The Clay Lion

Admittedly this story has a bit of a heartbreaking premise so you might be hesitant to jump in because after all who wants to knowingly spend their time on something full of sorrow? The Clay Lion though breaks the normal rules and is the start to a wonderful series thanks to the skillful writing talents of Amalie Jahn who provides one of those stories that grabs you and won’t let go.

She has created a powerfully visual story but still manages to leave enough open to allow the reader to put something of themselves into plot and characters so you feel invested in taking this journey. Although we often hate to hear the phrase “everything happens for a reason”, somehow Jahn manages to take that idea and make it beautifully inspiring.

This is just one of those books that makes you glad you chose to put a pause on the life button so you can take time to fall head long into the world Jahn creates. You’ll smile, cry, feel your heart break, and keep picking yourself up to push through to the end as she walks you through this journey and her own interpretation of the stages of grief from hope to healing with a dash of love along the way.

Even if the time travel thing feels like it’s been done before and you may be burned out on it you should still give her a chance to show you what she’s done with the age old idea of what would we do with a second chance?

Imagine how tempting it would be to save someone who means everything to you. If you could save them, you would. No matter the cost. Because that's what family, and love, is. But there is great risk involved for Brooke, a girl hellbent on saving her brother, because this will require her utilising her once in a lifetime chance to travel back to the time that she thinks might have caused her recently deceased brother Branson to have become ill. But there are rules. Whilst everyone over eighteen might be entitled to this time travelling trip (just once!), they absolutely must not meddle with the past - it is simply a chance to live six months of your life all over again. Unless you're Brooke and you couldn't care less about the rules; all that matters is saving your brother.

Brooke is a great character. She does exactly what I think anyone hurting would do. She has a believable voice, and the author wonderfully captures the familial bond between siblings, but also parents and their children. I really connected with the story, and appreciated that whilst Brooke was grieving, she was motivated by something bigger which kept the story less upsetting and more hopeful than you might expect from what is ostensibly a sad topic.

The concept of time travel alone, forgetting about Brooke and her story for now, was really cleverly done. There were lots of ideas, like the rules of time travel for example or the domino effect of simply saying something differently when you go back in time from what you said before. It's mind boggling if you think about it too hard, but really entertaining and kept my mind turning ideas over for hours.

This is a clever, fast-paced and really addictive book. It kept me up for hours wondering what I might do if I could go back, but most of all I really felt something from seeing through Brooke's eyes. The sheer determination to save someone you love, but also the helplessness of watching them suffer and being absolutely powerless is something I'm sure many people can relate to. I would be surprised if this book didn't hit almost every reader hard; this author really gets it, and I'm so pleased I read this.