A Pretty Implausible Premise

by Karen Rivers, Christian Barillas (Read by), Katie Schorr (Read by), Dan Bittner (Read by)

Overview

In this touching novel, Hattie and Presley’s instant connection seemed implausible—almost impossible—but falling in love is exactly what they needed to escape the ghosts of their pasts.

Head-spinning, Taylor-Swift-song-level feelings. Their instant connection seems implausible, even impossible, as they start to realize all they have in common. Both are grieving, living in worlds haunted by ghosts; both have a parent who's out of sight, not out of mind; and both were forced to give up their Olympic dreams. Connected by experiences only they understand, Hattie and Presley fall into a whirlwind romance—flirting at their workplace, sleeping side by side beneath the stars, ice skating to a playlist all their own. But like the wildfires surrounding their California town, the trauma that haunts them is unrelenting. Can they overcome their losses without losing each other? Or will their ghosts break them apart?

Perfect for fans of Nicola Yoon and Rachel Lynn Solomon, A Pretty Implausible Premise explores the power of a love beyond comprehension, and how seemingly implausible connections can be the ones we need the most. 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781668638972
Publisher:	Hachette Book Group
Publication date:	09/26/2023
Product dimensions:	5.80(w) x 5.60(h) x 1.10(d)
Age Range:	12 - 17 Years

About the Author

Karen Rivers’s books have been nominated for a wide range of literary awards and have been published in multiple languages. When she’s not writing, reading, or teaching other people how to write, she can usu­ally be found hiking and taking photos in the forest that flourishes behind her tiny old house in Victoria, British Columbia, where she lives with her two kids, three dogs, and three birds. Find her online at karenrivers.com and on Twitter: @karenrivers.

Katie Schorr is an actor and writer in New York. Her one-woman show, Take
Me. Seriously, ran for six months at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater,
and she performs throughout New York in new works at the Ensemble Studio
Theatre and Ars Nova, among other theaters. She has appeared on VH1’s Best Week Ever and costars in the web series Head in the Oven with Saturday Night Live actor Bill Hader.
Her audiobook credits include narrating the novels in Alyson Noel’s bestselling
Immortals series. Of her work on the series, AudioFile magazine has said, “Narrator Katie Schorr has a wonderfully raspy, youthful voice, which she puts to good effect on the cast of teenage characters.”

Dan Bittner is an actor and voice talent and winner of several AudioFile Earphones Awards for audio narration. He has starred on stage and on the screen, in movies such as Men in Black, Adventureland, and the Producers: The Movie Musical. He has also appeared onstage as Macbeth and Sherlock Holmes in the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

Christian Barillas is an Earphones Award–winning audio narrator and actor based in Los Angeles with credits in theater, film, and television. His professional career began with Center Theater Group’s A Very Old Man with Enourmous Wings, a short story by Gabriel García Márquez. He then appeared in several productions in and around Los Angeles including As You Like It, Sonia Flew, and A Christmas Carol. On television, he is perhaps most recognizable as Ronaldo on Modern Family, where he appears opposite Tony winner and Emmy nominee Nathan Lane.

Editorial Reviews

★ 07/31/2023

Southern California high school senior and competitive swimmer Hattie, whose mother left the family when Hattie was six, has been haunted by the memory of seven-year-old Elijah Johnston, who recently drowned while Hattie was lifeguarding. Now, she gets panic attacks when she attempts to swim, making her feel that her Olympic aspirations are forfeit, as is her belief that stardom will lure her mother back to her. Meanwhile, Canadian transplant Presley, a decorated figure skater, grieves his twin who died in the car crash that also left Presley with career-ending injuries. When Hattie and Presley meet, he recognizes Hattie’s “haunted shimmer,” and the two immediately fit together with “an almost audible click.” Romantic feelings flourish as they bond over their shared losses and feelings of guilt, and as wildfires threaten their town. Rivers (You Are the Everything) organically pulls off the improbable premise of love conquering all; lightly speculative elements, smart attention to each minute detail, and Hattie and Presley’s convincing character arcs proffer an at once melancholy and joyful romance. Main characters read as white. Ages 12–up. Agent: Jennifer Laughran, Andrea Brown Literary. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for A Pretty Implausible Premise:

"Told in literary and lyrical prose, this stunning contemporary coming-of-age novel rings romantically and nostalgically true. Contemporary readers will enjoy the snug-fitting references to Taylor Swift and (less obviously) John and Hank Green that give the novel a real world feel without inducing a cringe or a real threat of datedness, even for future readers... Heartfelt and cerebral enough to be cognitively delicious but not elitist, the prose and characterization make the overall result feel like a warm, glowing sunset." —Booklist, starred review

"Rivers organically pulls off the improbable premise of love conquering all; lightly speculative elements, smart attention to each minute detail, and Hattie and Presley’s convincing character arcs proffer an at once melancholy and joyful romance." —Publishers Weekly, starred review

"Rivers explores trauma with sensitivity: Readers see the wide range of emotions and coping mechanisms that can come into play." —Kirkus Reviews

Praise for You Are the Everything:

“This is good choice for those who enjoyed E. Lockhart’s We Were Liars or books with pieces that only fit together after a surprising ending. Fans of unreliable narrators and twist endings will clamor for this story of romance and survival.” —School Library Journal, starred review

“Philosophical readers will find much to love here; Rivers picks apart the nuances of friendship and romance, with their attendant loyalties and conflicts . . .  You Are the Everything is an unusual and compelling novel that skillfully plays with narrative perspective.” —Booklist, starred review

“Well-written and emotionally resonant, this is an unusual and poignant story . . . that explores unfulfilled dreams and ideas of what might have been.” —Kirkus Reviews

"If you're looking for a contemporary romance that's different from any other book you've ever read, this one is for you.” —Young Adult Books Central

From the Publisher

2023-06-21
Two teens navigating recent tragedies feel an instant connection when they meet on their first day of senior year, but the guilt they each carry threatens their burgeoning relationship.

Hattie’s mother took off 11 years ago. Since then, Hattie and her dad have fantasized about how the three will be reunited when Hattie swims on the U.S. team at the Olympics. But since 7-year-old Elijah drowned while Hattie was lifeguarding, Hattie has been unable to fathom a future that involves swimming. Presley has relocated from Victoria, British Columbia, to Southern California with his mum and her wife. He and his twin brother, Mac, were ice-skating phenoms until Mac was killed in an auto accident that left Presley with injuries that ended his competitive figure skating dreams. Both feel responsible for the people they have lost, and both deal with physical manifestations of their grief; it is mutual recognition of loss that draws the two together. Their relationship quickly deepens in ways that uncannily parallel the romance novel that has been Hattie’s lifeline since Elijah’s death. Caring friends, an evacuation spurred by wildfires, and an impromptu road trip all play parts in helping the teens move toward healing. Rivers explores trauma with sensitivity: Readers see the wide range of emotions and coping mechanisms that can come into play. Hattie and Presley are cued white; there is some diversity in race and sexual orientation among their friends.

Implausible? Maybe, but also smart and infused with enough heart to make suspending disbelief a pleasure. (Fiction. 12-18)

Kirkus Reviews