If you are a fan of time travel, then you should check out these two books!
by Julie Cross
Jackson Meyer can jump through time. When we meet him at the beginning of Tempest he is nineteen-years-old in 2009 and is just starting to scratch the surface of his time travelling abilities. He believes that he can only travel to the past for a short amount of time, but that all changes when one morning a couple of strangers burst into his girlfriend's dorm room and fatally shoot her while trying to abduct Jackson. As Jackson holds the dying Holly in his arms, he suddenly travels back in time to 2007. However, he is stuck in 2007 and has to pretend to be his seventeen-year-old self to try to figure out why he was in danger in 2009. He also begins to discover the secrets his father has hidden from him about his time travelling abilities.
Tempest is an exciting and action-packed book. The characters are really fun to read about and I found myself laughing out loud at times. This is definitely not a dramatic read, but there is a lot of drama with Jackson's abilities. The mystery behind Jackson's time jumping powers is very interesting to read but it is also a bit complicated. Pick this book up if you are looking for a book that has a lot of mystery, action, and twists and turns.
by Kerstin Gier
Gwenyth had grown up knowing that her more sophisticated and prettier cousin Charlotte had the genetic ability to travel through time. Gwenyth is just a normal sixteen-year-old girl who likes to hang out with her friends, gossip and talk on her phone, and who also happens to be able to see and talk to ghosts. Charlotte, however, has had extensive lessons and training for different skills that will come in handy when she starts travelling back in time--like fencing, learning German, and even self defense. It all goes wrong, though, when Gwenyth actually turns out to be the next time traveler in the family. Once The Guardians, the secret order that protects time travellers, confirms that she is "The Ruby" (the last of the time travellers) she is suddenly thrust into a world that she is very unprepared for. Will Gwenyth be able to survive travelling through time without the proper training? Will she uncover the secret of why one of her time travelling relatives ran away and took a precious device with her? And, most importantly, can she learn to tolerate her time travelling partner Gideon--an older, cuter, and very arrogant descendant of another family with the genetic ability to travel through time.
Ruby Red was a good read. The great mystery surrounding Gwenyth's role as "The Ruby" and the missing time travel device are set up nicely in this first book in a planned trilogy. Be warned, though! The ending is quite a cliffhanger. Gwenyth is a fun character to read about, too. At first I was so frustrated at how immature she was, but I think the author did this so that she could show how much Gwenyth had to grow up when she learned that she had the time travel gene. One thing to know about this book is that it was translated into English from German, and it takes place in London, both in the current day and also in the past. It does use British terms and references, but for me this just added to the story. I am definitely looking forward to reading the rest of the trilogy.
posted by Colleen, Teen Services Librarian
