Review by Booklist Review
Margo, almost 17, has fallen out of her world and into another. Depressed after losing her father in a plane crash, she was sent to boarding school to keep her out of trouble. On the way there, she falls and meets Moon, a traveling salesman whose travel involves speeding and slowing through time itself. Time travel is hard on a body, so most salesmen barely last a decade, and Moon is coming up on that time. His first intention is to sell Margo, which might earn him enough to quit and also win a mysterious, ongoing war, but his plans are foiled when Margo runs away, trying to find some way back to her place and time. As more time and distance pass, Moon and Margo become fond of each other, their original motives becoming shadier. O'Donoghue, best known for her All Our Hidden Gifts trilogy, skips into sf here and has great and intriguing ideas for magic and tech. This will hook readers fast, and they will be ready for the planned sequel.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Teenage Margo is en route to boarding school in Dublin when her otherwise empty train stops inside a tunnel, triggering a panic attack. When Margo recovers, she notices that the train's trappings have changed and she's been joined by passenger Moon, who has never heard of Ireland. Confused and terrified, Margo disembarks with Moon in New Davia--one of several worlds connected by a strictly regulated railroad. Margo learns that each world experiences time differently: as one ventures further north, the days--and the residents' lifespans--grow shorter. Traveling salesmen like Moon often die of "skipshock" from frequent time-speed shifts. Moon could avoid that entirely and retire early using the money that rebels would pay him for delivering Margo, whose sudden arrival suggests there are alternate, unregulated means of interworld travel. But with authorities investigating Margo's appearance, such a deal could doom them both. In this dazzling duology opener, O'Donoghue (Every Gift a Curse) deploys inventive worldbuilding that complements an intricate plot advocating social justice and immigration reform. Moon's first-person narration alternates with third-person chapters following Margo; their witty banter and burgeoning romance buoys the tone amid constant danger and high-stakes action sequences. Characters are racially diverse. Ages 14--up. Agent: Bryony Woods, Diamond Kahn & Woods. (June)
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
On a train headed to boarding school, a girl suddenly finds herself in another world where time functions differently. After the sudden death of her father, 16-year-old Margo's depression swerves into rebellion. But as she's returning to her Dublin boarding school, something miraculous happens. Suddenly she's in a completely different train car, and someone's sitting in her seat. Moon, as he's called, is an itinerant salesman--and he decides to help Margo. Maybe this strange girl can help fund his way out of a life shortened by skipshock: the deadly toll that constant traveling between worlds takes on the body. Each world has a different number of hours in its days; the days in Northern worlds are shorter, causing accelerated aging, while Southern worlds have days that are nearly as long as Earth's. Semper, the ruling world, is Southern, and they've outlawed traveling for anyone but salesmen. But Margo's arrival from Earth--a sealed world no one was aware of--indicates that there must be a rupture, which sparks interest in a universe on the brink of a war. In this duology opener, Margo and Moon must try to stop tyrannical Semper. Their journey is one of rollicking adventure, ever-present danger, and simmering romance. Readers will burn through the pages as they traverse gorgeous, fully realized worlds replete with their own varied dramas. Margo reads white and Moon is a member of the nomadic Lunati, who are often treated with suspicion. Incredibly immersive and utterly unique.(Fantasy. 14-18) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
