Truth or Dare by Non Pratt (UK edition; front cover)

Title: Truth or Dare
Author: Non Pratt
Genre: Contemporary, Young Adult
Publisher: Walker Books (1st June 2017)
Blurb:

How far is too far when it comes to the people you love?

Claire Casey hates being the centre of attention. But if it means getting Sef Malik to notice her, it’s a risk she’s happy to take. Sef is prepared to do anything to help his recently disabled brother. But this means putting Claire’s love – and life – on the line. Because when you’re willing to risk everything, what is there left to lose?

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4 stars)
Review:

TRUTH OR DARE by Non Pratt is a contemporary young adult book set in the UK. It tells the stories of Claire and Sef, who get together and create a YouTube channel designed to raise money for their friend who was very badly injured. They do this by creating alter egos who play a version of truth or dare. The story follows them as they become friends and try to help. The book itself is split into three sections. The first tells the story from Claire’s point of view; the second from Sef’s; and the third section is split between them.

I got TRUTH OR DARE through my Illumicrate subscription; it was the main book in the seventh box. Going into the book I wasn’t sure what I would think of the book, as I had never read anything by Pratt before. It was a pleasant surprise. I thought it was a really interesting idea that you start the book get to about halfway and then to read the whole story you have to flip the book and read from the back. I also thought the dual narration worked really well – Pratt uses it to great effect, and it adds to the story.

Whilst I found TRUTH OR DARE a bit slow and boring in places, overall it is a really interesting and compelling story. Despite the relatively simple nature of the plot – how far will someone go for a dare – Nott covers a lot of complicated topics not least family and friendship. In fact I would say that family and friendship form the heart of this novel. The plot itself is pretty straight forward; what makes TRUTH OR DARE is how Pratt tells the story. How the dual narrative allows Pratt to reveal events from both of their perspectives and how this paints a larger picture of what is going on.

Claire and Sef are interesting and complicated characters. Sef in particular I have complicated feelings about; I suspect this is in part because we see events through Claire’s eyes first, and in part because of the complexity of his character. I think they balance well as main characters. Pratt also does a brilliant job with the secondary characters. I particularly enjoyed Claire’s friendship with Rich and Seren, and Sef’s complex relationship with his family. These groups in particular were well fleshed out and helped to add another dimension to the story. If you think that this book sounds interesting, then I think it is worth picking it up and giving it a try. If you’re a fan of Rainbow Rowell, John Green or Emery Lord then I think you might enjoy this book too.