Guys, I'm so excited to have the amazing Rachel Carter on my blog today for the So Close to You blog tour! I just read the book the other day, and it was such a refreshing twist on the YA genre with little touches of just about everything I love in YA lit. If you haven't heard about this book yet, read this synopsis, and I dare you to tell me you don't want to read it:

Lydia Bentley has heard stories about the Montauk Project all her life: stories about the strange things that took place at the abandoned military base near her home and the people who've disappeared over the years. Stories about people like her own great-grandfather.

When Lydia stumbles into a portal that transports her to a dangerous and strange new reality, she discovers that all the stories she's ever heard about the Montauk Project are true, and that she's in the middle of one of the most dangerous experiments in history.

Alongside a darkly mysterious boy she is wary to trust, Lydia begins to unravel the secrets surrounding the Project. But the truths behind these secrets force her to question all her choices--and if Lydia chooses wrong, she might not save her family but destroy them . . . and herself.

1. Please describe SO CLOSE TO YOU in five words or less. 

Time travel. Mystery. Conspiracy. Love.

2. What, if anything in particular, inspired the story of SO CLOSE TO YOU? 

My biggest inspiration was hearing about the real-life conspiracy of the Montauk Project. The idea that the government could be hiding a secret paranormal project in a small town like Montauk, New York, was so interesting! I started doing more research and the story kept developing from there. 3. Lydia is such a strong character, and she is so full of life. Did you want to make her an empowering female MC? .

I did! But I also wanted her to seem like a real person, and real people are not always perfect and brave and right. Lydia is a seventeen-year-old girl who has her world turned upside down, and she has to struggle to make sense of that. Does she always make the right decision? Not necessarily. But at the core she’s strong and determined, and that definitely helps her handle this strange situation she finds herself in. 

4. What sort of research did you do to bring the alternate time period within SO CLOSE TO YOU alive? 

I read history books. I googled my brains out. But learning facts about a time period is not the same as living in it – for example, in a hundred years, if someone looks back at 2012 they’ll see that Justin Bieber was number one on the music charts. But that doesn’t reflect a true spectrum of what teens are actually listening to. So the most valuableresearch I did was talking with my grandmother about what life was like during World War II. She taught me the slang, the songs that were popular, and sheeven showed me her old yearbooks. 

5. Wes, though swoon-worthy, remains somewhat of an enigma. Will we ever get to explore his character deeper? 

Oh Wes. Mysterious, frustrating Wes. Don’t worry - you’ll see a lot more of him in book 2, and you’ll start to learn more about his past and his personality. But I think a part of him will always remain a little bit mysterious and closed off…it makes sense given his past. 

6. How did you choose the setting for SO CLOSE TO YOU? 

The setting was pretty easy – the book is about the Montauk Project, which takes place at the end of Long Island. And when I visited Montauk for the first time, I fell in love with the beachy, small-town vibe. In a weird way it reminded me of where I grew up, which was also in aresort town (though a ski resort in Vermont!). I felt like I instantly understood the relationship between outsiders and locals that happens in vacation towns, and that helped me a lot with the setting. 

7. What do you think makes SO CLOSE TO YOU stand out from the crowd in YA lit? 

So Close to You blends a lot of different genres. It’s a little bit sci-fi, a little romance, a little history. I don’t think you can easily put it into any YA category! 

8. What theme, if any, do you hope for readers to take away from SO CLOSE TO YOU? 

It’s a theme that all three books in the series will grapple with: Is discovering the truth about something worth it if you can’t always change your fate? 

9. Did you read books when you were younger that inspired a story of time travel? 

I used to love the Caroline B. Cooney books – Both Sides of Time, and Out of Time. They were so romantic! I need to go back and read those again…

10. Is there anything else you'd like to tell your readers? 

This has been such an amazing experience, and interacting with readers is definitely one of the best parts. Please feel free to email, tweet, or facebook me... I’d love to hear your thoughts on So Close to You!

Title: So Close to You
Author: Rachel Carter
Publisher: HarperTeen
Publish Date: July 10, 2012
Genre: YA, Sci-Fi
Pages: 313
Source: Publisher

Lydia Bentley has heard stories about the Montauk Project all her life: stories about the strange things that took place at the abandoned military base near her home and the people who've disappeared over the years. Stories about people like her own great-grandfather.

When Lydia stumbles into a portal that transports her to a dangerous and strange new reality, she discovers that all the stories she's ever heard about the Montauk Project are true, and that she's in the middle of one of the most dangerous experiments in history.

Alongside a darkly mysterious boy she is wary to trust, Lydia begins to unravel the secrets surrounding the Project. But the truths behind these secrets force her to question all her choices--and if Lydia chooses wrong, she might not save her family but destroy them . . . and herself.

Lydia grew up hearing the stories. However, they were always just that...stories, until one day the stories became a reality. When Lydia accidentally finds her way into a portal that transports her to a place and time where she learns the Montauk Project was actually true, her reality is turned upside down. But there's more to the Montauk Project than she could have ever imagined. Danger lurks in every corner Lydia turns, and she must be willing to risk it all to save her family - at all costs.

There's something so very different about So Close to You that sparked my interest in the story right from the start. Frankly, I think that the YA sci-fi genre is sadly lacking, though the stories that do fit the bill quite often far exceed my expectations. Rachel Carter took a decidedly brazen approach to the genre with a twisting and time-traveling storyline that is every bit the adventure as it is a mystery. With secrets lurking everywhere, darkness tinging every inch of the storyline and a mesmerizing journey for not one, but two characters, So Close to You is both action and adventure, as well as heartwarming.

Ok, reality time. Guys, I didn't know what the Montauk Project was before I Googled it upon reading the synopsis way back when. If you're like me, then you're a wee bit in the dark. So, allow me to elaborate. Apparently, it was a series of alleged government experiments in which scientists explored psychological warfare and research capabilities like time travel. Hence, the time-traveling phenomenon in So Close to You. Lydia is a fantastic character. She was a skeptic, but watching everything she'd heard of throughout her life come true in front of her really transformed her entire persona, which in turn transformed her character arc. Adding Wes, the potential love interest allowed us to see a beautiful, tender side to Lydia, as well, giving us greater insight into her character. With touches of romance that slowly bleeds into the story and merges their characters into a powerful and soaring storyline, we get to see the two explore a time that would otherwise be totally foreign to us. Yet, in the pages of So Close to You, the world comes alive and invites us into a twisting, churning and tumultuous journey. My only problem is petty, and some people will love it; I'm just not a fan of cliffhangers.

I'm all for a good science fiction book, and So Close to You certainly didn't disappoint me in the slightest. I give it a very strong 4 out of 5, and I highly recommend it to all fans of YA, especially those who enjoy romance and science-fiction.

I received this book free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This, in no way, affected my opinion or review of this book.