03:59 audiobook

Holy cow! This book was awesome! I have been on such a contemporary kick that I have been neglecting all of the other genres that I used to love. Including fantasy and science fiction. Oh, how foolish I have been. 3:59 reminded me just how much I love these genres. I need to go find other fantasy books to read right away. I haven't experienced a Gretchen McNeil book yet, but I have no idea what I was waiting for. This book is easily the best written, most exciting book I have read all year. 3:59 is very science heavy, but I never felt lost or confused by the scientific jargon. You could tell that Gretchen clearly did her research and she explained everything we needed to know really well through Josie and Penelope. (the two science-y ones in the story.)I loved that even though there are two doppelgangers, Josie and Jo in this story it was only told through Josie's point of view. It would have been easy to switch back and forth between her and Jo in the beginning of the book when they were first seeing each other through the mirror, but I was so excited that the point of view never switched. I thought it really added to the story to have Josie put everything together for herself. Josie is such a smart girl- brilliant really, but she is also just a teenage girl that recently got dumped by her boyfriend. So when she looked in the mirror and saw her boyfriend happy with her other self, she saw what she wanted to see. That is what made her go from a good character to a great character in my mind. That sounds silly, doesn't it? but she was so realistic. She isn't perfect, she made some mistakes, but she more than made up for them in the rest of the book. There are so many twists and turns in 3:59, I couldn't even predict half of them. Which made for such an exciting read! I couldn't put this book down. I was on the edge of my seat for the whole thing. When I had to stop reading to run errands or to do some work, I was actually annoyed that real life was interrupting my reading time. Gretchen McNeil knows how to write creepy. Man, the Nox was something I would have nightmares about. I would hate to live in a world with them. But they were fascinating. Everything in her world was actually. If you are a "world building" fan, you will LOVE 3:59 because the detail and description in this book is grade A. I think 3:59 is a must read book of 2013. Whether you are a fan of fantasy and science fiction or not, you need to read this book.

I don't usually start reviews like this, but...Oh my fucking God. I am dead. I can not live. Guys. I just. No. My heart. It fails me. GUYS. Oh my fuck. I can not even. But. Just. Everything hurts.So I absolutely have to start off with the sci-fi aspect of this. There is a ton of sci-fi in there and Gretchen McNeil obviously did her research. There were so many theories thrown around, not to mention a ton of...oh God, I don't even know what to call them, much less understand! But the sci-fi is hardcore in 3:59, and you just have to love the scientific explanations and...other. I can't guarantee you'll understand, but I can promise that it'll blow your mind away! And you guys, the plot. I can't even. It was filled with suspense and anticipation (read: me hyperventilating) and I just couldn't put it down! It hooked me in straight away and then proceeded to kill me several times. It was filled with so many twists I hadn't seen a mile away and smacked me in the face, leaving me astonished and shocked. Not to mention, the ending? Oh, it just breaks your heart. I just loved our characters who were so brilliantly written (much like the rest of the book) and so wonderfully flawed, especially in the parallel world. Josie is the kind of character you have to love. She's been through a lot and she's easy to relate to. I loved her voice and how she wasn't the perfect character. She had her selfish moments and she had her brave ones. She was smart and a bit nerdy, but wasn't the stereotypical "loser" nerd. Nick was sweet in our world, but, of course, was a dick later on. But in the parallel world? Oh God, you have to love him! Madison...I couldn't believe her, how she could change personalities so quickly! It was disgusting and I sort of hated her. But she was definitely kickass in the parallel world and I loved seeing the few, but definitely interesting, interactions Josie had with her! The romance isn't a big part of the book, but you can't help but cheer Nick and Josie on! I can't say much, but I need an epilogue. That is all. This was my first Gretchen McNeil book, but you can count on it not being my last. With the amazingness that is 3:59, I'm now scrambling to read her other works! While I haven't read Ten (despite having a copy), my friends have read and loved it, so I can only assume that McNeil is as much a genius with all her books.I absolutely was not expecting to love 3:59 this much. I had high hopes for sure, but...oh God, they were just completely blown away. And that's saying a lot. 3:59 is a gorgeously written sci-fi thriller that literally had my heart pounding from chapter one and wanting to sob an ocean in the last.I have to recommend to absolutely everyone, sci-fi fans or no, everyone has to read this so they can scream with me.

**Special Note:** My KP, Stacee from the wonderfully fabulous Adventures of a Book Junkie, let me borrow her ARC of this title. All quotes and opinions will be of this version and not from the published edition.My full review will have to wait until my closer to the publication date, but you should all know that this was AMAZING! 3:59 was such a unique, well-delivered book-- fantastic characters, engaging and perfectly crafted plot, and surprising twists (OH THE TWISTS!)-- that made for a spectacular read.I'd give it an actual rating of 4.75 stars, but only technically, and ONLY because I'd love to have an epilogue in the published version. Something more concrete about a possible reunion.(This will make more sense after you've read it, which you absolutely should do.)

