Time Between Us

I don't even know where to start. It's been a while since I was speechless from a book. Tamara Ireland Stone is coming to my town for a signing soon, and so I picked up her book. I had no idea what a treasure I was buying!

Time Between Us by Tamara Ireland Stone focuses on Anna, a girl who lives in the year 1995, who meets a strange boy named Bennett. He appears and disappears one day when she is running at a track, but when she meets him again at school the next day, it's as if he never knew her in the first place. This starts a romantic adventure of a love that spans time, space, and every other dimension.

I don't want to say too much more about the plot, because it's incredible to get to experience it all firsthand. The writing is gorgeous, and it took all of my willpower to put it down last night and not stay up all night finishing it. The characters are well drawn, and it's hard not to like Anna. She's a great main character, and Bennett is intriguing. Her parents are briefly mentioned, but in a few deft strokes, you can tell what their personalities are like. Emma, as the best friend, was my other favorite-- and I can hear her Brit accent in my head. The plot races along at a perfect pace, and while I'm not usually one for description, it takes a central role in this novel. I can imagine all the beautiful places in my head so effortlessly with the way Stone describes them. I can feel the sand between my toes, and the chalk as I dust it on my hands before hitching myself up on the first crease of a rock face.

There are certain plot twists that I was doubtful about, but it all comes full circle as all loose ends are tied up in a way that makes sense and is completely believable (in this novel's reality). The ending is spot on-- usually difficult for most authors. Every move that Stone has made is right, and this book has currently stolen my heart as one of my favorite reads this year.

Overall, a gorgeously told novel with terrific characters, scenery, and pacing. Stone is one of the most talented authors that I have discovered this year, and I can't wait to pick up the next gem she writes!

TIME BETWEEN US is a YA gem that has so many things I love in a novel: it's imaginative, heartfelt and mixes time travel, foreign countries and music!

So what got me so hooked? First, the book opens with a scene in October 2011 of an older Anna handing a letter to a 16 year old Bennett who doesn't know her. She hopes the letter might be able to change things. Next, we get a scene in March 1995. Anna's running at a track and there's a boy watching her. But when she turns to look at him again, he's gone. And when she goes to investigate, there are no tracks leading to or from where he's sitting. How cool and mysterious is that opening?

I quickly became invested in Anna's character. She has a world map and longs to stick it full of pins to show places she's been. When she meets Bennett, he makes her world larger - and not only because of his big time travel secret. Anna and Bennett's romance is so sweet - and the narrative is infused with such urgency because you want these two teens from different times to end up together.

I can't wait for more from Tamara Ireland Stone!

This book was so cute! The relationship between Anna and Bennett was truly love and Bennett was truly one of a kind. Not just because of the fact that he can time travel or travel to wherever he wants, whenever he wants (only during his lifetime) but he isn't like most teenage boys living in today's society. Which was another thing I loved, a boy from 2012 living in 1995. It's crazy to think about how different it was then from now when really, it wasn't all that long ago. When Anna asked Bennett what he misses most from 2012, he says his cell phone. I laughed. Cell phone were basically nonexistent back then (or they were massively bulky) and yet today, we rely on our phones so much. Insane.

Bennett is adorable. There really is no other way to describe him. Anna is independent, strong and truly a great friend. I love the relationship between herself and her best friend, Emma, the most out of all the relationships. They are both different individually but together, they mesh perfectly. Also, the relationship with her father is pretty awesome. Another thing you don't realize it how families have changed since the 90's.

I am really having a hard time talking about how much I enjoyed this book without giving away too much.

I would consider this definitely more contemporary than anything else, even though it included time travel, it just seemed so real. Like it could happen to anyone, you know? It's definitely one of those feel good books, even though there were many times that made me sad or even tear up but that's life, right? We all have those hard times, the times where we just want to give up and just cry but you move on from that, right? You have your sad times and then you move on to happier times. Absolutely recommend this book. Check it out and tell me if you don't have a smile on your face by the end.

Reviewed by Jessica @Step Into Fiction

Straight after reading what Time Between Us by author Tamara Ireland Stone was about (and after seeing all the extremely positive reviews) I was dying to get reading! I mean, it sounded like the Time Travelers Wife mixed with all the YA goodness I love. I bet you're wondering if it's as awesome as it sounds and as awesome as I am building everything up to be and the honest answer is this: It's pretty freaking awesome if I do say so myself.

