to read this one, and I absolutely loved how I was never lost or confused. Overwhelmed now and then whenever Cassandra was overwhelmed, but absolutely nothing worse than that.

I loved Cassandra in Reverse. I would gladly read this one over and over and probably never tire of it. It was amazing to read this one. It captured my interest from the first page and never let go. I couldn’t wait to go back into this book. It was fun, the pace was perfect, the characters were entertaining, and the story was absolutely lovely. It warmed my heart all the way through. Despite some early misgivings, this book absolutely delivered.

Thank you to the publisher for a review copy. All opinions expressed are my own.

Thank you to publishers @harlequinbooks and as always @NetGalley for a digital review copy of ᴄᴀssᴀɴᴅʀᴀ ɪɴ ʀᴇᴠᴇʀsᴇ.

ᴄᴀssᴀɴᴅʀᴀ ɪɴ ʀᴇᴠᴇʀsᴇ is a book about self realization, romance, and time travel. I really love all these concepts, and the idea of marrying them into a plot for an ND rep scifi romance was a win. But I didn't really understand the mechanics of the time travel plot device, it was a little loose, and so the narrating character spent an uncomfortable amount of time being self-aware in a badly-formed meta kind of way, and aware of the plot. Also, I don't think characters and narrators should break the fourth wall unless either there's a very good narrative purpose or the effect of the device itself is magnificent. Neither is true in this case.

So it's a pretty good love story and only a pretty functional time travel story. For this reader, that means three stars.

Rating: 👁👁👁 / 5 slow blinks
Recommend? Sure, for the love story
Finished: July 1 2023
Format: Advance Digital, NetGalley
Read this if you like:
⌚️ Time travel
💘 Romance
🟰 ND rep
👤 Internal monologue

Cassandra in Reverse is a wonderful story and would definitely appeal to those who love the movies About Time and Groundhog Day. Weird combination I know...but there is no better way to describe it. As an avid fan of stories involving some form of time travel, I was not one bit disappointed by Holly Smale's tale and found Cassandra in Reverse to be a story that stayed with me long after I finished the final page. In fact, I loved it so much, I went out and immediately bought a copy to give to a friend!

After reading this book, I confess that it took me a while to come and do the review because I'm still processing everything...

Cassandra is a woman of habits, and when those habits are broken beyond her will, a kind of (internal) vortex opens, which allows her to travel through time.

When Will breaks up with her; when she is fired from her job, some trigger forms. And now?

This type of plot is very interesting... when the character has the ability to fix past mistakes to avoid a certain event, but things never turn out as expected, right? By changing one thing in the past, others will also be affected, and it becomes an endless cycle.
Reading was meant to give me pleasure (even if I learned some moral lessons), not distress.
2,5 stars

An enormous thank you to NetGalley, Harlequin Trade Publishing, and of course, Holly Smale for providing me with an eARC of this novel. I am voluntarily leaving a review; all opinions are my own.

There were a lot of mixed reviews for this book, and I can see where for some, this wouldn’t be the book for them. For me, however, this book was lovely. I’m a sucker for time travel in whatever capacity it comes about, and I loved how this one played out.

Cassandra is a complicated person and I think that in order to see and appreciate her journey, you must witness it in its entirety. Upon finishing this book, I realized that had I stopped reading even halfway through, I probably would still find her antics annoying and thoughtless to others, but she makes a lot of progress by the end.

The side characters were great and authentic and added a great extra layer to the novel as a whole. I adored everyone in their own way, and it was lovely to see everything woven together.

I mean, that ending was so much more mature and satisfying than I could’ve hoped for, and I honestly loved every bit of this book. I ate this up and loved the premise and overall storyline so much.

A really enjoyable book. I loved seeing the protagonist grow as she goes back in time, choosing to make different decisions that reflect this growth.

