Glass House Press
ISBN: 978-0981676807
Publishing date: Feb 26, 2013
Trade paperback, 372 pages
I love historical fiction and time
travel, so the combination of both in this book made the perfect
combination for pleasure reading. McHugh's debut novel in his Stone
Ends YA series was an exciting and fun book to read! Although the
book cover may lead one to believe that this may be a dark story,
it's far from that.
Almost fifteen-year old Jason is a shy
high school kid who now lives with his grandfather after losing both
parents to a car accident three years earlier. He misses them
terribly and feels guilty for their death because he had asked them
to return earlier from out of town. Living with his grandfather, Dr.
Richard Evans, a physics professor, is okay, but apart from Paul, his
nerdy best friend, Jason feels his life is boring and mundane. Until
he discovers his grandfather's secret—that he can jump through time
through a magical set of stones. When Jason also feels a connection
to the stones and further uncovers the plot of a madman bent on
reshaping history and messing around with time itself, he takes
action and races through time to save the world and his grandfather.
McHugh succeeds in creating great
characters and deftly transporting the reader to Medieval England in
the 15th century when King Henry is fighting against
Richard III. McHugh brings history alive through the pages of this
book. I could smell the damp walls of the underground tunnels under
the cold castle stones, hear the battle cries and the thundering of
horses' hooves as history-making events took place, and clearly
pictured those towering and hulking Vikings who had villagers
scampering away with the baring of their rotten teeth.
The first half of the story focuses on
developing the cast of characters and introducing Dr. Richard Evans'
time travel concept through the stones, but once Jason travels
through time, it's non-stop action filled with adventure, danger and
excitement. Jason has found his mission in life, and the reader can
see how he grows as a character. I really liked him and his new
friends, and I think young readers will be able to relate to him.
McHugh also includes historical people who made a difference in this
world. It's a great way for kids to get a history lesson. I love books that immerse young readers into history.
As with any time travel novel, the
reader has to suspend belief at times—I marvelled at how easily
Jason could gallop at top speed on a horse—but I was so engrossed
in the story that I didn't care since it is fantasy after all. The
book ends with a cliffhanger (oh no!), so I can't wait to read the second book
titled Washington's Stone. If you like time travel and action
adventure this is a great series to start. Highly recommended.
Note: This book is rated V = violence for battle scenes with swords and guns. Not gory or bloody. There were also some mild religious expletives. (Oh my G*d)
I will count this book toward the following challenges: My Personal Time Travel Challenge
To read more reviews, visit the Pump Up Your Book Tour Page.
PT McHugh didn’t start out as a storyteller. He was, however, born into a family of that encouraged imagination. He became a fan of history in school and then went to college to become a construction engineer, to build a world of straight lines, angles, and equations.
He was just as surprised as everyone else when he realized that he believed in magic, and might just know the secret of how to jump through time. Since then, he’s been researching the possibility and learning everything he can about history. Just in case the opportunity arises.
PT was born and raised in New Hampshire and currently lives in Raleigh, North Carolina with his wife, two daughters, and a dog named Bob, daring to dream of alternate worlds and cheering for his beloved New England Patriots.
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Reviewed by Laura
Disclosure: Thanks to the publisher and Pump Up Your Book Virtual Tours for sending me this book for review. I was not compensated in any other way, nor told how to rate or review this product.
 by PT McHugh Glass House Press ISBN: 978-0981676807 Publishing date: Feb 26, 2013 Trad...){kind=link}
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