Book Reviews

Book Blurb

Sometimes love lives in the past…

In an alternate 2014, time travel is commonplace, regulated by the government. 17-year-old Trevor Bartley has been selected to be an exchange student to the year 1963 to study the civil rights era. The rules: do nothing that could alter the natural flow of time. But when he meets his host family, he finds himself incredibly drawn to 17-year-old Nick Keaton. In his own time, Trevor would have pursued his feelings without a second thought, but in 1963, when an entire race was subjected to violence and hate, pursuing his feelings openly would be dangerous in the extreme. And that was if Nick were even open to the idea.

Until it becomes clear that he is.

But if things aren’t complicated enough, Trevor soon finds himself caught up in a terrorist plot of murder and political intrigue which could send the natural timeline careening off in dangerous directions, and could have life or death consequences—or worse—for everyone.

 

Book Review

Now here’s an unusual idea for you: a temporal exchange student. In this entertaining and suspenseful Young Adult novel, seventeen-year-old Trevor has been approved for a six-month stay in 1963. Yep, I was as shocked as you might be, wondering how it would work. I mean, we’re used to hearing about the dangers of time travel – well, those of us who read science fiction, so I wasn’t at all sure how this would work. And, like with any time travel story, there are some worrying inconsistencies, like time paradoxes being totally ignored, but most of the issues in this creative world are nicely explained and make a weird sort of sense. There are certain rules as well, like that normal people can only travel backward in time. And there is the Time Regulation Commission - an organization in charge of supervising all time travel.

Trevor is a typical teenager in many ways. He wants to belong, he asks questions, and he seeks to understand the world better. He is curious about the past and really happy that he can go back to 1963 to study one of the most crucial times in modern civil rights. He stays in his hometown, so things are somewhat familiar, but it takes him a while to adjust to the different cars (without seat belts), the lack of computers, and the total separation of black and white people. I really enjoyed some of his eye-opening moments, especially the ones where he knows an event has tremendous historical significance, yet the people around him are either unaware of it or can’t see the consequences of what they have witnessed.

One area that is very hard for Trevor to deal with is the fact that he is gay in a far less gay-friendly time. Not that he thought it would even be an issue, but his host family’s son, Nick, is more than interested in him, one of the girls he and Nick hang out with at school becomes suspicious, and the developing relationship between Trevor and Nick becomes one of the many unexpected aspects of Trevor’s visit.

There is intrigue coming from the temporal guardian who is supposed to watch what Trevor is up to so that any major changes to the timeline can be avoided. Subterfuge and mysterious activities arouse Trevor’s suspicions, and he is soon involved in what he believes to be a plot to prevent the assassination of President Kennedy that November. Between the wonderful historical differences, Trevor’s learning curve, his relationship with Nick, and the mystery around the bigger political picture, this is a pretty suspenseful story. I enjoyed the world the author created here – except for the ending. It is a logical conclusion to what’s been happening in the novel (up to a point), it may be the more realistic choice, but I did not like it one bit. I can see how it increases the story’s dramatic effect, but my inner romantic was not happy!

If you like time travel adventures of the creative kind, if you want to watch two young men deal with a growing attraction between them that forces them to make some tough decisions, and if you’re looking for an entertaining story about coming of age, finding your way in the world, and dealing with dangers that threaten everything you know, then you will probably like this novel.

 

 

 

 

DISCLAIMER: Books reviewed on this site were usually provided at no cost by the publisher or author. This book has been provided by Etopia Press for the purpose of a review.

Additional Information

Format	ebook
Length	NovelNovel, 72241 words
Heat Level
Publication Date	05-April-2013
Price	$5.99 ebook
Buy Link	https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-theexchangestudent-1152515-141.html