This is a very unusual book. While I did enjoy the storyline
I am not certain that I took the journey the Author had in
mind. Most women would take each choice and give it]
a whirl, and most of us would question ourselves endlessly
because that’s just how we set ourselves to do.
Don’t miss the book, it’s certainly worth the adventure,
My thanks to William Morrow Publisher via NetGalley
for the download copy of this book for review purposes.

If you're in for a wild ride this is for you. How many times have we wished we could change our mistakes and what we would do differently? Book that makes you wish you could and sometimes are glad you can't.

Thanks to NetGalley for the review copy. I enjoyed this one so much more than The Cartographers. I read it in order but may go back and read it in the choose your own adventure method next time

Well written characters. This is an adult "choose your own adventure" book and it was a lot if fun. I enjoyed all the different "lives" that Marsh lead. Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book

Marsh is in her mid 40s, divorced, and just lost her job. Lucky her, she's selected as the season 3 contestant for a reality tv show that utilizing quantum bubbling to allow her to go back and explore life choices she didn't make: becoming a high powered lawyer, living abroad, romance, adventure, and professional fulfillment. The technology is amazing, but as she continues to make decisions something seems off...

As the reader you make choices for the main character at certain points, ala choose your own adventure. I wasn't sure I'd like that element, but I didn't feel like I missed anything as I navigated the novel. If you enjoyed The Midnight Library or storylines where people get to try new choices, you will probably enjoy this.

Thank you to William Morrow Books for an ARC on @NetGalley. All opinions are my own

I have mixed feelings about this book. Maybe if I had selected some different options I might have felt differently? I liked the idea of the book, but there didn’t seem to be any heart to the story. I kept waiting to fall in love with the main character or to at minimum start rooting for her, but I never got there.

Do you know what I didn't know that I needed as an adult? A CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE NOVEL!! But never fear friends, unlike the choose your own adventure novels of our childhoods, you don't have to worry about the novel ending because you got ate by an alligator. You will make it to the end of the story.

I did right away think the story was a little slow to start, but Peng is so great at creating worlds so we needed some of the basic facts before we jumped too far into "the bubble" she created. I think it was also great to have a nice basic reality we were adjusting so that it didn't get to confusing.

I love that the story has 3 endings! (yes I read them all - and my first choice ending was my favorite).

I can't wait till this is out in print so I can read again choosing different routes!!

Thank you William Morrow and Peng Shepherd for the opportunity to read this novel.

While this isn't out until July - you can read her novel "Cartographers" right now - which happens to be one of my FAVORITE novels from 2022.

Marsh is 45 and it’s all falling apart. She’s lost her job, her marriage is over and she and her teenage daughter are growing apart. She hates her life.

Then she has the opportunity to be on the reality TV show “All This and More,” which uses quantum technology to allow contestants to change their pasts and futures all in ten episodes. Is it all too good to be true?

So, this was interesting, this book is written as a “choose your own adventure” for adults, and I know I didn’t get to see all the choices. There is one BIG plot hole issue that was just skated over and was never addressed and it worried me, but never came to pass. I enjoyed THE CARTOGRAPHERS by this author, but this was a little bit too close to romance for me, even though I enjoyed the unique format. I think it will be popular.

This was such a great book. The romance was perfect and the plot was very well thought out. I really enjoyed this book.

In the novel 𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 & 𝘔𝘰𝘳𝘦, a reality television program of the same name shows a contestant living out different iterations of his or her life. In each of the ten episodes of a season, the contestant follows a path that branches out from a choice he or she makes about love, family, or career, thanks to a scientific discovery called “quantum bubbling.” Season 3 heroine Marsh is an ordinary woman living an unspectacular life in suburban Phoenix, Arizona. She is a sweet and kind person, loyal and dependable friend, devoted single mom, and former law student-turned-paralegal. But in other realities in which she is less passive and more confident and daring, she is luckier in love, holds a more impressive career, and leads a more glamorous lifestyle.

The structure of 𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 & 𝘔𝘰𝘳𝘦 is a fun one, set up like a “Choose Your Own Adventure” book. Opportunities are given to the reader throughout the novel to select between two different paths until one of three conclusions is reached. What if Marsh had repaired her relationship with her ex-husband? Or she gave a renewed relationship with high school sweetheart Ren a proper go? What if she had taken the bar exam after all? Or she pursued a job in a completely different field? It’s a very fitting concept given the storyline as well as the book’s ruminations on choice and true happiness.

I admit I chose the option to read straight through to the intended ending… and I’m wondering if that was the correct decision. Though the plot was captivating at times, the storytelling wasn’t as tight as I would have liked and seemed a bit long-winded to me. I felt like it took much too long to get to the central conflict, and once it was revealed, the momentum continued at a slow, almost sluggish pace, despite the action and thriller components of the storyline.

But overall I do applaud the imaginative plot and interesting framework of 𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 & 𝘔𝘰𝘳𝘦. I would recommend this to those who are looking for a unique reading experience and enjoy the vibes of 𝘉𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘔𝘪𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘳, 𝘞𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘴𝘰𝘯, and 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘛𝘳𝘶𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘚𝘩𝘰𝘸. Thank you to William Morrow and NetGalley for an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

I would like to thank NetGalley and William Morrow for providing me with an advance e-galley of this book in exchange for an honest review. Look for it in your local and online bookstores and libraries on July 9, 2024.

"The reader decides what she does next to change her fate."
This caught my attention and I picked up this book to know how the author has penned down a story where the reader gets to choose the fate the character in the book.
The author has definitely weaved in a beautiful plotline and the characters are interesting in itself, so it kept me hooked till the very end of it.

