Smasher

February 10, 2014
Bly debuts with an uneven tale of time travel and magic, in which a youth from the year 1542 is brought five centuries into the future to help save the world. Geneva, a robot designed to resemble a teenage girl, chooses Charles for his aptitude with magic, what he calls “the Hum,” taking him to 2042. There, enigmatic CEO Gramercy Foxx is on the verge of unleashing a product known as “The Future,” which will allow him to enslave humanity. Only by working together, with Charles mastering both the Hum and 21st-century tech, can they foil Foxx’s plan. While Bly’s computer technology experience shines in the scenes set in the future, his choices to use contemporary language and to show almost nothing of Charles’s home era make it difficult to buy into aspects of the story. Charles’s complete lack of culture shock and rapid adjustment make him feel much more like a modern teen than a recruit from the reign of Henry VIII. The story suffers from too many elements with too little development, and a nebulously resolved climax. Ages 10–14. Agent: Deborah Warren, East-West Agency.

February 1, 2014
A robot girl transports Charlie from medieval Europe to a futuristic Los Angeles with the explanation that only he can save the world. Almost all of Charlie's family has been killed for their ability to harness the Hum, a mysterious force that gives the wielder unimaginable power. Charlie has been taught that the Hum is to be used with love, but in LAanges the Hum is being used to terrible effect by Gramercy Foxx, a ruthless genius focused on world domination. When Charlie and his robot friend, Geneva, discover Foxx's animal-experimentation lab, where he is attempting to alter a computer virus to infect human DNA, they know they must stop him no matter the cost. It is not until Charlie returns to his time and discovers Foxx's true identity that it becomes personal. The fast-paced plot, supersaturated with technology and complex puzzles, is warmed by Geneva and Charlie's unlikely friendship. Foxx is the consummate villain, preying on children and animals without remorse--a predilection that is not soft-pedaled in the text, particularly with regard to animals, which will put readers squarely in Geneva and Charlie's court. An unusual premise vibrates with a combination of science and magic. (Fantasy. 8-12)

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March 15, 2014
Grades 3-6 Awkward medieval kid Charlie strikes back against evil 500 years in the future in this grand sci-fi tale. Charlie, who is gifted with magical abilities, is stuck in his grandfather's hideout in England in 1542, avoiding the attentions of the violent mob who killed other members of his family with the same gift. One day, Charlie is astonished to be rescued from local toughs by a robot girl, Geneva, who needs his help to save the world. Geneva is from future Los Angeles, where creepy Gramercy Foxx is creating computer viruses that do more than disrupt computer systems, and he has set his sights on merging technology with biology. If Geneva can get Charlie to figure out the future, he can use his magic and his smarts to stop Foxx's dangerous plans. Debut author Bly smashes time travel and robots together with the fantasy of magic in a fun, adventurous way. Charlie's a hero for smart, quiet kids, who will find a lot to love in this story.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)