Time Travel YA Review: Untimed by Andy Gavin
Untimed by Andy Gavin
review copy from the author
Synopsis from Goodreads
Charlie’s the kind of boy that no one notices. Hell, even his own mother can’t remember his name. And girls? The invisible man gets more dates.
As if that weren’t enough, when a mysterious clockwork man tries to kill him in modern day Philadelphia, and they tumble through a hole into 1725 London, Charlie realizes even the laws of time don’t take him seriously.
Still, this isn’t all bad. In fact, there’s this girl, another time traveler, who not only remembers his name, but might even like him! Unfortunately, Yvaine carries more than her share of baggage: like a baby boy and at least two ex-boyfriends! One’s famous, the other’s murderous, and Charlie doesn’t know who is the bigger problem.
When one kills the other — and the other is nineteen year-old Ben Franklin — things get really crazy. Can their relationship survive? Can the future? Charlie and Yvaine are time travelers, they can fix this — theoretically — but the rules are complicated and the stakes are history as we know it.
And there's one more wrinkle: he can only travel into the past, and she can only travel into the future!
Amazon US/UK | Amazon kindle US($2.99)/UK(£1.94) | The Book Depository US/UK
9/10
* * *
Guys, gals, this book was wonderful! Somewhere between middle grade and YA, sci-fi, steampunk and just pure delightful time travel, it's a must read for all your teen adventurers with vivid imagination. And just look at these illustrations! This book is full of them:
I don't know why I'm so surprised if I loved Andy Gavin's first book just as much. Also, everything he does is meticulous - the text, the covers by fab Cliff Nielsen, the sheer research for each book.
Untimed is not a silly, fluffy light read. Charlie and Yvaine come from different eras and it shows. If he is a teen from our present, she is a Scottish lass from 17th(?) century just couple of years older but she already has a baby and uses all her wit and pragmatic optimism to survive on the streets. They are very different but at the same time they have similar views on what's right or wrong, and I had to admire the fact that they both managed to keep their integrity through the darkest times.
And there is darkness in this book. Plenty of it. Greed, selfishness, conspiracy of clockwork men, constant pursuit and desperate fight for survival. There is a mention of sexual relations, but it's not shown in any way, so I would still recommend it to younger YA readers, because it's scant.
The characters are really bright and distinctive, their development is gradual and goes really well with the world-building.
Untimed is a complex and immensely entertaining read which gallops through different eras and really emphasizes the butterfly effect and how everything Charlie and Yvaine do in the past inevitably reflects in the future.
Gorgeous, exciting book, highly recommended.
* * *
Вне Времени - ещё одна прекраснейшая книга от Энди Гевина, которую я рекомендую всем, и в том числе вашим детям подросткового возраста, живущим приключенческими книгами.Несмотря на самиздат, Энди подошёл к созданию Вне Времени очень серьёзно - очередная обложка от прекрасного графического дизайнера, Клиффа Нильсена, превосходный текст и шикарные иллюстрации.
(см.иллюстрации выше)
Чарли и Ивэйн - оба путешественника во времени - талант с которым рождаются. Она, как и все девушки может только прыгать в будущее, а Чарли - в прошлое. Когда он случайно оказывается в Лондоне 18в. и встречает Ивэйн, живущую на улицах вместе с подростковой бандой, только что родившую сына от Бенджамина Франклина, они объдиняют силы и пускаются в невольные прыжки сквозь время и пространство, чтобы спасти сына Ивэйн и победить таинственных часовых людей, которые пытаются радикально изменить историю.
Вне Времени - довольно тёмная книга, где героям приходится преодолевать множество опасностей и пытаться сохранить свои принципы несмотря на тяжёлые рещения, что им приходится принимать. Так что это литература не для слабонервных.
Чарли и Ивэйн а также множество второстепенных героев вышли безумно яркими и на фоне превосходного и тщательного построения мира радовали безмерно. Я даже не могу точно охарактеризовать эту книгу... тут вам и стимпанк и научная фантастика, и YA и миддл-грэйд несмотря на присутствие секса, который хоть и упомянут, но не показан...
Что бы это ни было, читать надо! Очень рекомендую.
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