Posts Tagged "Time Travel"

The hourglass door has closed behind Dante, sending him back in time to hunt down Zo, Tony, and V. Although giving him up was the hardest test she ever faced, Abby knows that Dante is the only one who can stop the others from destroying time itself. But almost immediately, things start to change, and Abby’s worst fears are realized when Zo begins targeting her past specifically.

With each change that ripples into her present, Abby’s life continues to spiral out of control. Her relationships with Jason, Natalie, and even her family are threatened to the breaking point. Zo’s power is greater than Abby ever imagined. Will her love for Dante be enough to turn the tide?

The Golden Spiral picks up right where The Hourglass Door left off. Many of the characters return in this intricately planned sequel – but some return only to be erased from Abby’s life by Zo. With Dante gone for the time-being, Abby finds herself facing off against Zo alone as he’s determined to completely unravel her life and, possibly, the world.

Lisa Magnum is a master at story-crafting. Her lyrical descriptions at times border on poetry and her plot is so unique, full of twists and turns. While Abby solves mysteries from The Hourglass Door, she finds herself unraveling new, more complicated ones. Without Dante by her side, her strength is tested over and over. Abby grows a lot in this book and reasserts her independence, proving that she doesn’t need Dante to protect her, but that the two make each other stronger. Abby also learns to take more risks and trust in herself. Despite the fact that Zo attempts to rip her life apart, she refuses to back down to him, which is admirable given his all-around creepiness and nearly god-like power.

I was also really impressed by Abby’s friends in this book. Natalie really steps up to the plate when Abby decides to confide in her, proving that yes, she is human and therefore needs support and friendship. Natalie’s hesitance is believable, as well as her eventual of acceptance. It’s important for Abby to maintain her relationships with her old friends and I’m glad she acknowledges this, rather than abandon her friends for her gorgeous boyfriend and his complicated life. Speaking of complicated, poor Valerie. Her descent into delirium is equal parts fascinating and depressing. At first I thought she had gone completely crazy, but I was happily surprised to find out she was still hanging on, if just barely. I’m still worried about her, but glad to see that perhaps all hope isn’t lost.

If you thought The Hourglass Door was unique, The Golden Spiral pushes that kind of creativity even further. Abby’s and Leo’s use of photography is downright fascinating. Also, V’s unexpected character development is adorably awesome, though it comes with a price, and Zo’s cryptic messages are creepily alluring. Mangum blurs the line between friend and fo so that you’re left guessing up until the very end, when she drops a few major bombs. The characters are repeatedly tested and while the tests usually leave them stronger, they suffer a few devastating losses by the end of the book. And again, Mangum leaves us with a cliffhanger that leaves me, at least, craving the conclusion to the trilogy.

Pages: 362
Publication Date: May 2010
Publisher: Shadow Mountain
Challenge: N/A
Rating :

Teaser Quote: “He is nowhere. He is everywhere. He is in between. He doesn’t like it. The darkness presses on him and it hurts.”

Abby’s senior year of high school is going according to plan: good friends, cute boyfriend, and college applications in the mail. But when Dante Alexander, foreign-exchange student from Italy, steps into her life, he turns it upside down. He’s mysterious, and interesting, and unlike anyone she’s ever met before. Abby can’t deny the growing attraction she feels for him. Nor can she deny the unusual things that seem to happen when Dante is around. Soon Abby finds herself drawn into a mystery whose roots reach into sixteenth-century Florence, and she uncovers a dangerous truth that threatens not only her future but the lives of those she loves.

Let me start by saying if you’re looking for a new paranormal series to obsess over, you should probably read The Hourglass Door. Personally, I’m usually a series kind of girl. I like following characters I’m invested in over a long period of time. But lately, a lot of series just seem to drag or get repetitive. The Hourglass Door is the first series I’ve begun in awhile that provides a completely new world and unique premise.

The story begins normally enough. Abby is a seemingly ordinary girl who gets good grades and has let a somewhat sheltered life. She’s looking for new ways to break free and gain independence, starting with applying to Emery College, a school all the way across the U.S. on the eastern coast. She’s keeping Emery a secret from everyone for now, including her boyfriend and neighbor, Jason. Abby and Jason have been destined to be together since they were in diapers. But while Abby lights up Jason’s world, she can’t muster more than brotherly affection for him. Still, being with him isn’t bad and there’s no one else she’d rather date. That is, until Dante Alexander arrives.

To Abby’s credit, she tries not being attracted to Dante. She doesn’t want to hurt Jason and she honestly believes she’s capable of merely befriending Dante. After all, he is the new guy in town and she just wants to make sure he feels welcome. And to Dante’s credit, he tries not to interfere in Abby and Jason’s relationship. As much as he likes Abby, he doesn’t think Jason deserves to lose his girlfriend, especially considering Dante’s life is a little chaotic and even…dangerous.

