Category: Time Travel

Voyager

~ Hillary Rose ~ Leave a comment

Title: Voyager
Author: Diana Gabaldon
Series: Outlander, book 3
Genre: Historical Fiction, Romance, Time-Travel
Publisher: Delta
Release Date: August 7th, 2001 

  “‘Do ye not understand?’ he said, in near desperation.
‘I would lay the world at your feet, Claire – and I have nothing to give ye!’
He honestly thought it mattered.”
– Diana Gabaldon, Voyager

Note: This is not a book I would recommend to YA audiences, as it is deals with mature content for adult readers.

Additional note: This post reviews the third book of the Outlander series. You may like to read the first two books in the series, Outlander and A Dragonfly in Amber, before reading this review.

It’s been two decades since Claire Randall/Fraser said goodbye to Jamie Fraser, two decades of raising their child, Brianna, back in Claire’s own time period, two decades believing Jamie to have perished at the famous Battle of Culloden in 18th century Scotland.

But when her years’ worth of research leads her to the realization that Jamie did in fact survive the horrific battle, Claire knows she must at least try to find him again. She now has to say goodbye to her adult daughter to find the only man she has ever really loved.

This book gives a beautiful example of timeless love as Claire and Jamie are finally  reunited after 20 years. They risk everything for yet another chance to be together, including their lives as they voyage halfway across the world on a quest to save their family. Romance, adventure, peril – Voyager has it all!

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Dragonfly in Amber

~ Hillary Rose ~ Leave a comment


Title: Dragonfly in Amber
Author: Diana Gabaldon
Series: Outlander, book 2
Genre: Historical Fiction, Romance, Time-Travel
Publisher: Dell Publishing Company
Release Date: July 1st, 1992 

“It’s me that has the easy part now. For if ye feel for me as I do for you –
then I’m asking you to tear out your heart and live without it.”
– Diana Gabaldon, Dragonfly in Amber

Note: This is one of the few times I am straying from my typical Young Adult book reviews to review this book, and the rest of the series. This is not a book I would recommend to YA audiences, as it is deals with mature content for adult readers. 

Additional note: This post reviews the second book of the Outlander series. You may like to read the first book in the series, Outlander, before reading this review.

I love what the author, Diana Gabaldon, has to say about this book: “It doesn’t start where you think it’s going to. And it doesn’t end how you think it’s going to, either. Just keep reading; it’ll be fine.”

Imagine my surprise when I began reading book two only to realize that 20 years have gone by since the happenings in Outlander, and Claire Randall is back in the 20th century with her grownup daughter, Brianna. (No spoiler here, I just hadn’t read the back cover teaser!) Thankfully for us as the readers, Claire takes us back in time, where we left off at the end of Outlander. In an attempt to end the Jacobite uprising that will inevitably end in absolute defeat, Claire and Jamie travel to Paris, to face Bonny Prince Charles himself. They do their best to socialize in the French court, filled with intrigue. But will their efforts be enough to save the Highlanders from the decimation that awaits them if Charles Stuart continues his course of action? Can Claire and Jamie actually make a difference… and change the history Claire knows?

I really enjoyed this book! Not quite as much as I enjoyed Outlander, but I still loved it because of awesome characters like Claire and Jamie.

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Outlander

~ Hillary Rose ~ 2 Comments

Title: Outlander
Author: Diana Gabaldon
Series: Outlander, book 1
Genre: Historical Fiction, Romance, Time-Travel
Publisher: Dell Publishing Company
Release Date: June 1st, 1991 

“Oh, aye, Sassenach. I am your master . . . and you’re mine.
Seems I canna possess your soul without losing my own.”
– Diana Gabaldon, Outlander

Note: This is one of the few times I am straying from my typical Young Adult book reviews to review this book, and the rest of the series. This is not a book I would recommend to YA audiences, as it is deals with mature content for adult readers. 

