The Book of Tomorrow by Cecelia Ahern

Title/Author: The Book of Tomorrow by Cecelia Ahern
Publisher/Date published: January 25th 2011 by HarperCollins
How I got this book: received it from the publisher through NetGalley
Why I read this book: I enjoyed P.S. I Love You.

Goodreads summary: "Tamara Goodwin has always got everything she's ever wanted. Born into a family of wealth, she grew up in a mansion with its own private beach, a wardrobe full of designer clothes and all that a girl could ever wish for. She's always lived in the here and now, never giving a second thought to tomorrow. But then suddenly her dad is gone and life for Tamara and her mother changes forever. Left with a mountain of debt, they have no choice but to sell everything they own and move to the country. Nestled next to Kilsaney Castle, their gatehouse is a world away from Tamara's childhood. With her mother shut away with grief, and her aunt busy tending to her, Tamara is lonely and bored and longs to return to Dublin. When a travelling library passes through Kilsaney Demesne, Tamara is intrigued. Her eyes rest on a mysterious large leather bound tome locked with a gold clasp and padlock. What she discovers within the pages takes her breath away and shakes her world to its core."

I didn't like this book as much as I thought I would. I really wanted to, but it fell short somehow.

Tamara is not a very likeable character, I can understand her behaviour, seeing what she's been through, but it's not endearing. But on the other hand, she's completely aware of this and comments on it. I did think it was rather weird that people she didn't know and who had no idea of what happened to her father, somehow thought she was charming and wanted to spend more time with her. For all of her being obnoxious, she was too well-liked in my opinion.

And I don't get how her aunt managed to controll everything the way she did, it was weird and annoying. I didn't really connect with the characters, the only one I liked was one of the nuns who lived nearby, she was spunky!

I did like the idea of the diary, the entries (written in Tamara's own handwriting, to make it extra creepy) each day tell her what will happen the next day. I liked how Tamara reacted to it and tried to right the things she's done wrong according to the diary.

**Possible SPOILER**
I did not appreciate her sacrificing her mother's health in order to prove she was right about the diary. If it had been my mom, I would have rather been not believed by a possible friend than risk my mom not being ok.
**end of possible spoiler**

In the end, there was a whole lot of intrigue that I sort of had seen coming. Not the whole thing, but I guessed a lot of it. And I thought it was rather unrealistic and a bit weird.

In all honesty, I expected more of it and it gets 2 stars because I did like the idea of the diary and one of the nuns.

My rating: 2 stars