But, I mean, Dante speaks Italian. And he has those blue-gray eyes and that aura of mystery. Hotness aside, Abby does take the time to get to know Dante. A believable friendship blossoms between them, a friendship that she’s able to balance alongside her relationship with Jason. But then things start to get a little tricky. For one, Abby feels this unmistakable pull to Dante and she knows he feels the same way. Then she begins feeling…odd…and these feelings are only magnified when Zo, V, and Tony begin hanging around. These three make up a band called Zero Hour and they seem to have some sort of history with Dante and his adoptive father Leo. Oddly enough, Dante and the members of Zero Hour all sport the same tattoos.

Lisa Mangum is clearly a master of building suspense. The further I got into The Hourglass Door, the more questions I had and the more I had to power through just to get the slightest of answers. Like Abby, I couldn’t tell if the paranormal aspects were actually paranormal or just figments of her imagination. Everyone was so secretive that I was practically dying to know what was going on. I’d form my own theories only to realize how implausible they were and then I’d hungrily read more, glad that the plot wasn’t so predictable. By the middle of the book, Mangum began providing twists that completely blindsided me and the answers I received toward the end were, at times, shocking. I was just entirely pleased by the unique intricacies of the plot and the tie-ins with historical figures that added a believability to the fantastical elements that’s presently hard to come by.

I’d recommend this book for the plot alone, but the writing is also amazing. The snippets of Italian dialogue lend an air of authenticity to Dante’s origins and each character really stands out. Oddly enough, despite Dante’s charm and all-around sexiness, I wasn’t head-over-heels in love with him, but I loved his and Abby’s relationship; their relationship grew effortlessly from a solid friendship, initial attraction, and complementary personalities. The villains of the story aren’t frightening just because they have some sort of super-human strength, but because they threaten to destroy Abby’s life personally by settling in her town, getting to know her and her friends, and attacking that which she cares about most. But little do they know, Abby has some surprises of her own—surprises even she didn’t know about.

Essentially, if you’re looking for romance, action, and paranormal intrigue, The Hourglass Door is right up your alley. You might have overlooked it in the past, but with the conclusion to the series on the way this summer, now’s the perfect time to dive in. A little warning though: have the second book readily available, as The Hourglass Door ends on a big cliffhanger.

Pages: 398
Publication Date: May 2010
Publisher: Shadow Mountain
Challenge: Debut Author
Rating :

Teaser Quote: “He was drowning—somehow he was being washed downriver in the midst of this crowded dance floor and I was the only one who could throw him a line, could save him from oblivion. He needed me. Now. Right now.”

Myra McEntire is the debut author of Hourglass, which will be available in May. Without spoiling anything, Myra took the time to answer a few questions and open up about what went into writing Hourglass.

How does it feel to publish your first novel? Is the publishing process everything you expected?

Emerson is a very sarcastic and witty person. Are you or is someone you know that sarcastic?

Read Kiona’s review of Hourglass.

Since the age of fourteen, Emerson Cole has seen strange thing s- dead things – swooning Southern Belles, soldiers, and other eerie apparitions of the past. She’s tried everything to get rid of the visions: medication, counseling, asylums. Nothing’s worked.

So when Emerson’s well-meaning brother calls in yet another consultant from a mysterious organization called the Hourglass, Emerson’s willing to give it one last try.

Michael Weaver is no ordinary consultant. He’s barely older than she is, he listens like no one she’s ever met before, and he doesn’t make her feel the least bit crazy. As Emerson ventures deeper into the world of the Hourglass, she begins to learn the truth about her past, her future – and her very life.

This book blew me away – probably because I wasn’t expecting to fall so thoroughly in love with it. I went in thinking it was a ghost story, due to the summary on the back cover, but I was completely wrong. It’s a fantastic blend of paranormal and science fiction, at times reminding me of elements of Harry Potter and X-Men, both of which I love. Hourglass has so many great twists, some I saw coming and some that completely blind-sided me in the best possible way. This excellently crafted book is well-organized and completely absorbing, one of those I-really-shouldn’t-stay-up-until-2-because-I-have-class-in-the-morning-but-I-can’t-stop books.

But let me backtrack for a minute. Hourglass tells the story of Emerson Cole, a teenage girl who began seeing what she believes to be ghosts shortly before her parents died in a horrific accident. Since then, Emerson has spent her time at mental institutions and boarding school. But when her scholarship is pulled, she is forced to move back home with her brother and his wife. She has only one friend at home, Lily, who has stuck by Emerson throughout her entire ordeal. And then Emerson meets Michael – the handsome consultant her brother has hired – and he turns her world upside down.

The first thing I like about Hourglass was that Emerson confides in her brother and he actively tries to help her. There are so many books where the protagonist feels like they have to hide their “dark secret” because no one could ever possibly understand them. I just want to shake those protagonists and tell them to give their friends and family a little more credit. Of course, Emerson does spend some time in an asylum, but that’s realistic; she’s able to handle that and come out even stronger. Her brother, Thomas, is a wonderful character. He looks out for Emerson, doesn’t think she’s crazy, and continuously tries to help her. He’s also the perfect mix of cool-older-brother and authoritarian. I love his relationship with Emerson and even his rules regarding Michael. It’s easy to see how much he cares about his sister and how seriously he takes her predicament.

