When I was younger, I never really cared all that much for romantic comedy-related media. But as I’ve gotten older, I’ve discovered this romantic sense in myself; a love for affection and an enjoyment for silly Christmas Hallmark Channel movies. Romcom books and chicklit haven’t really been top genres for me when it comes to books — unless it was poorly written fanfiction or The Princess Bride — and it’s not a genre I immediately go for. Before reading it, I’d heard about The Seven Year Slip by Ashley Poston online before and I thought it was a very interesting premise: a self-contained time traveling location instead of individuals traveling through time. So why not give it a try and see if I could get into chicklit?
Book Review: The Seven Year Slip by Ashley Poston
I listened to the bulk of The Seven Year Slip while on my recent Hawaii trip; on the flights there and the flights home. What you need to know — as you can probably tell from the title and premise — is this is very much a romantic comedy, female-driven story:
“Sometimes, the worst day of your life happens, and you have to figure out how to live after it. So Clementine forms a plan to keep her heart safe: work hard, find someone decent to love, and try to remember to chase the moon. The last one is silly and obviously metaphorical, but her aunt always told her that you needed at least one big dream to keep going. And for the last year, that plan has gone off without a hitch. Mostly. The love part is hard because she doesn’t want to get too close to anyone—she isn’t sure her heart can take it.
And then she finds a strange man standing in the kitchen of her late aunt’s apartment. A man with kind eyes and a Southern drawl and a taste for lemon pies. The kind of man that, before it all, she would’ve fallen head-over-heels for. And she might again.
Except, he exists in the past. Seven years ago, to be exact. And she, quite literally, lives seven years in his future.”
The Seven Year Slip. Ashley Poston. https://www.ashposton.com/the-seven-year-slip.
With that being said, you can get an idea of how the book ends from the very beginning but reading this book is still a fun romp to take for a ride. At the core, it’s like any other romance: you know how it ends, and you want the two leads to get together at the end, and you still enjoy the process even if it’s silly. I’m not annoyed when I guess the plot in this book, though, like I do with thrillers; those are meant to be surprising and twisty, but I don’t mind it here at all. Several attributes of The Seven Year Slip stand out to me and make this a really good book that I thoroughly enjoyed reading.
First: let’s talk about the magical realism. Our leading lady Clementine (we’ll talk about the name later), inherits an apartment from her late aunt and ees a strange man in it one day. That’s because the apartment itself travels through time. Everything outside of that apartment is in the present —- the apartment building, the city of New York, and all the other characters — and it is only when Clementine goes through that door that she is transported into the past. It’s a self-contained portal and I really like it. I love the magical realism of this random time travel (since it doesn’t work all the time) because it means still having the concept of time travel without having to worry about all the mechanics of what could go wrong. It’s light and casual.
Second: Let’s talk about the character development. What I really love about The Seven Year Slip is how the two main characters both go through a lot of character development, both go on their own journeys, and both realize things by the end. It’s nice to have the love story, yes, but also having characters that don’t need to be “fixed” and instead go through this natural path of self-discovery that leads them back to each other. It’s all about meeting on common ground again and reconnecting with something really special.
Clementine and our beau, Iwan, are so adorable and cute together and I love them. Very lovely chemistry and dynamics between the two. But what’s more than that they’re not static; they’re not static in their wants or needs or thoughts. I love that they’re both very flawed and are navigating their own lives and learning and growing, but they grow into better people for each other. I know I hate the trope of a woman throwing away her life for a man, but although Clementine makes some big moves at the end of the book, it’s not for the guy, or even love for the guy. It’s because of her own happiness and what she wants to do. That I really, really like — it’s all about finding happiness (for both leads) and I love that.
It feels a lot like the romance drives the plot of the book, but it also leads to this amazing personal development, too. I really like the connections between the leads — romantically, personally and, narratively. A common theme in this story is timing and how timing matters a lot in love and in life, especially when it comes to changing as people and growing as people.
I loved this Ashley Poston pick and I would highly recommend it if you’re a fan of time travel or if you’re a fan of chicklit and are looking for a really interesting take on a classic sci-fi concept. I loved reading this and I would totally revisit it again in the future.
My Hot Takes (Possible Spoiler Warning)
- We get it, Iwan’s smile is crooked. It is mentioned between three and six times in the first four to five chapters we’ve known this guy. He has also “clicked his tongue to the roof of his mouth” about four times.
- This book needs to stop saying that everything feels like Pop Rocks in Clementine’s stomach. “Barked a laugh” is also a very frequent phrase the author uses.
- Yes, the leads do that thing where they sleep in the same bed. Yes it is a cliche but that is one I like.
- Clementine is a very silly name and it’s hard to get behind. I think it works for magical realism, and for some plot points and the way the story is structured, but it’s still hard to get used to in real life.
- Totally called the identity of the head chef and Vera.
- I really like that Present Day Iwan knows about the apartment; that’s different and not like what you’d expect and I like it. I like that it’s a common obstacle.
My Rating: 5/5 Stars