Time Between Us is the story of main character Anna Greene who lives in 1995 and (oh snap, son!) that was way before this reviewer was born. Did I enjoy the blast from the past? Oh yeah especially since at multiple times I was thinking "why don't you just use... like an IPhone or something?" and then remembered that I wasn't reading a novel set in the present day. Back on track--Anna is running on the track one day when she sees a boy watching her and moments later he literally vanishes from her sight.

After that, Anna encounters the boy who had been watching her--Bennett - and soon falls in love with him, but not after he saves her life. Anna quickly learns Bennett's dark secret... that he is a time traveler from 2012 and that he cannot stay in 1995 for much longer. Anna and Bennett encounter the problems that come from dating somebody out of their time periods, stretch the limits and laws of time itself and the basic challenges of teenage life.

As I said before, the novel is set in 1995 and I know for a lot of people that could be a bit scary. I know for kids my age, because it's set in the past, there is the idea of "oh my god, what if they start talking about discos or dinosaurs the life before cellphones and stuff? I totally won't relate." Not to worry my young friends, you actually kind of forget that the novel is even set in 1995 because the author doesn't overuse it, she doesn't say in every chapter "oh by the way, the year is 1995". She just implies it through the setting and uses it with the times and dates of certain events.

The romantic interest in the novel, Bennett, was a guy that I personally felt should have had a lot more spine than the MC, Anna. Throughout the plot, Bennett constantly tells Anna why time travelling is dangerous and why he cannot always use his abilities to change what fate had intended. Anna easily causes him to pushover and uses his abilities to her advantage, did I believe that Anna was using Bennett? At times, absolutely! Do I think that if a future novel is produced that Bennett should put his foot down a few times and tell her to shut her face and listen to the guy who travels through time? Hells yes!

I would recommend Time Between Us to fans of either the novel or the movie for Time Traveler's Wife but want a YA twists and to those of you who lived through the 90′s and want to be sent back in time. Readers will definitely fall in love with the world that Ireland Stone has created.

I loved this book so hard. I read it all the way back in May, but it never left me. I thought about it and talked about it for so long afterward, and I can't wait to run out and buy a copy of my very own to read over and over. It really is everything I love in a book all wrapped up into one beautifully written package.

Heavy on the romance - check
Time travel - check
Actual travel - check
The 90s / 90s music - check
Hot boy who loves music and goes to concerts and skateboards and has floppy hair - check
Awesome female friendship - check

I mean, really, it's a little ridiculous how many of my absolute favorite things showed up in this book.

My favorite, really, is a complicated relationship, and living in two different times is about as complicated as you can get. But I loved falling for Anna and Bennett and rooting for this impossible love of theirs to work out somehow.

If you're a romance lover like I am, this is seriously the book for you. This is an awesome debut by Tamara Ireland Stone, and I can't wait to see what else she has up her sleeve.

Fantastic read!!! Definitely a great YA book, a hint of sass, a bit of mystery, love and time travel! Wonderfully done!

Just as I was starting to think I didn't like YA as much as I truly thought, Tamara Ireland Stone pulls a fast one on me! This books was phenomenal! I mean seriously, take your breath away, why ohhhh why are there only 384 pages in this when there should be like 600!?!!

This starts off very curious and just like Anna is doing a trip in Wonderland, it gets curiouser and curiouser by the minute. Ohhh but the intrigue was fascinating. I was sitting with bated breath wanting to know WHAT was going to happen!!? I mean the plot was pretty straight forward, to the point where I called the major issue that happens a little more than halfway through the book, but it's what happens after that that makes this book fascinating. Well before and after that, actually.

I have to say the characters are delicious. I understand and feel the love, pain, stress and happiness as they all go through it. This is a book where you look up and realize, oh hey, I actually have a life, and oh my god, wait I don't have the ability to time travel nor the boyfriend to time travel with!? What!!? It's that much fun! And the characters are that great.

My favorite was definitely Emma, although I may be a bit biased because my niece's name is Emma and Emma is also from England (the Emma in the book, not my Emma lol) and to top it all off she loves rock n roll. A lot of this was in the 90′s so it also sort of took me back in time as they go through their cd's and listen to the exact music that I loved during that time. It was kind of surreal!

But Anna is a fabulous character, I love, love, love her and her choices. She is such a real person, a real teen that is going through, yes REAL stuff. It's important to remember that even though this is her fairytale it's also life but Tamara puts us through such a unique reality that I just never wanted it to end. Seriously. It was great!