Hmm…this is a fascinating idea. What if you could have endless do-overs at pivotal points of your life? I’m sure we all have a few things in our past we’d like to rewrite. I can think of some things I’d want to prevent from happening in the lives of my loved ones…but in this story, you can only change things in YOUR life.

In this case, Marsh is the lucky lady chosen for season three of the famous reality show, “All This And More”, wherein the sole contestant has the past at her fingertips. What if you could see how each path turned out…and just choose yet another one if you aren’t satisfied? The science here is glossed over and explained away as a breakthrough in quantum mechanics that allows this selective time travel, so just go along with it. This also has Choose Your Own Adventure-type options throughout, which made the reading experience even more fun.

Things are going great for Marsh….until they aren’t. Something is off. It’s okay, though—she can just move onto the next life, right?

Right?

My only (minor) quibble here is the same one I had with Shepherd’s “The Book of M”—it’s much longer than it needs to be. I think it would be a better book at 75-100 pages shorter, at least. However, it’s still highly entertaining as is, and I thoroughly enjoyed myself. I would happily read another Peng Shepherd book, and I was thrilled to get an ARC of this one. Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow!

4.25 stars!

This book is incredibly creative and like nothing I’ve read before which I’ve come to expect from Shepherd. My issue with it was that I just did not like the main character, Marsh. She drove me nuts and seemed frankly, a little dumb and immature. This took a bit of story away for me.

I had some difficulties with the unconventional structure of this book and reading it in ebook form. I'm very interested in seeing the print version when it's released as it may resolve some of the issues I had with repetition within the plot (perhaps the "rules" will be easier to follow and I can understand what is deliberately nonlinear as opposed to my inability to read it the way it was intended).

I enjoyed the concept of this book very much. I think a lot more could be said about reality TV and audience engagement and production that wasn't explored. I had a little trouble feeling sympathetic to the character, though, who was handed everything, repeatedly, and had no gratitude for it and also seemed to have a lot of problems parsing what looked obvious to me as a reader -- the briefcase? Over and over?

I wish I had enjoyed this as much as I liked The Cartographers, but I felt myself having to work to push through whatever was going on with the structure of the galley itself, which made things in the plot overly repetitive, and my irritation with the main character. Again, I could change my mind when I see this in print. I also wonder if print readers will have a different experience than e-book readers.

I loved the premise of this book. Who doesn't want to read an adult version of a "create your own adventure" book? I was really into it initially; however, it felt like it took too long to get to the more "thriller" aspect of this novel for me and I think I still have questions (and yes I read all three possible ending options to see which one I liked the best). 😂

Kindly received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I loved the way this book was written and the ability it gave the reader to choose a direction for the main character, Marsh. It's definitely a more sophisticated choose-your-own-adventure book. The premise of the book is very interesting, and as a reader, I could relate to the idea of wanting to change portions of your life or improve your future if given the chance - so I could relate to the main character's desire to do so. But, at times, I found the story a bit hard to follow and a tad convoluted. It seemed to drag slightly in parts, and I found myself wanting to skip ahead. However, overall, this book was a unique and enjoyable read.

All This and More is an extremely creative concept brilliantly executed. This book was so cool! There’s really no other way to describe it. On top of the ability to choose the plot’s next direction, Shepherd also pulls off an increasingly disturbing atmosphere mixed with romantic angst and tension. For some reason I could not get David Egger’s The Circle out of my head. The ability to make different choices to remake your reality seems like exactly the type of technology that would be extremely dangerous in the hands of most people.

I loved making choices for Marsh, some good and some bad. While some events were eventually inevitable, like with any of our choices, it was fun to change how I got there. I enjoyed all three of the endings, each phenomenal in their own way. Then, I of course had to go back and explore all the different paths. It’s no easy thing to pull off all these different plot points and tie them together in a way that makes sense no matter the reader’s choices. This is an incredible feat and easily Shepherd’s best work yet!

This story is for anyone who wished they could go back and reread this favorite novel again like it’s the first time. With this story, you actually can!

Thank you to Netgalley and William Morrow for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Peng Shepherd is a genius. I loved The Cartographers for how Shepherd creatively told a story about copyright law as it pertained to mapmaking. In this book, Shepherd is just as creative in her storytelling, if not more so. Here, the reader chooses the adventure by following the protagonist, Marsh, as she appears on a reality show in hopes of improving her life. Marsh must make a series of choices to decide which life she prefers. Along the way, however, issues and a mystery persist that Marsh must resolve. Or not. Up to you! What is reality, anyway?

I read the book straight through with the default choices, but plan to reread and choose the alternatives to see how that story flows. Excluding assigned reading for law school, this may be the first book I have read into the wee hours in more than a decade because I could not put it down. This is also the first time in a long time that I wanted more from a book, not less, and the book is about 500 pages. I cannot decide if I am satisfied with the ending (endings?), but isn’t thinking about a book after reading it one of the best parts of a good book? This was so fun and I cannot wait to discuss the book with my book club this summer!

Thank you NetGalley and William Morrow for the advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

I adored this book. I literally could not out it down trying to see what would happen to our FMC, Marsh. The nostalgia for choose your own adventure books (and my love for the Cartographers) is what made me want to read this book. What an amazing feat this author pulled off. To have this many choices/endings and still have it make sense is astonishing. I loved the mystery within the book as well with what was really going on.

Highly recommend and I will absolutely buy the physical copy of the book when it comes out just to make sure that I actually read all the options.

Thank you netgalley, the publisher, and of course Peng Shepherd for this eARC.
Please see more of my review on Instagram - @bookish_starry_skies

***Side note - when I opened this book on my Kindle, it started at the second chapter. I'm glad that I realized it and went back otherwise I would have missed some important stuff, so in case this happens to you, make sure you go back!