I had the pleasure of meeting Diana Gabaldon at the RMFW (Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers) conference in September of 2017. I hadn’t read the Outlander books at the time and I knew very little about them, but I went into Gabaldon’s writing classes with an open mind, ready to learn. She completely blew me away, not just with the exhilarating love story of Claire and Jamie, but with her entire approach to writing novels. Gabaldon quickly made her way to the top of my list of favorite authors – even more so when I finally sat down and read the darn thing half a year later! Here is my review:

One moment, Claire Randall, a World War II combat nurse, is standing at the ancient stones of Craigh na Dun, and the next, she is thrown back in time – 200 years ago – when Scotland was being torn apart by war. Claire is a “Sassenach” – an Outlander – who must do whatever it takes to survive in an unfamiliar time in the midst of great violence. Before long, she is involved with a clan of Scots – who do not know what to make of this strange englishwoman – and she quickly learns that the soldiers of her own country, the redcoats, cannot be trusted. Her quest to get back to her own time becomes that much more complicated with Jamie Fraser – a brave, handsome Scotsman – in the picture. Torn between two worlds, two times, and two men, Claire must decide what she really wants – and this decision will completely change her life forever.

I cannot remember the last time I read a book that I enjoyed as much as Outlander. I had a difficult time putting it down, and found myself thinking about the story when I wasn’t reading it. (Nerd.) It is the kind of book I couldn’t wait to pick it up again, to see what would happen next to these characters I love. I was completely swept up in the romance of Claire and Jamie, and fell in love with the book’s setting: Scotland. And as for Jack Randall, he might just go down in history as the most hated, vile villain I’ve ever read. Even at a word count of 305,000, I was not ready for Outlander to come to a close. Thank God (and Diana Gabaldon) for the rest of the books to devour in this series!

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The Ship Beyond Time

~ Hillary Rose ~ Leave a comment
 
Title: The Ship Beyond Time
Author: Heidi Heilig 
Series: The Girl From Everywhere Series, book 2/2
Genre: Time Travel, YA
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Release Date: February 28th, 2017

 

Note: This post reviews the second book of The Girl From Everywhere Series. You may like to read the first book in the series, The Girl From Everywhere, before reading this review. 

After spending sixteen years following her father on his never-ending search to get her mother back, Nix decides to take her life and the Temptation, their time-traveling ship, into her own hands. But when she learns that she is to lose the one she loves to the sea, she sets off on her own quest to change the past – and hopefully the future.

Nix receives a map to a mythical island from a stranger who promises her knowledge about changing the past. She decides to sail with her crew to this island, Ker-Y’s, and there she begins to unravel mysteries concerning Crowhurst, a man who has manipulated time and made himself king of the island, and his daughter Dahut, who cannot remember her own past. Nix, Kash, and Blake, the boy who joined them back in Hawaii, do everything they can to prevent Crowhurst from endangering the lives of many. But as they slowly uncover the truth, they realize that history may just be beyond anyone’s control.

This second and final book of The Girl From Everywhere Series was everything I had hoped it would be and more. It held my attention even more than the first book, and kept me turning pages to see how it would all end. The blend of history and myth was fascinating, and the blend of adventure and romance was just right. This two-book series is one that I would recommend to fans of adventure, travel, and love, and I know I will come back to read it again.

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Reads and Roses is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.

The Girl From Everywhere

~ Hillary Rose ~ 2 Comments
Title: The Girl From Everywhere
Author: Heidi Heilig
Series: The Girl From Everywhere Series, book 1/2
Genre: Time Travel, YA
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Release Date: February 16th, 2016

 

Sixteen-year-old Nix has spent her entire life aboard the Temptation, the time-traveling ship captained by her father. As long as her father has the original of any map, its destination real or imagined, the ship can travel back and forth, to any time and place. Her father has always aggressively sought after a map of 1868 Honolulu, the time just before he lost Nix’s mother in childbirth. He is desperate to go back in time and save her before it is too late – even if it means completely erasing Nix’s very own existence.

Because of this, Nix obviously doesn’t want her father to get the map. While her relationship with her father remains rather strange, Nix’s friendship with Kash, her charming Persian crew mate, is turning into something more than what it has been for the past two years. They begin to cross into uncharted territory, one that she is not sure either of them are ready for. Will Nix have enough time left to find out what might have been with Kash, or will she be pulled away from the world she knows because of her father’s rash actions?

In this, the first of a two-book series, Heilig spins a tale of adventure, travel, friendship, and love in a captivating way. This is the perfect sort of book to take on any adventure of your own.

