thank you so much regal house publishing and NetGalley for the e-arc!

such a thought provoking read. what would you do if you were stuck in an elevator with the younger and older versions of you?

i thought that the author did an incredible job of leveraging the information the reader needed as the story went on, although the book takes place entirely in the elevator, it seems that the author perfectly places these pieces of memory and realizations that all 3 versions of Emilia have. this is a story of grief, self discovery, self understanding, and hope.

This book has a really fun premise - being stuck in an elevator with your younger and older self to work through the thing that’s held you back in life.
However, the writing style feels like the author is trying too hard to be engaging, it feels stilted, a bit forced and cliched. The story is repetitive and predictable, and I have to say again, characters and story are very cliche. The backstory and details are repeated over and over again without really adding much, so I was pretty bored. The teenager acts and talks exactly how you would imagine a teenager if you haven’t met one, and the same can be said for the older lady. The way they bicker but it’s still sickly sweet is annoying.

If you are someone who usually rates books 4* and above, and like the over sentimental, you’ll probably like it.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy.

Just Emilia is a masterfully woven tale of identity, trauma, and healing set against the seemingly simple backdrop of a DC Metro elevator. What begins as an ordinary inconvenience quickly spirals into a gripping and deeply introspective journey as Emilia, Em, and Millie—three women of different ages—come to the shocking realization that they are, in fact, the same person at various stages of life.

The novel expertly balances humor and heartbreak, offering a sharp, compassionate exploration of memory, regret, and the weight of unresolved pain. As the women confront their shared past and unspoken truths, their raw and deeply personal struggles become a universal reflection of self-acceptance and redemption.

With rich, compelling prose and an inventive narrative structure, Just Emilia is both a page-turner and a poignant meditation on what it means to face oneself honestly.

The publisher provided ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

3.5. Quite a unique book, not really read a plot like this before. I enjoyed aspects of it, especially the thematic work.

In general I enjoyed this book. I loved how the three characters interacted with each other and the realistic questions they asked. I felt like this book was a slog to get through though. The pacing was slow and I didn’t like the jumps in time. I think the assumptions made about the future in this book were tiresome. No museums and the lack of greenery just seemed odd and like grasping at straws to include something about the future.

Emilia enters an elevator accompanied by her younger and older selves. after that, a reminiscence of their past, present and future starts. what would you tell your younger or older self if you had the chance? this is what this book ponders, along with the relationship between a mother and daughter. it was a thrill and a treat to read this book. simply amazing!

"Just Emilia" has a clever plot-line with three characters who are really one character at different stages in her life. It was a bit of a slow start, and at times the place seemed slower than it needed to be. The story, however, is good, and I love the idea of reflecting on one's past choices and the reasons they were made. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. Pub Date: June 10, 2025.

#JustEmilia

Just Emilia is an imaginative, thought-provoking tale that delves into the complexity of identity and self-discovery. With sharp wit and deep emotional insight, it explores the shared trauma of three women—teenager Em, middle-aged Emilia, and elderly Millie—who find themselves trapped in a time-bending elevator, facing their past, present, and future selves.

3 stars.

I really enjoyed the plot of this book and the reflection it creates on grief. At points it was slow to get into as it was just all about one character, so it was repetitive at times. Emilia is a real reflection of women, flaws and all. Seeing her reflection of herself as she hears stories of her past and future tying itself together, she becomes more aware of the consequences of her actions at every scale.

"Just Emilia" offers an intriguing exploration of confronting your inner thoughts, reflecting on past choices, and understanding how you arrived at your place in life. I really wanted to love this book — the concept is compelling, and the story itself is solid. Unfortunately, it feels a bit clunky, with conversations that often drag on longer than necessary. I would have preferred a more introspective approach, perhaps a full stream of consciousness, as the flashbacks tended to pull me out of Emilia's mind and diminished the impact of the claustrophobic setting.

this was such a good book! It read it in one sitting, it was emotional and touching. I love the way these 3 completely different women relate and see how they are more similar than they thought. It was so entertaining!!

Thank you to NetGalley, to the author, and to the publisher for this complimentary ARC in exchange for my honest review!!!

2.5 stars for me.

Just Emilia presents an intriguing premise: Emilia finds herself trapped in a Washington, DC Metro elevator with two versions of herself—the troubled teenager Em and the elderly Millie. All three are connected by a traumatic event, each grappling with its impact in their own way.

The concept of the story holds a lot of promise, and I was initially excited to dive in. However, by the end, I found myself wanting more. The writing, while thoughtful, didn’t quite pull me in the way I had hoped, which made it hard to stay engaged. The core theme—three versions of the same woman, stuck in a loop of self-blame over an unresolved trauma—felt repetitive and unresolved. I struggled with the idea that Emilia, across such a wide span of time, could remain so stagnant in her self-blame, especially considering that she carries this weight from the age of 17 all the way into her late 70s. While I understand that trauma can have a lasting impact, this level of emotional stasis just didn’t feel fully realistic.

Perhaps my disconnect stems from not having experienced a similar type of trauma myself, but it was hard to empathize with Emilia’s continuous self-criticism over what seemed like a minor decision—choosing pancakes over toast. The emotional weight of that choice just didn’t resonate with me in the way the book intended.

Additionally, I found it hard to pinpoint Emilia’s role in the story. She seems to serve primarily as the narrator, but beyond that, her presence felt somewhat detached. I found myself more interested in Millie’s backstory and her efforts to reconcile with her estranged daughter. I would have loved to see more depth from her perspective.

