Proof of Forever, by Lexa Hillyer

Joy, Tali, Luce, and Zoe were best friends. At Camp Okahatchee, they were so close they were practically a single person because one was rarely (if ever) seen without the others. 

But that was two years ago. And a lot has changed in two years. Awkward Tali became pretty and popular, Luce and Zoe got boyfriends, and Joy... Well, Joy flat-out disappeared, cutting herself off from her friends and the world without any explanation (she even took down her Facebook!). Turns out Joy has been keeping a secret about something that happened that year the girls were all 15, the summer before she made her big exit. Actually, ALL the girls had secrets about things that happened that summer. And it is these secrets that, eventually, drove them apart.

Then the girls, now 17, attend a camp reunion. Prompted by the camp director, they reluctantly agree to take a group photo like the one that was taken that last summer they were still the best of friends. They step into the photo booth...the camera flashes...and the girls are magically transported back in time to when they were 15. The girls have been somehow granted a second chance to fix whatever they each did to break up their friendship. But will they be able to fix the past? Even more, will they want to?

I was really looking forward to Proof of Forever by Lexa Hillyer, as it was described as read-alike for Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, a series I'd read some years back and remember really liking. But unfortulatlly the story fell flat for me. The characters seemed a bit cliche (even the main four), the plot required far too much belief suspension (time travel stories are tricky & have to be done just right), and the Big Reveal at the end felt like nothing more than a last-ditch effort to make the story interesting (No Spoilers, but it was very Lifetime Movie of the Week). For a book I was so excited about, I was very disappointed.

The Verdict: Proof of Forever will definitely have its audience. In fact. there are those of you who will love it. It just wasn't for me.

Let us know what you think! --AJB