Sam Miracle’s life is made up of dreams – dreams where he’s a courageous, legendary hero instead of a foster kid with two bad arms that can barely move. Sometimes these dreams feel so real, they seem like forgotten memories. And sometimes they make him believe that his arms might come alive again.
But Sam is about to discover that the world he knows and the world he imagines are separated by only one thing: time. And that separation is only an illusion. The laws of time can be bent and shifted by people with special magic that allows them to travel through the past, present, and future. But not all of these “time walkers” can be trusted. One is out to protect Sam so that he can accept his greatest destiny, and another is out to kill him so that a prophecy will never be fulfilled. However, it’s an adventurous girl named Glory and two peculiar snakes who show Sam the way through the dark paths of yesterday to help him make sure there will be a tomorrow for every last person on Earth.
Amazon Blurb
As with The Ashtown Burials, N.D. Wilson yet again demonstrates a fantastic ability to create unique, lifelike settings through a quirky, distinct narrative voice. This series was a bit mind-bendy for me the first time I read it, but second time it was easy to understand — I’m often like that with time travel. Father Tiempo is such a fun and compelling character, and I loved seeing a female character be both strong and vulnerable in Glory.
This series is marketed for middle grade. I might put it in the in-between space for the sake of the violence, but since it is Christian, it is otherwise clean. Violence includes torture and getting shot (a lot of it, this book features much old-west gunslinging.) It is, of course, non-gory other than a few mentions of bones getting snapped or blood on shirts, that kind of thing. But there’s none of the guts and splatter often copiously present in popular fiction these days. There are some gross skinwalkers in the second book, plus chopped-up sea monsters and more shooting, but again, not gory.
Themes include family, friendship, and pull-yourself-up-by-the-bootstraps grit. One thing I always appreciate about Wilson is that his male characters are manly, and his female characters aren’t exactly damsels in distress either, but they don’t dive off the deep end into tough chick-ness. It’s intense, but hopeful.
Perfect for kids who like the Wild West but don’t want to deal with the PC nonsense, for fans of time travel, and for anyone who wants an immersive, hopeful tale of good versus evil with a hint of humor, The Outlaws of Time is definitely worth checking out.
Alright, friends, that’s all for this week.
See ya next time! Ciao!
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