There’s also a scene involving a bathroom break that felt out of place. It seemed to distract from the more poignant moments and, in my opinion, didn’t add anything meaningful to the character development or the story’s overall arc. A more organic moment of bonding between the three women would have been far more effective.

In the end, while the book’s premise is original and thought-provoking, it needed a bit more emotional depth and development to truly deliver on its potential. I really wanted to love it, but it fell short for me...

Thirty-one years to the day that changed her life, Emilia finds herself stuck in a Metro elevator with other two people. As it becomes increasingly clear, they're all there to solve the same mystery - and find themselves in the process.

I was really captivated by the book - I quite literally couldn't put it down. The mystery at the core of it kept me going, even though at it's core, the book is more focused on how we should give ourselves grace, and forgive ourselves for the unforgivable. I liked the escamotage of being trapped in an elevator with yourself as a way to deal with your trauma, although I think I would've spared the gory details of having to pee etc. The conclusion was a bit fast for me, but it did provide enough closure, and though it was a bit saccharine, it fit the tone of the book. All in all, a really good read.

Thanks to the editor and NetGalley for the ARC.

Thanks to NetGalley and publisher for the ARC Copy.

I have to be honest in that I DNF’d this book at 20% and it was a push to get that far.

I LOVE the premise of this book, I think it has so much potential to develop into a beautiful story with poignant themes of grief, motherhood and aging.

What let me down was it felt like it needed some further editing. There was a jarring mix of sentence structures which meant it was hard to get into the rhythm of reading. I also felt some of the vocabulary choices were odd, too formal for a first person POV not speaking or thinking with formal vocab the rest of the time. Couple with some grammatical errors it made a really clunky and difficult read.

I’d love to read this with some polishing as I think it could be a beautiful book.

This is such a wild concept for a book that as soon as I saw the description, I knew that I wanted to read it. There’s a couple of things in particular that I could have done without, but that aside, it was an interesting read.

There is a lot of back and forth between present day of Em/Emilia/Millie in the elevator and each of their separate backstories of which got them there, but I will say that we spend far less time with Millie than the other two, and she was probably the one I was most interested in.

3.5 rounded down due to the urine.

On the anniversary of her mother's death, Emilia finds herself trapped in an elevator with 3 versions of herself 30 years apart and must finally face what happened that day and the ripple effects its had on her life.

The description of this book felt tailor made for me. Sad girl lit about grief and being misunderstood and stagnant with a weird, magical premise but it didn't quite land as I hoped. I love the messaging and if I look at it conceptually and thematically i adore it. But it just feels like characters are missing development

Emilia and Millie's life don't get quite enough out of elevator time for me to understand just how Emilia is contributing to the issues in her relationships. The couple scenes we got left me hating Joel and adult Sonya and because of that I wasn't rooting for Emilia to recognize her flaws and fix those relationships. Especially with Joel I didn't see anything worth saving.

And while we get so many scenes about Em's life, we don't see just how she's ruining her relationship with her dad or that anyone really cares until later. There's a point where Em knows her dad dies in the future and that isn't an emotional reveal for Em. She just knows and we never get a character beat of her reflecting.

I do love the ending. I love the implications - I do just wish Millie actually got an ending. She felt so under-utilized

I also just have to talk about the Urine pages because they are haunting me 1. Why, that was so much and so unnecessary and they literally never pee again. 2. It contradicts a later line. "She’s right. Now that I think of it, in all of this time together, we haven’t touched each other at all." except they DID. They supported Millie during the whole fiasco. "he older woman pulls herself up and takes a turn, which is an even more cumbersome effort as she needs to have me and the girl support her in her squat lest she fall over and spill the entirety of the bag’s contents onto the floor."

Those pages would have been spent on literally anything else.

Three and a half stars, rounded up. I was fascinated by the premise of this book, though there are elements that I felt fell a little flat. I liked the character interactions, and that they were distinct enough to be interesting while still being believably the same person. Working through grief and guilt is such a delicate and difficult topic, and I thought it was approached with grace and understanding while still looking at the harsh reality of living through it.

There were only a few things that pushed me out of the story a bit. First, the gross way they settle into being stuck in an elevator really put me off. I understand it's the reality of the situation, but it was explored in too much detail for me. Next, I didn't love the implications about the future of the country. I understand the motivation behind them, and that most are realistic, but I felt like the timeline for those things were a bit more advanced than what is being projected. Last, without spoilers, I fell that the reveal towards the end cheapened the experience for me and led to more questions than answers (about memory, grief, shame, etc. and how those truly affected Emilia's character). That being said, those were all small moments. I think this was a great character study and relatable, even if the reader has not gone through the exact same experience.

I liked the writing style and pacing of this book, and I will definitely check out other books by this author.

Such a moving story and a creative one as well. I love when a book comes along that is unlike anything I've read before. I was enthralled by Oko's brilliant characters and witty dialogue. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

I had high hopes for this book after reading the synopsis and a few other reviews. Unfortunately, the writing was so horrible that it was simply unreadable and I stopped part way through. At first, I chalked it up to being more YA than I had anticipated and continued on, but ultimately it was just very poor writing (and clearly editing) and I gave up.

i was so intrigued by the premise and kind of got dissapointed halfway through the book. don't get me wrong - it's well written, it has an interesting story to tell, but i think with such a great concept in mind it could have been executed much better. anyway if anyone is to blame, it is me for having different expectations. the novel itself is good!
Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for an opportunity to read this book.