Serendipity Reviews: December 2011

Friday 23 December 2011

Happy Christmas!

This is officially my last post for 2011! That had you creeped out, didn't it. You thought I was going to say last post ever! Hehehehe! No chance of that happening in the near future. However I do need a little break and with the festive season nearly upon us I will be taking a blogging break from today until the 2nd of January. Then I will be storming into January with an abundance of new publications and amazing blog tours.
So for now, I want to thank everyone who has taken the time to stop by and read my posts and wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Thursday 22 December 2011

Tempest by Julie Cross

Pages - 415

Published by Macmillan on the 6th January

My name is Jackson and I can travel through time. Now, wait, it's not as exciting as you might think. I can't go back in time and kill Hitler. I can't go to the future and tell you who wins the World Series in 2038. So far, the most I've ever jumped is about six hours in the past. Some superhero, right?

Goodreads Summary

The year is 2009. Nineteen-year-old Jackson Meyer is a normal guy… he’s in college, has a girlfriend… and he can travel back through time. But it’s not like the movies – nothing changes in the present after his jumps, there’s no space-time continuum issues or broken flux capacitors – it’s just harmless fun.

That is… until the day strangers burst in on Jackson and his girlfriend, Holly, and during a struggle with Jackson, Holly is fatally shot. In his panic, Jackson jumps back two years to 2007, but this is not like his previous time jumps. Now he’s stuck in 2007 and can’t get back to the future.

Desperate to somehow return to 2009 to save Holly but unable to return to his rightful year, Jackson settles into 2007 and learns what he can about his abilities.

But it’s not long before the people who shot Holly in 2009 come looking for Jackson in the past, and these “Enemies of Time” will stop at nothing to recruit this powerful young time-traveller. Recruit… or kill him.

Piecing together the clues about his father, the Enemies of Time, and himself, Jackson must decide how far he’s willing to go to save Holly… and possibly the entire world.

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I think that Julie Cross may find herself sitting pretty in the number one spot for time travel fiction. This book seriously shook my brain. Imagine taking Quantum Leap, Back to the Future and The Time Traveller's Wife and putting them in a blender. Then adding a touch of Heroes for flavour and voila you have an original time travel novel that takes your breath away. You will get to certain points in the story and you won't have a clue as to which direction the book might go.

This has to be the first book in ages that I have read from a male perspective yet written by a female. Normally I would worry that the author might struggle to capture the way the opposite sex thinks and feels but in my mind, the character of Jackson is written beautifully. He is all man, but in touch with his feminine side, which makes him really rather cool and adorable. He will make you weep into you sleeve, as he desperately tries to save Holly. He will stop at nothing until she is safe, his love for her is that strong.

Julie Cross has created strong realistic characters who have the ability to play with your emotions. Courtney will break your heart. Her story reminded me of those weepy real life films they show on TV. I keep hoping that her story will turn out to all be a dream and she will get a happy ever after. You will be unsure about Jackson's dad too. I struggled to decide whether I trusted him or not and even after finishing the book my thoughts on him are still unclear.

The ending actually wrenched my heart out and threw it on the floor. I sat there screaming at the book, 'NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!' I couldn't believe that it could end like that, not after everything Jackson had been through. I understood why it did, but I still couldn't believe it.

The last few chapters are explosive and action packed. A Mission Impossible style ending that will leave you shocked to the core.

This book will make you think. It will make you look at your present relationship and wonder whether it would still have worked if you had met at a different time in your life. Would the person you love now be the same person if you had met them five years earlier? Would you love them as much or would they need time to grow into the person you love now? See it will make you think.

This really is an action packed, fast paced, thrilling read that will have you jumping all over the time continuum.

Wednesday 21 December 2011

Mid-Winter's Eve Giveaway Blog Hop

As part of the Mid-Winters Eve Blog Hop hosted by I Am A Reader Not a Writer and Oasis For YA, I am giving away a paperback copy of Dark Parties by Sara Grant.

This is an international competition. To enter, just fill out the form below. You must be a FOLLOWER of this blog in order to enter this competition. The competition closes on the 27th of December and the winner will be announced a few days after that.

Please fill out the form below for a chance to win.

For more chances to win brilliant prizes in this huge giveaway, click here to visit the rest of the blogs taking part in the Mid-Winter's Eve Giveaway or scroll down the list of bloggers at the end of the post.