The Time of My Life

Rachel Riley #7

by Joanna Nadin

Ta-dah!

So, this is it, am finally going to shake off the shackles of my dull, suburban upbringing and venture out into the big, wide world. I foresee a life of tragic literary friends, vintage markets, and ironic tea parties. All I have to do is pass exams, get a place at uni, and persuade mum to let me go. Easy!

It is totally the end of an era. Jack's moved on and so will I. Jack's history. Jack is no more. In fact, Jack who?

I'm Rachel Riley - welcome to my so-called life.

This fantastic, brand new story celebrates the final chapter in the hilarious Rachel Riley Diaries - it's the last hurrah!

Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary

352 pages, Paperback

First published March 6, 2014

About the author

Joanna Nadin is an English author of juvenile fiction best known for the Rachel Riley series of teenage novels Based on Nadin's own childhood, the series follows the comedic narration of a 13-year-old girl.

Nadin has also written several books of juvenile fiction. These include two books for the Oxford University Press "Project X" series designed to encourage boys to read.

Nadin previously worked as a policy writer for the Labour Party (UK).In 2001, she became a special adviser to Tony Blair.

As a child I buried myself in books both at home in Essex and at my grandparents’ houses in Cornwall, where I spent a large part of my time, and where many of my stories are now set. Books and later films were an escape not just from where I was but who I was, which, as I saw it, was pretty much a geek. They gave me the freedom to become someone else, from George in the Famous Five to Velvet Brown winning the Grand National to Baby dancing the Chachacha with Johnny Castle.

Reviews

[Not Well Read · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this provided a satisfying ending to this series, which I started as a pre-teen but only finished as an adult (as part of my project to finish series that I’ve started in the past). Obviously it does still reinforce the same prejudices as the previous books, but I suppose it would be jarring to change the series too much at this late stage. Nadin achieved a good balance between the immature, un-self-aware character we’ve come to know and a more mature and reflective version of herself as she closes things out. The sections of her being enthralled by Carol Vorderman’s biography instead of studying in preparation for her English Literature degree were also pretty funny (and I suppose that, given that I decided to read this for some reason, I can’t judge).

[Ailsa Britain · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm 40, this is "teen fiction", I've given it five stars - but I don't care! And I defy anybody brought up on "Adrian Mole" not to agree. A fitting and satisfactory final instalment for Rachel Riley.

[Sophie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great ending to a brilliantly funny series. It really is the end of an era - I will miss these characters.

[sacha · Rating 4 out of 5]

reread: october 2016

rachel is so frustrating and oblivious in this one that i squashed the book to my face at so many points out of sheer annoyance. BUT the last chapter, last few days, makes up for it. also, again, i love that it ends with an email from her dad. her dad is possibly my favourite character tbh

i'm devastated my reread of these is over

first read: january 2015

4.5 stars

i think at least one of those stars is sentimental. maybe two. i always say there's no such thing as a guilty pleasure, just enjoy what you enjoy, but honestly, these books are the definition. i read the first one when i was twelve? thirteen? and little innocent me was stunned at the content which definitely wasn't "for younger readers" as the cover warned. it's so british and gritty and captures that small town feeling so well, although the town in this has a wh smith and mine doesn't even have that.

rachel riley is one of the most irritating characters i have ever read and yet i have slowly grown to love her over the years. like all final books in a series it felt kind of separate from the rest of them but maybe that's also because the one before it came out four years ago and i haven't reread any of them recently. god these books are just the easiest pick-me-up. i've been cackling at james and the dog and carol vorderman's biography making repeated appearances. it really tied up nicely in the end with the wedding and all the university stuff and also this was the first book where romance wasn't a major thing. it was still definitely there but 75% of it was so obviously ridiculous it didn't really count and the last 25% i was rooting for. i'm really happy the series ended with a letter from her dad who is such a passive, quiet character who is always so in the background although arguably he was in this book a lot.

i'm sad this series is over. i'm also very curious about carol vorderman's biography now.

[Tiitu Lehtineva · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hitaasti, mutta varmasti olen nautiskellut tämän viimeisen Rachel Rileyn päiväkirjan iltalukemisena. Omaan makuun odotutti turhankin paljon. Kun on kulkenut henkilön matkassa näinkin monta kirjaa, olisi valmis jo lukemaan vähän muustakin kuin odotuksesta. Mutta loppu palkitsi kyllä odotuksen, vaikka tarina ikävästi katkeaakin juuri, kun mielenkiintoiset asiat alkavat. :D

Pidän edelleen Joanna Nadinin tyylistä eläytyä teinitytön sielunelämään tämän päiväkirjan kautta. Haastava kirjoitustyyli, jossa hän on onnistunut vallan hyvin. Välillä Rachel on kuitenkin niin pihalla, että se hipoo jo uskottavuuden rajoja, mutta toisaalta se olkoon fiktiossa sallittua.

Hyvän mielen kirja. Mukava lukea ja lopussa jäi kuitenkin kokonainen olo. Tästä on mukava jättää Rachel ja kumppanit ja siirtyä uusien tuttavuuksien pariin.

[Sara · Rating 2 out of 5]

2,5 tähteä

[Jess · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s nice to finally lay to rest one of my favourite teenage series.

I dug books 1-6 out of the attic and spent the last two weeks re-reading and found the first two books as funny and endearing as I remembered (possibly more so as I know finally understood all the politics), but books 4,5 and 6 got more and more frustrating as Rachel just refused to develop as a character, became even more boy-crazy, and was completely idiotic about Anne Frank (I mean, come on, how stupid can you be to think that Anne Frank’s life was one to be desired? That was beyond a joke). I also felt the focus shifted away from school and her fellow pupils and was more family-focused which maybe wasn’t as funny?