Emerson. One of my favorite protagonists. First of all, she has a great name (and I’m not just saying that because I go to Emerson College). She is one of the most three-dimensional characters I’ve seen in awhile. Her biting sarcasm is consistently hilarious; she can take care of herself, due to martial arts lessons; she doesn’t let anyone tell her what to do and only opens up to those she truly trusts; she gets jealous easily, is willing to put others before herself, and occasionally breaks all the rules. She has such a traumatic past and though she certainly draws strength from it, her past is also a source of pain and confusion; she hasn’t completely healed. In fact, by the end of the book she’s even further from healing than the beginning, which just allows the possibility for more growth.

I love the whole science fiction aspect of this book. The idea behind the Hourglass is so innovative and I was dying to know what it was from the beginning. Each character – especially members of the Hourglass – is fleshed out and serves a purpose. Myra McEntire is clearly a master at weaving intricate plots. She includes all the elements of great story-telling, including realistic characters with depth, witty dialogue, suspense, foreshadowing, and sizzling romance. Emerson’s emotions are so strongly conveyed that I felt them right along with her: her suspicion regarding Michael, confusion over Kaleb, anger at Ava, and love for Thomas and Dru. I like that Emerson doesn’t trust people easily. She has no reason to. So when certain characters finally gain Emerson’s trust, they also gained mine, which means I was just as shocked as Emerson by some of the final twists of Hourglass.

This book literally has everything and I really hope I won’t have to wait forever for a sequel. The ending is left open and there are so many questions I still have about this world and the characters. Hourglass is sure to be a hit in the YA scene and I look forward to seeing it receive the recognition it deserves.

Pages: 397
Publication Date: May 2011
Publisher: Egmont USA
Challenge: Debut Author
Rating :

Teaser Quote: I’ve never touched alcohol – doesn’t mix too well with pharmaceuticals – but I knew at that moment what it must feel like to be drunk. Everything in my world shifted, and I knew I would trade every breath I’d ever taken for more of him. In a heartbeat.

“It happened before. Burnt Mountain, Alaska. Novosibirsk, Siberia. Now it’s about to happen to a thriving city. Crack the code…or tomorrow is history…”

Auckland, New Zealand. A city with a population of 1.3 million. 25^th December. Already, 50 000 people have just vanished into a mystery white fog. They were never seen again. Their town was surrounded by white fog which defied gravity and wind, with whispers of ‘snowmen’ coming from the very few survivors. No one who goes in, comes out. No electrical transmissions can find their way through the storm, and nothing New Zealand authorities do can seem to stop the fog.

Imagine that you’re the only one who knew this was about to happen. Imagine that you’re the only one who has a chance of stopping it from happening again. Imagine that you had discovered a way to receive messages from the future and no one would believe you. Imagine that the fate of the civilization of the world could rest on how quick you can crack the code. Everything is stacked against you, you’re a teenager still in school, not old enough to be considered seriously, you have a mother that is only interested in the next episode of her favorite soap opera on TV and every minute that goes past is another death that could have been prevented.

This is Tane and Rebecca’s reality. Months earlier, Tane and Rebecca discovered a way to read messages that were transmitted through time. Messages coded and hidden in gamma ray bursts that are recorded by high-tech NASA space equipment, only you invented and discovered the program to read these messages. The messages that are decoded spell out a bleak future for live on earth. Receiving instructions from their future selves, Tane and Rebecca face a race against the clock to try and get the New Zealand and International military and bio-medical forces to listen to them. Every instruction that they have followed from these coded messages has been correct. From winning the lottery as a test, to breaking into NASA’s top-secret internet files, each step brings you closer to either saving humanity, or watching it descend further into chaos and destruction. Whispers of the Chimera Project that must be stopped, cryptic instructions for a device to send information to the future and juggling sudden millionaire status are just some of the issues that Tane and Rebecca have to deal with on a daily basis.

And this is only the beginning.

The Tomorrow Code is Brian Falkner’s first young adult novel, with three children’s novels being published prior to this. The style of writing and the way in with Falkner deals with some difficult concepts is remarkable. When talking about science, quantum foam and biology, it is easy to get lost in the technical terms, yet Falkner allows the reader to sympathise with either of the two main characters. Rebecca is the brains, the science and math whiz who more often than not is the one talking and explaining the technical jargon while Tane is the creative soul and often, like me, doesn’t have a clue what Rebecca is saying, yet somehow works it out in more simple and creative terms. Rather than subtracting from the plot, this actually adds to the sense of urgency and mystery of the novel. In all, I liked this novel, it captured my interest from the beginning and it was an easy read that I didn’t have to struggle through. The characters were interesting, plot well developed and style captivating from the first page to the end.

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