Winner of February’s Self-Published Saturday

CLOCKWISE by Elle Strauss

This caught my attention because of Elle’s snappy plug ‘A teen time traveller accidentally takes her secret crush back in time.  Awkward.’  It combined an interesting hook with a typically teen scenario, and sounded light and maybe a touch funny.

The main character, Casey, is a typical teen, on the edges of the cool kids, gangly and with a stroppy older brother.  What makes her atypical is her ‘tripping’ – she suddenly finds herself back in the 1860s, and anyone she’s touching at the time, comes back with her.

I won’t spoil the story by giving any more away – but it’s a strong read, mainly because Casey comes across as both likeable and believable.  My only quibbles would be that the plot involving Casey’s father’s origins stretches things a little far, and that the parents’ marriage doesn’t seem entirely plausible.

I would recommend CLOCKWISE, and the author has realised that the plot lends itself  to a series, including a tantalising opening chapter of CLOCKWISE-R (not the best title) within this book.

February 9, 2012

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