Wander Dust (The Seraphina Parrish Trilogy, #1) by Michelle Warren

Mar 15, 2012 Lisa O. rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: ebook, fantasy, favorites, paranormal-ya, swoooooon, ya-lit, self-pubbed

Wander Dust is, in a nutshell, the love child of Jumper and Harry Potter .

This alone should make you dump everything you're reading and make you trigger-happy with your Amazon account. Well, aside from making you swoon just by thinking about Hayden Christensen... but I digress.

This is what I needed to lift me out of my reading slump!
I am in awe of Warren's fertile imagination, her plotting skills and her vivid descriptions. This is an author you definitely want to keep an eye on and I promise...more

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Mar 12, 2012 Maja rated it 4 of 5 stars

Recommended to Maja by: Rane

Shelves: favorites, 2012-favorites, cover-lust, just-another-book-crush, debut-author, my-flat-army, never-mess-with-time-travel, i-have-superpowers, surprise-surprise, ya, self-published, reviewed-in-2012

4.5 stars
I’ve been having some troubles with paranormal YA lately, to the point where I started wondering if it was somehow my fault. After the umpteenth book I’d read and hated, I figured that I’m either becoming too old for YA, or that I read too much (which is a distinct possibility). Wander Dust helped me realize where the blame really lies. To all those other young adult paranormal novels, I can finally say: It’s not me, it’s you.

Wander Dust is not without problems or without clichés, but...more 4.5 stars
I’ve been having some troubles with paranormal YA lately, to the point where I started wondering if it was somehow my fault. After the umpteenth book I’d read and hated, I figured that I’m either becoming too old for YA, or that I read too much (which is a distinct possibility). Wander Dust helped me realize where the blame really lies. To all those other young adult paranormal novels, I can finally say: It’s not me, it’s you.

Wander Dust is not without problems or without clichés, but all things considered, it certainly stands out in a very, very good way. Time travel plus a prestigious school (think Hex Hall with time travelers instead of witches and shapeshifters) plus a smart heroine and a swoon-worthy hero, extremely good worldbuilding and a great set of secondary characters equal a noteworthy book by anyone’s standards.

As soon as it becomes clear that Seraphina Parrish is not just an ordinary girl, she is sent to the prestigious Washington Square Academy, a boarding school for exceptionally gifted teens such as herself. There she is told that she is a Wanderer, a person with the ability to travel through time, just as her late mother was. She is to be trained and properly educated about the many laws that time travelers need to abide to. She is also introduced to her two other team members, as each team is made of a Wanderer (such as Seraphina), Seer and Protector. Seers have the ability to see the life path of inanimate objects, where they’d been and who they belonged to, which allows Wanderers and the Protectors to use these objects to travel to a specific time and place. Sera’s Seer is a blonde 13-year old girl named Sam, and her Protector is the mysterious boy whose photo she received in the mail while she was still living with her father. His name is Max Bishop and he is, of course, absolutely gorgeous, kind, and well-read. He is also dating another Protector named Perpetua.

In the army of YA heroines I’ve been reading about in the last year or so, Seraphina Parrish is one of the best. She is strong, she is fierce, she has principles she adheres to at all costs, she isn’t prone to rash decisions or self-indulgent behavior, but she also has just enough flaws to make her realistic and identifiable. When it became clear that she’s a Wanderer, she took everything in stride and dealt with it as best as she could. I also liked that she refused any kind of relationship with Bishop because he already had a girlfriend, regardless of how much she was drawn to him or how mean and obnoxious his girlfriend seem to be.

Unlike Sera, Bishop has no flaws that make him more real. I didn’t see him just as Sera’s love interest, but a hero in his own right, and he certainly proved to be worthy of the title. (His only flaw that I can think of is that he ever allowed himself to be in any way associated with a girl named Perpetua.) The only thing I’m still puzzling over is the matter of his photo in Sera’s mail (received long before they met) that was never properly explained, but I’m kind of hoping the sequel will take care of that.

(On a side note, I need to have a serious conversation with my mailman about the stuff he keeps bringing me. Books are fine and all, but I never get pics of mysterious hot guys in my mailbox, which is a damn shame, if you ask me.)