Cassandra is an adorable character and very likable. We can all relate to her as well! She is given the opportunity to go back and fix things in order to proceed with her future. This is an easy read with a cute plot and likable characters. It has the potential to be a bit deeper if that is what a reader is looking for but it is a great read just like it is.
The story is well thought out and gives us all the feels! I am happy I had the opportunity to read it. Looking forward to Holly Smale's next book! Thank you to NetGalley and MIRA Books for the ARC.

Cassandra in Reverse is a story about Cassandra who is neurodivergent.
She lost her job, that same day her boyfriend breaks up with her, and her living situation is complicated.
Cassandra gains the ability to travel back in time, only 4 months, to try to put her life back together.
She spends most of the time trying to make sure her relationship with her boyfriend doesn't end.
There was also a lot of Greek mythology reference that I found unnecessary.
Ultimately, this book was not for me.

Cassandra in Reverse by Holly Smale is what you get when you mix a contemporary romance and a time travel fantasy. The story is told from the point of view of the lead character who is neurodivergent as she bounces around in time trying to fix her own life after it has fallen apart.

Cassandra Penelope Dankworth is not having a good day when she gets to work only to find the cherry on the rotten cake of the day is she’s being fired. Cassie doesn’t know what to think after starting the day off with a break up before it all spiraled out of control and being a creature of habit this is all just too much for her to handle.

In the blink of an eye though Cassie finds herself right back to the beginning of it all and living the trauma over until she wonders if anything she does can change the outcome. Cassie learns that she can start over if things go wrong and time travel just may be the answer she was looking for to fix her life before it went off the rails.

Holly Smale is an author that I was already familiar with having tried some of her young adult contemporary romance novels. I found her writing a ton of fun and seeing a this was an adult romcom that also mixed in another genre when I love books that mix genres I couldn’t help but get excited. The incredibly great part to this new series for me was finding that an autistic lead was at the front of this story and I couldn’t help but be enamored with it. This one turned into just what I hoped, a ton of laughs along with a lot of character growth as she finds herself and navigates the world so I couldn’t help but to enjoy it as I read along.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

The summary of this book reminds me of "the butterfly effect" and I was excited to see how Holly Smale would work this in her plot. While it wasn't my favorite, it was enjoyable. Cassandra has a chance to reverse the bad things that have happened in her life and "make them right". I really appreciate the thoughtfulness of the plot and the main character.

If you're a fan of "The Midnight Library", I think you'll enjoy this one as well.

This was a unique and fun take on time travel. It gave me some insight into how someone that is autistic perceives things around them as well as what affects them. Well done and thoroughly enjoyed the characters and compassion found in this book. Highly recommend!

This book was not at all what I expected it to be, but I enjoyed it all the same. It's about a girl who's different, and managing her life accordingly. But one very, VERY bad day pushes her over the edge and she has a bit of an attack. It's happened before, but something that hasn't happened before is she now has the ability to redo her day and, in theory, change the outcome. The major "fixing" that ends up happening is not Cassandra's original intent. But it's what needed to happen all along.

A new cozy sci-fi, perfect for summer! Cassandra has the ability to 'reverse' AKA go back in time to fix anything and everything. This has one of my favorite tropes (Ala Midnight Library) of realizing your life is the best version of itself as it is. Would highly recommend for fans of Midnight Library and Oona Out of Order!

Thank you #Netgalley for the advanced copy!

I was excited to get my hands on this one as it was selected for Reese's book club. At first I found it the book difficult to follow. I could not tell if we were going to relive the same day over and over again, and then got confused as to how far back these situations would go. Once I got into the flow, I really enjoyed the book and the self realization of the main character Cassandra. Some parts left me so frustrated, especially how she handles her work relationships and work ethic. At times it felt a bit over the top. But overall, it was an interesting time loop read!

A totally bingable, delightful read with great neurodiversity rep. I enjoyed this one way more than I thought I would! I'm surprised that I haven't seen it so much. I really enjoyed the book and the topic and think the characters were all a hoot. Overall, a great read and one I will recommend!