Another action-packed thriller from Gretchen McNeil. Every book I read by McNeil is better than the last. In 3:59 I especially enjoyed the science and technology references; they made the multiple dimensions she created feel even more realistic. Overall 4.5/5 stars; I really hope there is a sequel!

This is the second book I've read by Gretchen and I have to say, I think she's officially one of my go-to authors now. I LOVED this book. It was super creepy, suspenceful and cleverly written. I was particularly impressed by the extensive science to her fiction...I didn't understand any of it but it sounded super sciency and convincing! :-)Josie was a great main character - likeable and strong, but REAL too. She makes choices for the wrong reasons, has selfish moments, and doesn't always have the best judgment about people. But she's also SUPER smart, caring, and nuanced as a character. I really enjoyed watching her explore the new world she finds herself in. And having the juxtaposition of her doppleganger Jo was really cool.In general, "cool" is a really good word for this book. There were so many moments when I thought "that's so cool!" or "what a cool twist" or "ooooh....he's cooool." ;-) I loved the mythology/science Gretchen created and the concept of many worlds. As I said, it was all so cool!So if you like thrillers, scifi, Joss Whedon, stuff that's cool....you should definitely check out 3:59 when it arrives in September!

This book has a fascinating concept/premise. I really liked the alternate world scenario, and the doppelgangers who weren’t quite copies of each other. They had their own personalities—some similar to Josie’s world and some far from it. The physics jargon went over my head, but that tech-speak did lend an air of reality to the novel. I was surprised by the ending, but how it turned out is probably more realistic. The thing that bothered me the most (I’m trying to stay vague and avoid spoilery details here) was the kissing scene near the end that occurred right after a horrific death. I sincerely doubt either of them would’ve been in the mood to kiss after that. It’s like they forgot it even happened, which was far from emotionally realistic. Parts of the novel were extremely gory in description, with the Nox attacks. Overall, an entertaining read.

Das war richtig cool! Perfekte Unterhaltung für zwischendurch und spannungsgeladene, interessante Story. Die Charaktere waren okay (für meinen Geschmack eeeetwas zu stereotypisch), aber die Idee war einfach klasse. Ob der physikalische Aspekt der Geschichte nun Hand und Fuß hatte, lasse ich allerdings mal dahingestellt. 😅

My lovely friend Stacee was wonderful and allowed me to borrow this book from her and I need to send her more baked goods for it. Josie Byrne isn't happy... her parents are divorcing and her best friend and boyfriend totally betray her. She's stuck in a life where she's unhappy and no one really seems to care one bit about her.Then something interesting happens. Every twelve hours at 3:59 she dreams about someone else's life. From what she can see, Jo has everything that she wants. Parents who love her, a boyfriend who adores her and no money worries. And then she sees something in her mirror one night. Jo. The person looking back out at her is exactly like her... sort of. With a few minor changes they suddenly look identical and decide to switch places for 24 hours. But of course things aren't as perfect as they may seem on the other side of that mirror, and Jo isn't going to leave Josie's world willingly. I have to be honest, I sat down and read this book in a day... mostly because I had to know what was going to happen. McNeil does suspense incredibly well, and 3:59 is no exception to that statement. Alternate universe books aren't new by any means, but McNeil gives us readers a different look at it. What if there are universes that run simultaneously with ours... where there are people who look just like us but live completely different lives. I have no idea if this is true, but I imagine that there are scientists out there somewhere examining this very idea. McNeil took this and made me believe it could totally happen. What I enjoyed the most I think was Josie's growth as a character. She was so woe is me to begin with and I felt like she was such a doormat there when all the stuff in the beginning goes down. Did I feel sorry for her? Of course, but I wanted her to kick some people in the junk for their actions. She matures quite a bit in a matter of days and it was satisfying to see that. Overall I really enjoyed this suspense filled story. It was filled with twists and turns that I didn't predict and it kept me on the edge of my seat turning pages like a madwoman. The only thing I'd have liked would have been a bit more closure at the end there - I immediately wondered if we might see a novella or a second book coming to go with this once I turned that last page. I would definitely love to see either. *cough cough* Thank you Stacee - you're the awesomest ever for sharing with me. Definitely add this one to your to be read list if you're looking for a new and different twist on the multiple universe story. This one was written with a fresh voice and characters that you will both love and hate! This review can be found on my blog, Fic Fare:

RUN-DOWN Josie's life is going downhill.Her parents just got divorced, her boyfriend cheated on her with her best friend, and her life isn't getting any better.Then she starts having dreams, always at 3:59 AM. She dreams of a perfect life. Her parents still married, still with her boyfriend, and popular. Until she realizes that the dreams aren't dreams at all, but the life of another girl. And she's Josie, just from a different world.They decide to switch places, just for a day, and Josie finds out that the other girl's life isn't as perfect as it seemed...But Josie can't go back home. MY THOUGHTS This is my first book by Gretchen McNeil, and I definitely want to read more! I LOVED this book!I absolutely love the idea of parallel worlds, and that was just what this book was about!The book starts out slow at first. You have to actually see how Josie's life is spiraling down. But once the parallel world sets in the pace picks up!But I most definitely recommend this book!!