Review: Happy Birthday to Me

Author: Brian Rowe
Pages: 322
Publisher: CreateSpace
Source: Review Copy (Thank you very much!)
Challenge: Debut Author Challenge
Synopsis:

Seventeen-year-old Cameron Martin has a huge problem: he’s aging a whole year of his life with each passing day. High school is hard enough; imagine rapidly aging from seventeen to seventy in a matter of weeks, with no logical explanation, and with prom, graduation, and the state championship basketball game on the horizon. That’s what happens to Cameron, a mischievous pretty boy who has never had to face a day looking anything but perfect. It starts with a slowing metabolism, followed by gray hair, wrinkles, and heart palpitations. Within days his girlfriend dumps him, his plastic surgeon father forces him to get a facelift, and his terrifying high school librarian seduces him to have sex with her. All he wants to do is go back to normal, but no one, not even the best doctors, can diagnose his condition. When he finds love with a young woman who may or may not be an all-powerful witch, he realizes that the only hope for his survival might be with the one person who instigated his condition in the first place...

Happy Birthday to Me by Brian Rowe was an unforgettable read. Cameron's aging day by day was one of the most terrifying things I've ever read of, and how he changed the way he lived his life was nothing but sweet. I am definitely going to be celebrating my youth much more.

Cameron is an epic jerk in the beginning. To a hilarious degree. He basically treats the world like he's the center of it. The way he pretends it's his birthday so that everyone at restaurants has to give him free cake and sing happy birthday made me think he has serious issues. Reading about this guy at the beginning made me hate him. But what he faced later on was so hard and I wouldn't wish it on my enemy. He grew up in the end and that was what counted to me. I even may have shed a tiny tear or two because of his maturity.

My favourite character in the book was Cameron's sister. She was so sweet and pure and just an amazing, unusual character. She loved her brother unconditionally and she ultimately made me like Cameron even more. Her character added depth to Cameron's character, and she was just really well thought out.

What I didn't expect was the humour. I laughed many times when reading Happy Birthday to Me. There were some scenes where I swear, I was thinking "Oh no, that COULDN'T have just happened." But it did. And it was memorable. I don't think I'll ever read a novel quite like Happy Birthday to Me again.

The one thing I wasn't too fond of was that the whole story didn't feel believable to me at times. Mostly the character's actions and reactions. During some heartfelt scenes I was suspicious for the character changing. I couldn't understand or relate to their choices. Some of the dialogue didn't feel real to me too but it didn't bother me enough to have an issue with the book. I would have enjoyed learning a bit more about the characters but that I expect will be resolved in future books.

Overall, I had fun on Happy Birthday to Me's ride. It was a sweet, cute novel and that's why I'm giving it 3.5 stars,

*** &1/2 *