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.

I wanted to like this one, but it just wasn’t happening. I really liked the premise and thought it would be a hit, since I like the idea of time loop/ground hog day style stories. But this unfortunately, fell flat for and is yet another Reese’s Book Pick miss for me. Womp womp.

This engaging novel by Holly Smale belongs on summer reading lists. It has been selected for both the Good Morning America Book Club and America’s Book Club, no mean feat for the author’s adult debut. Cassandra also received a starred review from Booklist.

Imagine the worst day of your life and you will know how Cassandra is feeling as the story opens. Think of a “straw that broke the camel’s back” and have empathy for Cassandra when she cannot get a banana muffin, just one thing she REALLY wanted on a bad day. Turn the pages to find out how Cassandra fares from this fraught beginning. By the way, note the authorial voice in the beginning of the book as comments are made about books’ openings.

Readers will discover that Cassandra goes on to have unique experiences, not ones that the ordinary reader can have except by proxy. Watch what happens as Cassandra reverses. You will root for her.

Protagonist Cassandra has autism which offers her a particular way of looking at the world. She shares this with Ms. Smales who beautifully describes this in the story.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for this title. All thoughts are my own.

CASSANDRA IN REVERSE
Holly Smale

One sentence book review:

“If I was stuck in a time loop I wouldn’t want to be reading CASSANDRA IN REVERSE during any part of it.”

Cassandra is stuck in a loop. She keeps repeating a single day and this single day is a whopper of a day.

First, she gets fired from her job then she gets attacked in time square then unbelievably they run out of her favorite banana muffin only to then later be dumped by Will. Cassandra’s latest love interest.

Can Cassandra figure out how this is happening and why this is happening before it’s too late?

After my first reading session with CASSANDRA IN REVERSE I was reluctant to pick it up again. I didn’t want to spend time with Cassandra or in her universe. I could’ve DNF’d but I’m so behind on my Goodreads reading challenge that I really needed a finish.

This book is such a mess.

CASSANDRA IN REVERSE starts out as would any romance book with time travel elements. Most of the story takes place within a few months and is repeated and rehashed over and over again.

Then at about halfway a curveball storyline is thrown in with a convenient twist to try and pick up all the pieces. It was far too late in the story for me to care and the entire second half of the book felt like it was running off course, directionless.

CASSANDRA IN REVERSE…⭐️⭐️

Thanks to Netgalley, Harlequin Trade Publishing, and MIRA for the advanced copy!

Cassandra is a loveable main character who I was rooting for from the first few pages. A woman who knows what she likes, and what she doesn't, she is navigating her way through work, relationships, and society in general while feeling very socially out of place most of the time. After an exceptionally bad day, she discovers she has the ability to travel back in time and uses it to redo some of the moments, this time perhaps with a bit more social knowledge of how she could have changed the future, hoping for a more favorable outcome. While I very much enjoyed Cassandra and all her quirks, I did struggle a bit getting through this book. I enjoyed watching Cassandra understand her past, learning the best future for herself, and becoming more confident in the woman she is, even in situations she would very much like to not be in. I would recommend this book for fans of characters that are unique, but also enjoy sci fi reads, the time traveling I had a hard time keeping track of, but that may have just been my attention span. I do believe the overall theme of this book, outweighed any part that I struggled to get through, and I'm glad I finished it. Thank you to Net Galley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for an advanced copy of this book, all opinions are my own.

Cassandra has just had the worst day, her boyfriend Will has broken up with her out of nowhere, she was fired from her job and told she is unlikeable, and her flatmates are pushing her to move out. Then she discovers she can go back in time and change events. This starts a plan to alter many decisions from the last 4 months in order to fix the state of her life

I DNFed this at 40%. Unfortunately this one was not for me at all. I wanted to love this one. I usually enjoy books that play with time. Also novels that has quirky characters who are neuro divergent is something find so fascinating and complex but this one feel flat for me. The character slowly changing this about herself for a guy was bugging me so much. Cassandra never became endearing for me, and i struggled to connect with anything in the book.

Cassandra in Reverse by Holly Smale is a great novel! It was really greatly written and I really enjoyed it.

I really enjoyed this fun, light sci-fi love story. Cassandra in Reverse features a neurodivergent character who, in my opinion, isn't presented as a gimmick or a stereotype and yet is also accessible and relatable. The time travel element is spare on details (what is this, where did it come from, how does it work) but that really doesn't matter within the confines of the story and the things that Cassandra needed to see/learn. I think this is going to be a Best of 2023 title and would be a great book club read.