Wayfarer

January 1, 2017

Gr 9 Up-The times, they are a-changin', and no one knows that better than a time traveler. When this sequel to Passenger opens, two weeks have elapsed since Etta was in Damascus, where she was shot in the shoulder, a coveted astrolabe was stolen from her, and she was separated from her beloved Nicholas. Now Etta must retrieve the astrolabe so that the right time line can be maintained. Etta, the Thorns (the good guys), and the Ironwoods (the bad guys) trade blows across continents and centuries, from Carthage in 148 BCE to Imperial Russia in 1919 to New York City in 1939 and a dozen times and places in between. Bracken's knowledge of history is formidable. Each location is vividly depicted, right down to the smells. The two clans vie for the astrolabe and the power it wields, amid street fights, poisonings, diseases, witch curses, elephant rampages, and earthquakes. With such an impressive panoply of perils, action drives the narrative. Even so, secondary threads are engaging and make the novel relatable to teen readers. For instance, several characters wrestle with repercussions of childhood poverty and fear, and Etta struggles with parental approval and remembers being a child in her mother's chilly presence: "Loneliness had a pitch-that high whine of static that coated silence." It is in conveying these intensely human issues that Bracken's prose shines. VERDICT An exciting, well-told story, but reading Passenger first is a must, so buy where that volume is popular.-Jennifer Prince, Buncombe CountyPublic Libraries, NC

Copyright 2017 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 1, 2017
Grades 9-12 Time-traveling is a tricky business, and after the events of Passenger (2016), Etta Spencer has found herself stranded far from her natural modern-day New Yorkand from Nicholas, the love of her life. She's determined to destroy the astrolabe, a device that is mythical to the warring time-traveling families, until she meets a man claiming to be her father. Elsewhere in time, Nicholas, illegitimate member of the powerful Ironwood family, has joined forces with wickedly tempered Sophia Ironwood, determined to find Etta no matter the cost, even as that cost grows higher. But as the time lines change around them, both Etta and Nicholas have to decide what they want the future to look like. Bracken is always aware of how women, same-sex relationships, and biracial Nicholas would be received in times that range from ancient Carthage to imperial Russia to 1906 San Francisco. The scope is huge, and the constant time hopping can be hard to follow, but the stakes are high, and those who have followed Etta on her journeys won't be putting this down until the explosive end. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Passenger was a number-one best-seller, and this second and final volume is being supported by floor displays, white-box mailings, and more.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)