Streetlight People by Charlene Thomas

The quick cut: A girl living in a small town finds her life turned upside down when she's given a way to bend time. 

A real review:

 Thank you to Dutton Books for providing the arc for an honest review.

 It never feels like we have enough time. If you had a way to relive the best moments though, would you? This is a question for Kady. 

 Kady has always felt rejected by the elite IV guys. Although her boyfriend is one of them, they've never accepted her presence in his life for some unknown reason. When his college life takes him away from town, she discovers a way to relive moments from the past. Will this power be a gift? Or come with a cost? 

 I typically love stories with magical realism because they're fantastical enough to inspire you, but close enough to reality to put you in the story. This book had a lot of those elements, but the characters were completely unlikable to me by the end. They were too selfish to see the reality of their lives and it ticked me off. 

 Kady comes off as this sweet girl who lives on the poor side of town, but she's not that good. She is definitely an unreliable narrator and by the end, she's a terrible person too. It's clear that she is leading on Aaron and that Nik isn't as devoted a boyfriend as she pretends he is. So maybe she deserves the end she got. 

 The only other narrator is Aaron and I wish his chapters were more important because most of the time his perspective didn't reveal any essential elements of the story. I enjoy dual perspective, but make it important. He's the most likeable character and he has good intentions at least. 

 Nik is a jerk and that only becomes more obvious over time. He lives in a fantasy land and lies to himself about how much his life works. Your friends actively hate on your girlfriend and you blow it off as no issue? That's weird on every level. 

 A fascinating concept with poor characters to support it. 

My rating: 3 out of 5