Book Review: Don't Even Think About It by Sarah Mlynowski

Title: Don't Even Think About It

Author: Sarah Mlynowski
Series:  n/a
Pages:  304
Publisher: Orchard Books
Date of Publication: 1st May, 2014
Source: For review from the publisher via netGalley
Synopsis from Goodreads: This is the story of how we became freaks. It's how a group of I's became a we.

When Class 10B got their flu shots, they expected some side effects. Maybe a sore arm. Maybe a headache. They definitely didn't expect to get telepathy. But suddenly they could hear what everyone was thinking. Their friends. Their teachers. Their parents. Now they all know that Tess has a crush on her best friend, Teddy. That Mackenzie cheated on Cooper. That Nurse Carmichael used to be a stripper. Some of them will thrive. Some of them will break. None of them will ever be the same.

My Thoughts:
I'd heard a lot of good things about this book from people who've read it on Twitter and Goodreads, so I was excited to get started and once I had I knew it wouldn't take me long. I've only read one of Sarah Mlynowski's other books, Ten Things We Shouldn't Have Done. which I really enjoyed, and so I was expecting more of the same (which I'm happy to report, I got!). With a very readable voice and an interesting concept, Don't Even Think About It was a fun read that I'd definitely recommend for a light summer read.

The story goes like this: a class in a high school in America get their flu jabs. Or what they think are flu jabs. However, instead of vaccinating them against the flu, they get telepathy. Pretty cool, right? Well, at first it kind of is, for some of the students, at least... But then secrets start coming out and there's nowhere to hide, and that's where the story gets interesting.

I really liked the concept of the book. I've read about people who can mind read before, but as far as I can remember, I've never read anything about a whole group of people can read everyone's minds. It's much more interesting than just having say, one (*ahem*Edward Cullen*ahem*) who can read your mind - that's not much fun! I liked reading about how at first everyone was like, 'Ooh this is cool' and they can find out all of the gossip (who doesn't love a bit of gossip? ;) ) and then the downward spiral as they realise they no longer have any privacy any more and find out all about each other - things that they do not want to know, or to be known about themselves.

While I did enjoy it, there was one thing that really bugged me. There are so many characters and it jumps from each character's story without warning and without indication. There are at least fifteen in the class who get the telepathy, and the novel tries to follow all of their stories individually and it gets a bit confusing. It took me about half the book to finally be able to remember everyone's names, let alone what each of their secrets were and what their story was, and occasionally I had to flip back and reread sections just to remind myself of what had happened, which was kind of a bummer. By the end of the book though I'm pretty sure I had it all ironed out so don't let that put you off.

Overall Don't Even Think About It is a really good read, and I definitely recommend it if you're in the mood for a light-hearted and fun teenage drama with a little science fiction-esque twist. While it is perhaps a little messy in execution, the narrative voice is easy to read and it has a really authentic teenage feel to the story and the characters. I'm looking forward to reading more of Sarah's books in the future!


*Huge thanks to Orchard Books and NetGalley for allowing me access to this title in exchange for an honest review! In no way has this affected my opinion of the book.