The downside to this book, the end. That it did end. But the ending was great and I kept the tears from streaming down my face so my hubby didn't laugh at me for being so despondent over a book! This is such a great ya book, maybe I changed my mind.

This is a gorgeous cover! *stares*

Thank you to Disney-Hyperion for this ARC. This is a really enjoyable story about family and friends, love and choosing to live the life you want to without regrets. It also shows the connection between people, things and events and how even the most subtle decisions can have a bigger impact than we could ever imagine. It had a little bit of the Time Traveler's Wife feel to it at first and it took me a few chapters to get into, but once I did, I couldn't put it down. (This would make a GREAT movie!)

Anna and Bennett might as well be from two different worlds when they meet in 1995. She's loyal and kind but stuck in the routine of life and while she dreams about a future of adventures, she doesn't really believe it will happen. Enter Bennett. He's the cute new guy at school with a secret that when revealed, promises to change both of their lives forever. As they begin to fall in love, Anna doesn't focus too much on how their unique relationship affects others but that all changes when tragedy hits. She and Bennett will have tough choices to make, ones that will not only affect their lives, but the lives of everyone around them as well.

Anna is surrounded by a loving family and equally loving friends, like Justin and her "Brit" Emma. Emma loves Anna, always having her best interest at heart even if she does make Anna crazy at times. When she is helping Anna through a tough spot, Emma reminds her "who" she is and it was such a touching moment I not only found myself in tears but also thinking, Emma is the kind of BFF everyone should have!

I liked that the romance between Anna and Bennett wasn't instant, making it all the more believable. Bennett doesn't take his gift lightly and is always weighing the consequences of, "Just because you can do something doesn't mean you should." That makes him completely swoon worthy. *sighs* He and Anna will both have to make choices for their futures and the way the ending plays out was not what I expected at all. In fact, when I finished, I struggled to keep my composure and FAILED. *choked on tears*

Bennett suffers from migraines when he "travels" which I found to be an interesting side effect. Having suffered with migraines for the past several years, I had a "light bulb" moment - maybe that's what was really going on with me...I was a time traveler like Bennett and my vivid dream life is just the places I'd been too! :D (My family just stared at me when I shared my revelation but it would certainly make for a more fascinating life, don'tcha think?)

There was some great music talked about in the book and it took me right back to 1995 when I was a toddler of course. *snort laughs* I'm a sucker for an author's playlist and you can find Anna and Bennett's playlists along with some other cool book stuff at Tamara Ireland Stone's website timebetweenus.com

I normally don't like YA time travel stuff, but was intrigued by the idea of a boy from 2012 going back to 1995 and meeting a girl. While the book does involve time travel, it's first and foremost a solid, well done romance. The time travel stuff is an interesting backdrop for the love story, but it doesn't hold up that well to too much scrutiny. So, if you read it for the romance and not for the sci-fi stuff, you won't be disappointed. Particular kudos to the author for her portrayal of Anna, who was strong and well done. Anna sucks you into the story and keeps you turning the pages. She's an amazing character. One minor storyline that I didn't think was dealt with adequately was the sister Brook, but it was just a minor item. Tamara Stone is on my radar screen and I look forward to reading her next book.

I absolutely loved this book! I've read other time travel stories, but this was unique and interesting. Stone is an amazingly talented writer and had me hooked right away. The characters and storyline were so intriguing. It had all the right elements - romance, suspense, YA twists, secrets - and I couldn't put it down. I was also a teenager in the 90s and LOVED all the musical references.

I also like the message for my daughter - and other teens reading it - about the importance of finding your own way in the world, not waiting for things to happen to you, or living your life for others.

A must read!

I've been hearing about this debut for quite a while now and was so excited when my copy arrived on the front porch almost 6 months after I pre-ordered it. I finally had my turn -- after another reader in the household breezed through it -- and I soaked up the story in about two sittings. I'm so impressed with the character development, the continuity between characters and events, and the 'integrity' of the story. I was affected by each of the characters, and not just Anna and Bennett but also Emma and Justin, and even Maggie. Without giving too much away, I'll share that elements of the story about Emma and Maggie brought tears to my eyes, which is quite an achievement, especially considering they are not the focus of the love story or the time travel. Thank you, Tamara Ireland Stone, for a wonderful book. I look forward to your next one. And now, I'm off to dig out my Pearl Jam CDs...