Luckily book 7 gets better. Sure she makes some extremely poor decisions and yet again develops an obsession with a boy next door, completely missing the fact he’s gay. In fact, this plot line actually made me roll my eyes. And it could have been great without the crush aspect.

Also something minor, but very off-putting: timeline-wise, this book should be set in 2009 but several references were better suited to the 2010s, including Will and Kate (she wasn’t the Duchess of Cambridge until she was married in 2011), Angry Birds (released in Dec 2009 when the book ends in September), and iPads (2010-present day).

It’s interesting to read about her friendships across the series as her and Scarlet seem to drift further and further apart until it seems Scarlet can’t stand her. I do wonder if they would stand the test of time, whether they go their separate ways for good as Rachel looks back with nostalgia about the childhood friendship based on geographical convenience, or would they both grow and mature and realise they both did and said some moronic things in their youth?

And this might sound strange but…I hoped someone would die in this book. One of the grandparents, or the dog to provide some coming-of-age tragedy for Rachel.

I have shipped Jack and Rachel since their Bugsy Malone kiss in book 1 and I’m glad it worked out.

I wanted more from her dad’s email, just a touch more feeling? ‘I miss you, watching banned tv on the sly isn’t the same without you’ sort of line. Not too saccharine but a confirmation that the family actually does have love for each other.

I’d like to think Rachel and Jack make it, and their friends find their happiness. I’d like to think Rachel shares a career between stage-acting and writing fiction books, providing all the escapism she obsessed over to the next generations of miserable middle-class teens desperate for excitement.

Here’s to you, Rachel Riley, for the time of our life 🥂

[mols ❀ · Rating 5 out of 5]

wooooow. can’t believe the series is actually finished :( thoroughly enjoyed the time of my life, perhaps more so because i’m at the same stage of life as rachel (18, applying to uni etc.) and i was only a bit older than she was at the start when i read the first book. don’t get me wrong, my so-called life is still unbeaten as the funniest book in the series and i reckon that any of the sequels would be incomprehensible to someone who hadn’t read every book due to the large variety of eccentric characters and the complex way nadin writes, but each sequel has provided something new despite being so similar. had a few issues with the plot, e.g. i wish that there was some kind of redemption for rachel’s mum? she was pretty tyrannical for most of the books and continued to try and control rachel even after she turned 18 (not going to deep it though haha). the classist representations of the kylies and the cleggs is kind of saddening, because you can take the first books as a product of their time but considering this one only came out ten years ago it’s a shame that these stereotypes were still reinforced. also idk if i’m remembering this correctly but i swear that in my so-called life it was implied quite a bit that sad ed was in love with rachel but it never went anywhere and he ended up with scarlet instead… i honestly thought when i read the first book that rachel and sad ed would end up together, nevertheless im not annoyed that they didn’t because it’s less predictable and proves that life doesn’t always pan out how you expected. anyways i can’t wait to reread the entire series as procrastination for my a-levels and i would highly recommend this series (as long as you read them all haha!)

[Ione · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice, lighthearted read. Enjoyable.

[Misto · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kind of a drawn out and disappointing end to the series. Something didn't click the same way as in the earlier ones. But I still like it.

[Grace Sargeant · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed.

[Emma · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review by Imogen - Year 9

‘The Time Of My Life’ is a book displayed in the form of a diary of an eighteen-year-old girl named Rachel. It describes the trials and tribulations of her complicated life and quirky family. Her cleaning obsessed mum and younger brother always getting into some sort of mischievous antics.

The main character in the book is Rachel, during the story Rachel is sitting her ‘A’ level exams and taking her driving test. During the book Rachel has to learn that, it’s a big world and that she can’t stay in Saffron Walden, Essex forever. She has to make decisions about university and what she wants to do with her life. She takes you with her through all her highs and lows of her life, from January to September, expressing all her thoughts and feelings in her diary.

My favourite character in the book was Rachel because I like her humorous brutally honest personality, you feel like you really get to know her as you progress through the book.

The only thing I disliked about the book was that I think the storyline was perhaps a bit weak, I think the book needed to be more structured.

This book is suitable for teenagers; I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone under the age of thirteen as the book does contain some bad language and mature themes. For an older teenager perhaps the humor might be too immature.

I would give this book a three out of five because I do feel the storyline was lacking in substance and I think during the end of the book, it got slightly too ridiculous. I prefer books with a bit more structure to them.

[Rosie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Six weeks ago I woke up at 4 am thinking about how I begged my Nan to buy me the first Rachel Riley book (silver glittery cover, two in one) for my thirteenth birthday. I'd read up until "The Facts of Life," but had never bothered to finish off the series. I spent ages trying to buy an eBook but it turned out they were pulled for some reason, so I had to source a semi-chewed one from the UK second hand (Thank you South Gloustershire Libraries for sending it all the way to NZ!)

I am absolutely devastated this is the last one but what an ending!! I related to Rachel so much as a teen- I also thought I was destined for stardom, stuck in suburbia with a rule obsessed mother and mourned the fact I did not have my own Jack. I passed my original copies onto younger cousins several years ago but I'll definitely be keeping this around for nostalgia's sake.

[Katy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not as good as the rest, but a fitting end!

[Meganjane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved the series