*I received a free copy of Relativity from Gallery Books via Edelweiss. This has in no way influenced my voluntary review, which is honest and unbiased *
Relativity by Antonia Hayes Published by Gallery Books on 3 May 2016
Genres: Contemporary, Realistic Fiction
Pages: 368
Format: eARC
Source: Edelweiss
Twelve-year-old Ethan Forsythe, an exceptionally talented boy obsessed with physics and astronomy, has been raised alone by his mother in Sydney, Australia. Claire, a former professional ballerina, has been a wonderful parent to Ethan, but he’s becoming increasingly curious about his father’s absence in his life. Claire is fiercely protective of her talented, vulnerable son—and of her own feelings. But when Ethan falls ill, tied to a tragic event that occurred during his infancy, her tightly-held world is split open.
Thousands of miles away on the western coast of Australia, Mark is trying to forget about the events that tore his family apart, but an unexpected call forces him to confront his past and return home. When Ethan secretly intercepts a letter from Mark to Claire, he unleashes long-suppressed forces that—like gravity—pull the three together again, testing the limits of love and forgiveness.
Told from the alternating points of view of Ethan and each of his parents, Relativity is a poetic and soul-searing exploration of unbreakable bonds, irreversible acts, the limits of science, and the magnitude of love.
Relativity is a gem! Ethan is an amazing tween, smart, open-minded and extremely attaching. His story is complicated, and filled with equal measures of heartache and hope.
I didn’t really know what to expect when I started Relativity, such a strong, heart-wrenching story was not it, though. That’s what I got – Ethan was such a great main character to follow. He’s young, but very wise, and so smart! Some of the things he talked about went way over my head, but I still never felt stupid. Since he was a baby, Ethan has lived with his mom, Claire, and they have done really well for themselves. Even with Ethan’s problems – which in many ways won’t really be problems once he becomes an adult – Ethan and Claire managed to have a great relationship, and Ethan did really well in school. In the back of his mind, however, Ethan has been wondering who his father is, and why he isn’t a part of their lives.
As the story unfolds, Relativity shows the many layers of the characters, and also how there is always more than one side to each story. I was also struck by how a good person can definitely do a very bad thing, and thus not only have their own life completely changed, but the lives of those around them as well. There is also a very strong sense of all actions having some kind of consequence – and sometimes, those consequences are very hard to live with.
The characters really drove the story in Relativity, Claire, Mark and Ethan all have their specific personalities, and their voice was very different. I loved that they each had chapters where their perspective was shared, because it gave a lot of insight into how they dealt with life in general, and their problems in particular. The storyline itself felt very realistic to me, and there are some truly heart-breaking moments – for all three of the characters, but in different places and for various reasons.
The writing is really good, and I enjoyed the science parts – even the ones that were a bit difficult for me to grasp – and especially the conversations between Ethan and Mark, or between Ethan and Allison when he tried to explain wormholes to her with his perfect science-speak. The whole story unfolds in third person past tense, and the narrator is omniscient, even as each of the three main characters have their own chapters. Relativity captivated my mind and my heart from start to finish, and the road was beautiful, even with the difficult turns it sometimes took.
“Mum, do you think they ever miss me?” “Who?” “The other eggs. My brothers and sisters inside your ovaries. So far, I’m the only one who’s successfully made it out.” “Oh,” she said. “Well the other eggs would all be your sisters. Only men have the Y chromosome that makes baby boys. At the moment, all the eggs are girls.”
She loved her son in unexpected ways, with the same sort of visceral obsession that one might have for the idiosyncrasies of a lover. Claire loved his physicality – the way Ethan laughed so hard he farted, how he picked at the dry scabs on his knees, the weight of his musty head resting on her shoulder as they sat together on buses or trains. She enjoyed that silent intimacy most of all.
Time had stopped. It was an ordinary pocket watch: pale gold with a white face, a halo of black roman numerals around its edge. But the enamel of the dial had browned, the golden casing was coated in orange rust. Gears and shifts had frozen; there was no tick to follow the tock. No hand heaving forward, shaving another second off the future. Ethan pushed his nose against the glass. Time had stopped at seventeen minutes past eight.
Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
About Linda @ (un)Conventional Bookworms
Linda is an English as foreign language teacher and has a Master's degree in English Language and Literature. She's an avid reader, blogger, compulsive one-clicker and a genre omnivore. Ever since she learnt how to read she has been seen with a book or two in her hands everywhere she goes.
I love the cover, so cute! It’s always so great to have a great main character like that in a story!
Yeah, Ethan was really good, and I enjoyed his parents and their difficult past as well, Melliane.
I also read this book a view weeks ago and LOVED it!! I totally agree about the writing.. It was really good. Half the time I also totally didn’t get were all that science talk was all about, but it made this read even more special to me.
Great review! 😉
I think not understanding everything Ethan was talking about made it even more special, too, Maureen! Thanks for stopping by.
Twitter: ailynk
makes me want to read it now Xd i am sure the library would have it
It’s really good, Ailyn! Run to the library!! 😉
I bought this book just the other day and I’m even more excited to read it after reading your fabulous review! 🙂
I hope you’ll enjoy it as much as I did, Hayley!
This one sounds great! I like the idea of behind the story and I wouldn’t mind reading a little bit of science speak. Sounds like this book is full of great characters. Wonderful review, Lexxie!
It was so good, Carole! And the science speak didn’t bother me at all – but some of it did go over my head a little. I think that really emphasized how smart Ethan was, though 🙂
*grabby hands* I want! From the get-go of your review I knew this was a book I wanted to read, Lexxie. By the end, reading the quotes, I was crying. Yeah. Ethan sounds a bit like Jax in his love of science and things he talks about and says. And bottom line, this seems like a very powerful character-driven story. Thanks for sharing your thoughts on Relativity and for putting it on my must-read list! *sniff*
**BIG HUGS**
Oh, you need this book, Brandee! Especially if just those quotes made you cry… It’s so good! And Ethan is fantastic – I haven’t fallen for such a young character before, but Ethan really got to me. His parents were well portrayed as well, you are going to love Relativity. *BIG HUGS*
Lexxie! it’s been too long, i hope you’re doing okay.
For whatever reason this one seemed to have missed my radar but i’m so excited to get my hands on this one. I feel like it’s going to be a pretty emotional book and the quotes you added on only solidify that. Lovely review!
I’m so happy to see your name again, Lily! I’ve been a bit worried about you, actually, since you haven’t posted much since January. Relativity is a beautiful and emotional story,and I really think you’ll enjoy it, too!
Twitter: kbaby81
Okay, gimme gimme! I really want this book. I love realistic, character driven stories. Great review!
That’s why I loved it, too, Lekeisha! Character driven and realistic 🙂 And very well written, too 🙂
Twitter: talksupeblog
Wormholes. Something my son tried to explain to me countless times and I still don’t get why he’s making a big deal out of it. One time he caught me at a bad time and it even ended in a debate! hahaha!
This book reminds me a lot of Big Bang Theory. Do you get that show over there?
I kept flunking science in school, but The Big Bang Theory helped to keep me interested in the subject. Even though I feel like it’s way over my head, I still get enthusiastic about science!
Wormholes are made of awesome – because that makes it seem like time travel is actually possible, Braine. I totally get why your son thinks it’s a big deal – I wanna chat with him 🙂
We do get Big Bang Theory, but I haven’t actually watched it.
I thought it was a geeky romance, but I think the story is way lovelier than I imagined. I’m glad you still enjoyed it even though you didn’t know what to expect. I’m hoping we get more nerdy main characters in fiction! Smart speak is so sexy.
It’s not really a romance, Goldie, but it’s definitely geeky 🙂 And the story is way lovely, and I loved it! Of course, I also agree that smart speak is very sexy 🙂
This is one of my favorite books so far this year! I loved the family Hayes paints and I really found myself captivated by each of them. She wove science and story together so beautifully that it was relatable.