Review by Booklist Review
In the modern world (2034), Earth has been destroyed, and its cities and countries are mere simulations. But teenage experimental physics experts Riley and Jaideep have built a time machine that will allow them to go back to 1891 and stop the process that slowly disintegrated the planet. On their first attempt, however, they accidentally time-nap Willa Marconi, a gender-swapped version of Guglielmo Marconi, who invented wireless telegraphy. From there, they're stalked by Petrichor, an operative from the Continuity Agency, who needs to follow them through time portals to stop them from doing something that will change history entirely. As the three travelers zip through history, dodging the agent, they try to repair their mistakes and keep Willa from returning to 1891 with too much future knowledge. This sci-fi thriller is quickly paced, and the rapidly changing time and rules of physics will keep readers on their toes. Riley and Jaideep, essentially the world's foremost experts on time-travel physics, banter in technobabble that may overwhelm some readers. A series starter for larger collections.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
A group of teens ricochet through time and space to rewrite the past in this labyrinthine time travel adventure by Clare, set in the same world as the Ink, Iron, and Glass duology. In 2034, white Riley, 17, and her Indian American--cued boyfriend Jaideep, both scientific prodigies living in an "artificial pocket universe" resembling Boston, have devised a method to travel back in time and prevent the mysterious cataclysm that rendered Earth uninhabitable. But instead of transporting the duo to the 19th century, their initial effort accidentally plucks white trans engineer Willa Marconi, 17 and the future inventor of wireless communication, out of her 1891 timeline, and drops them all into a strange, empty city in an unknown year. The teens' appearance prompts suspicion within the Continuity Agency, omnipotent custodians of all time and space, and the trio must dodge a frightening android cop while attempting to return Willa to her proper era and complete the original mission. Riley and Willa's distinct alternating perspectives and the group's varied interpersonal challenges, such as Riley and Jaideep's hesitation to reveal their polyamorous relationship to Willa, even as Riley's attraction to her grows, provide a distinctly human aspect to this splashy futuristic volume. Ages 14--up. Agent: Jennifer Azantian, Azantian Literary. (Nov.)
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Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 9 Up--While on a test run of her radio equipment, Willa Marconi, from Italy in 1891, has just been plunged into a strange new world. In front of her stands a young woman, white and European like herself, and a young man, who appears Arab or Indian, who look at her in horror. From their perspective, Riley and Jaideep see a huge mistake. They've just thrust a local from her time period into the space they hoped would help them discover information they need to save their world from the disaster it is in 2033. Now that they're together, they must discover a way to stop the cataclysm that sparked the end of the known world. Their search for answers involves encounters with time loops, time-traveling androids, and others who will stop at nothing to keep things the way they are. This fast-action, complex story plunges readers into a world where Riley and Jaideep want nothing more than to stop the event that caused the disaster that led to the deaths of Jaideep's entire family, while Willa tries to make sense of it all using the science and logic she has always relied on. Give this book to mature science fiction readers, as lots of scientific jargon and principles are not explained. While science predominates, the young protagonists fall for each other in an arc that includes references to polyamory, sexuality, and gender exploration. VERDICT This book is a part of a larger set of works, dovetailing with Clare's "Ink, Iron, and Glass" duology. As such, it would be an optional purchase on its own, but a recommended purchase for where the author's previous works circulate well.--Connie Williams
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