One day, after weeks of secret planning, seventeen-year-old Annika Dietty leaves home at dawn to run away with her boyfriend, the charming and popular Dylan Sopick. She tried telling her friends and family how amazing Dylan is, but seeing as they all seem set against the relationship, she’s decided their only chance is to run away together.
But not everything goes according to plan, and Dylan seems to be having more and more trouble dealing with every obstacle they encounter. At first Annika is sympathetic, knowing that he’s had a harder life than she has, but very soon Dylan’s behaviour becomes unsettling, and Annika realizes that her safety is at stake. She finally admits to herself that Dylan needs support that she can’t provide. She wants to get him help — if she’ll get the chance.
My Thoughts
It’s been a while since I’ve had a book keep me up reading until 2:00 a.m. to see how it ends!
The 11th Hour is intense and fast-paced. The characters are well developed, the book is well written, the plot has a lot of hook. I also LOVE the cover.
I don’t really have anything I didn’t like about this novel. If I need to find something to pick on, a couple of times I thought the back stories were a bit long winded. I also didn’t think the very last chapter was necessary.
I did, however, really liked the structure of the novel, the whole story takes place in one day which adds to the speed at which the story moves.
The setting around the cabin was beautiful and dangerous. The descriptions were so vivid, the author made it easy to see the forest setting and feel the torrential storm.
The main character, Annika, was likable and it was easy to see how she ended up in this situation with a dangerous boyfriend. The story is relatable — it’s so easy to be on the outside of a relationship and see it’s wrong, and yet so difficult to be in the relationship and see what’s wrong. Scarrow nails this dance squarely on the head.
I absolutely recommend this book. It’s for a YA and up audience.
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This is an unsolicited review, I purchased a copy from Amazon.ca.
- Paperback: 192 pages
- Publisher: Dundurn (Feb. 24 2018)
- ISBN-13: 978-1459740372
