It's New Year's Eve 1992. Oona Lockhart will turn 19 at midnight and the year ahead holds many opportunities: she could tour with her band and be with her boyfriend, Dale, or continue her studies in London, England.
When the countdown to midnight begins, Oona faints and wakes up decades later as a fifty-one-year-old. Oona learns that every year on her birthday, she will wake up and be another age completely at random. And so it begins, Oona is out of order.
Margarita Montimore that was incredible! I loved decade hopping and bonus points for mentioning Depeche Mode, my favourite band ever!
Having Oona as a young adult who is trapped in bodies that don't match her age, or her life experience, was a unique take on the unreliable narrator. We experience everything at the same time that she does. This also means that the reader never gets to spend very much time with any of the Oonas with the exception of the spirit of nineteen-year-old Oona.
As humans, we measure things in life chronologically, but this book forces the main character to focus on the present moment and just be. We never find out why Oona time travels, and also how it works—why is this happening to her? But I did like how it made the book unpredictable and unexpected.
Montimore uses her full cast of well-written characters. They help guide Oona in all aspects of her life and don't give too much away. Although Oona has a few stumbles, her mother, Kenzie, and Madeleine allow her to exist, grow, and be present in the moment that she happens to be experiencing.
A fantastic concept that was flawlessly executed. How Montimore kept everything straight in this high-concept novel was impressive. Oona Out of Order was mesmerizing, nostalgic, and fresh.
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MARGARITA MONTIMORE has a BFA in Creative Writing from Emerson College. She worked for over a decade in publishing and social media before deciding to focus on her dream of being a full-time writer.
Montimore lives in New Jersey with her husband and dog.
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