It's probably true that there are no more original stories and most of what we read follows some kind of trope, but I think contemporary "women's fic" still can stand out if it gives us a fresh take on a common trope and that's what I think we got with Cassandra in Reverse. It seems like it's often the case with books involving unplanned time travel or a time loop that, by the end, we figure out that it wasn't ever about changing the timeline but about giving the MC a mechanism for personal growth. This book was no exception but including a neurodivergent MC added originality to an otherwise common plot scenario. Cassandra was on the autism spectrum, yes, but she was caring, funny, and neurotic in a way that was completely relatable (regardless of your neuro-typicality). It did get repetitive at times, but her continual mistakes and do-overs kept helping her learn things about herself that made the end of her personal journey really satisfying to get to as a reader.

Cassandra in Reverse is a fun, funny, heart-wrenching, heart-warming - and yes, I will say it: educational - novel. The protagonist is a quirky young woman, and the reader hears whispers of 'on the spectrum.' I have somewhat limited experience with autism, but I would agree. I have more experience with generalized anxiety and panic disorders and see those as possible in Cassandra as well.
It is difficult to say much about the book without revealing more than should be. The above descriptions gave me pause, but Cassandra's personality is shown quickly.
The main storyline is that Cassandra can time travel, specifically go back within the confines of her already-lived life. This ability can and does produce problems of its own, in addition to some escapades. Author Holly Smale does an extraordinary job of characterization. The reader is transported into Cassandra's life, causing great empathy with her. Despite not having what would usually be defined as an adventuresome existence, Cassandra's experiences hold the reader's attention. I loved the book and have found myself exploring other of Holly Smale's novels. Smale's superb characterization makes the book.
Thank you to NetGalley and MIRA publishing for the ARC of the book.

This was entertaining. I'm one of few people who loathes Groundhog Day (the movie) because I can't stand the waking up in the same day (even though it was important plot context.) This book doesn't strand us the exact same moment, but allows for more exploration. And I always appreciate autistic main characters, even when their lives are very different from mine.

PS: When your kid resets your kindle to factory settings and you have to figure out where you left off to start reading again -- this is not an easy book to do that in.

Thank you to Net Galley for giving me access to an arc of Cassandra in Reverse by Holly Smale. I found the premise for this book engaging and thought-provoking with its neuro-divergent protagonist who opens the book having the most horrible day imaginable—losing her job and her boyfriend in the same day. Cassandra coping skills are uncommon, especially when she learns she has the ability to rewind time and replay events in an attempt to repair her work and romantic relationships. Of course, this is guaranteed not to work as planned and Cassandra winds up creating bigger messes when she has trouble remembering which time period she is actually inhabiting at a particular moment. When her long-estranged sister shows up, Cassandra is made to understand things about her past that reveals a self awareness that helps her learn how to cope with her peculiarities moving forward. I found the ending very moving. I also enjoyed the references to Greek mythology throughout the book.

This was so much fun! I really love anything time-travel related, and this was such a great spin on it. A lot of time-travelling stories make the characters go back to fix Big Important Things with do-or-die deadlines, but I actually liked that this time-travelling was more small-risk and mundane in comparison. I think we all have everyday moments we wish we could undo and redo at will, and so I really did empathize with Cassandra's own desire to keep redoing things until they were just perfect.

Cassandra is just honestly such a likeable and relatable character. I loved that she's neurodivergent--and is written by a neurodivergent author (which hasn't been the case for many other neurodivergent-lead stories that have been popular lately). As such, Cassandra felt real and well-rounded, rather than an awkward stereotype.

I will say the reveal of Diana was a bit abrupt. I saw it coming in a way, but it felt a bit shoehorned. I could tell the author was trying to withhold particular info until the dramatic reveal, but I think it fell a bit flat for me. Otherwise, I came to really like Cassandra and Diana's relationship, and how we came to learn more about Cassandra and her own identity. Overall, a fun and quirky novel about time, sisters, love, and learning that some things can't be--and don't need to be--fixed.