Review: Ruby Red

Title: Ruby Red (Book #1)

Author: Kerstin Gier

Summary:

Gwyneth Shepherd's sophisticated, beautiful cousin Charlotte has been prepared her entire life for traveling through time. But unexpectedly, it is Gwyneth, who in the middle of class takes a sudden spin to a different era!

Gwyneth must now unearth the mystery of why her mother would lie about her birth date to ward off suspicion about her ability, brush up on her history, and work with Gideon--the time traveler from a similarly gifted family that passes the gene through its male line, and whose presence becomes, in time, less insufferable and more essential. Together, Gwyneth and Gideon journey through time to discover who, in the 18th century and in contemporary London, they can trust.

When Gwyneth Shepherd’s cousin starts to feel dizzy, the whole family goes on high alert, waiting for the moment when Charlotte will time-travel for the first time.  A few days later, Gwyneth takes an unexpected trip into the past instead of her cousin.  When the ensuing confusion, frustration, and shock finally sink in, the family must face the truth; Gwyneth is the family time traveler.  Having never been trained and having only rudimentary knowledge of the past, Gwyneth must try to learn all she can about this new ability—before it’s too late. 

The premise of Ruby Red is a good one; it’s intriguing, edgy, and who doesn’t like a bit of time travel?  Gwyneth and Gideon are both refreshing characters that are fun to read and rather mysterious. The interplay between them definitely picks up throughout the book and keeps to story alive. The fear and confusion Gwyneth displays, during and after time travel, feels genuine.  I could honestly picture myself transporting through time with her. 

I finished this book in two sittings (interrupted only because I HAD to go to class) and did not want to put it down.  Trying to subtly read it in class did not work well and I was forced to start taking some notes.  Many of the characters in this story are quite enjoyable… but, the people from the past are even more intriguing than the ones that are first introduced.  

One of the problems that I have with this book is that the only things that get accomplished are what the book summary already revealed would happen.  There is a lot of setup for this world and structure, and many characters are introduced, but nothing is resolved here.  In fact, the book literally ends in THE MIDDLE OF A SCENE.  Understandably, cliff-hangers are used as a way to keep people interested in the plotline, but please, let SOMETHING new get resolved in this book!  The story feels more like a movie trailer—or a much longer book “blurb” for the whole series.

Though, having just said that this feels like a movie trailer, it is important to point out   that it is one movie that I would definitely later pay to watch.  Ruby Red is good, and now that the set-up is out of the way, hopefully the next book will dive right into the actual plot.  I definitely recommend this book, but reading   more of the series is required to fully appreciate the story.  When picking up this book (and you should!) make sure to set aside plenty of time to read them all.

The cover:

This cover is absolutely beautiful!  The embroidery-looking design on the cover—the silver is a gorgeous contrast to the deep red.  If only more of this design had been placed on the spine of the book it would have been perfect… but, overall it is really pretty!

 I give Ruby Red a 3.5 out of 5 hearts: Good Book