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Emerald Green

~ Hillary Rose ~ Leave a comment
Title: Emerald Green
Author: Kerstin Gier, translated from German by Anthea Bell
Series: The Ruby Red Trilogy, book 3/3
Genre: Romance, Time Travel, YA
Publisher: Henry Holt
Release Date: October 7th, 2014 
(first published December 8th, 2010) 

 

Note: This post reviews the third book of The Ruby Red Trilogy. You may like to read the first two books in the series, Ruby Red and Sapphire Blue, before reading this review. 

Gwen is still getting used to the idea of time-travel. It is disorienting and downright confusing at times, and everyone involved seems to be keeping a big secret from her – a secret about her destiny as the Ruby in the Circle of Twelve time-travelers. Since no one tells her anything, she decides to figure things out for herself, and make secret visits to the past.

Then there is Gideon, who seems to treat her differently each time they are together. What are his motives for pursuing a relationship with her? Is he really interested in her, or is he, too, only using her to get to what he wants?

In this exciting, page-turning finale, Gwen takes her life, and her heart, into her own hands. She refuses to be anyone’s puppet and boldly discovers the truth for herself – and learns more than she expected. The author masterfully wraps up several different characters’ journeys, as well as tying in moments that she foreshadowed all the way back in the first book.

If you enjoyed this review, please consider following Reads & Roses. It would mean the world to have you on my team!

  

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Sapphire Blue

~ Hillary Rose ~ Leave a comment
Title: Sapphire Blue
Author: Kerstin Gier, translated from German by Anthea Bell
Series: The Ruby Red Trilogy, book 2/3
Genre: Romance, Time Travel, YA
Publisher: Henry Holt
Release Date: October 31st, 2012 
(first published January 5th, 2010)

 

Note: This post reviews the second book of The Ruby Red Trilogy. You may like to read the first book in the series, Ruby Red, before reading this review.

Gwen has been flung into the world of the secret society known as the Lodge and is now expected to follow their every command. Using the chronograph, they send her back in time every day, to collect blood from other time-travelers to be entered into the chronograph and close the circle. Once the circle closes, they believe that they will have a cure for all sickness and disease in the world.

The second of the two chronographs was stolen many years ago by two of the twelve time-travelers, Lucy Montrose and Paul de Villiers, ancestors of both Gwen and Gideon. This chronograph contains the blood of every time-traveler except Gwen, and is believed to be hidden to prevent the circle from closing, though no one knows exactly why. This is one of the mysteries that Gwen, and her best friend Lesley, try desperately to unravel.

As things remain unclear with this secret society of time-travelers, so do things in her relationship with Gideon. They have a relationship, but neither really trusts the other. Gwen must stay level-headed and get to the bottom of the mystery – before she runs out of time.

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Ruby Red

~ Hillary Rose ~ 2 Comments
Title: Ruby Red
Author: Kerstin Gier, translated from German by Anthea Bell
Series: The Ruby Red Trilogy, book 1/3
Genre: Romance, Time Travel, YA
Publisher: Henry Holt
Release Date: May 10th, 2011
(first published January 6th, 2009)


Gwyneth Shepherd, a seemingly ordinary high-schooler living in modern-day London, discovers that she has inherited her family’s time-traveling gene. She is thrust unprepared into The Lodge, the secret society of time-travelers spanning over hundreds of years. There are only twelve time-travelers, each one represented by a precious stone; Gwen, the final stone, is the Ruby. She is to close the circle of time-travelers and fulfill a certain destiny – but she has no idea what that destiny is. 
 
Gwen must elapse (travel through time) for a certain amount of time per day through means of the the chronograph, one of only two time-traveling devices in the world, to avoid sporadic trips into the past. Sometimes she is sent into the past for no reason other than meeting her time-traveling quota; other times she is sent on important missions – like meeting the intimidating founder of the Lodge, Count Saint Germain – with her time-traveling companion, Gideon de Villiers. 
 
Gideon doesn’t have the highest opinion of Gwen at first because of her lack of experience, but over time she gains his trust, approval, and possibly his affection. We see the mounting tension in their relationship, which the author masterfully keeps unresolved until the end of the trilogy. As if time-traveling weren’t interesting enough, their romance definitely keeps you on the edge of your seat. 
 

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