Wander Dust is self-published, but quite frankly, I barely even noticed. The self-publishing industry just keeps throwing surprises at me. Sure, there were a few grammar mistakes (by ‘a few’, I mean five or so, not more), and a spelling error here and there, but nothing that would stop me from thoroughly enjoying the book. I for one am more than willing to forgive such things (in reasonable amounts) as long as the story is good enough to keep me interested from start to finish. This one was that and much more.

Also posted at The Nocturnal Library

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Apr 05, 2012 Ariana rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: x, fantasy, time-travel, self-published, series

This would make a great movie ;))

When I read a book I usually take some notes, mark some quotes, you know - the usual things you do when you want to remember what the story was about. It's helpful if it takes you long to write the review and you read other books in the meantime.

The problem is that I didn't find anything related to this story - not on my computer or cellphone, not a paper thrown somewhere; so I’ll need to pick up from my memory any information I can (and let’s say, I worry that...more

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Jan 11, 2012 Rane rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult, paranormal-pnr, indies, keeper

Wander Dust didn't read or feel like an indie with it's details to moving the story along, it never hinder or left major plot holes only unanswered questions for further books. There was wonderful character growth and plenty of action with an almost enchanting feel as Sera starts to uncover her powers and the past of her family...

Sera has always felt isolated, her father is just "there" with no real emotional connection. Then on her 16th birthday she happens to meet a lady in black who makes h...more

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Apr 15, 2012 Melissa Simmons rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult, paranormal, favorites

Wander Dust is the first book in the Seraphina Parrish trilogy by Michelle Warren. I was lucky enough to be given an opportunity by the author to review this book & I’m ordering a physical copy for my bookshelf as soon as I’m done writing this. The story takes place in our modern day world where the Normals (regular people) don’t know about the Wanderers roaming through their lives in the past, present and future. It’s a must read, in my opinion.

The story is told from the point of view of o...more

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Apr 30, 2013 Melissa rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

WOW! Just WOW! This book blew me away! Seriously this book is amazing and takes you on a journey you will never forget. I am still not over the awesomeness of this book and I don't think I will be any time soon. I had been a friend with Michelle on Facebook for sometime and then I got her book as a present, and I was surprised but not really because the cover, and description make you want the book, but the first chapter is likea punch in the gut, but in a good way. Leaving you with questions an...more

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Dec 07, 2011 Mary rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, time-travel

Great idea, poor execution.

I love anything to do with time travel, so I was excited to read this. Why aren't more teen fantasy novels about time travel? It has so much potential.

Like I said, the idea was fantastic - and original! But the writing just didn't do it for me. I didn't buy the chemistry between the two leads at all, so I didn't care about them together. I didn't buy a lot of Sera's choices in the novel, because her choices were all over the place. And then there was the fact that the...more

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Jan 27, 2013 Anna rated it 1 of 5 stars Recommends it for: No one

Shelves: abc, babele, fantasy, kindle, ya

1.5 stars

As a premise, I must admit that time traveling and I don't get on very well (as already stated in my review of "The time traveler's wife"). Either the author has been able to build a somehow reliable, logic idea of it (as in Gabaldon's "Outlander" for instance) or I tend to have a hard time imagining the characters disappearing here and popping out of nowhere in another place, at another time. Some of you might object that it's my fault and that I should avoid this kind of books a prior...more 1.5 stars

As a premise, I must admit that time traveling and I don't get on very well (as already stated in my review of "The time traveler's wife"). Either the author has been able to build a somehow reliable, logic idea of it (as in Gabaldon's "Outlander" for instance) or I tend to have a hard time imagining the characters disappearing here and popping out of nowhere in another place, at another time. Some of you might object that it's my fault and that I should avoid this kind of books a priori. You're right. Next time I'll try to remember that. Promise. But this book had received so many positive reviews by people whose tastes are usually similar to mine I was sure it would be good.
My feelings towards the storyline were mixed though. Having just finished the awesome, terrific, breathtaking "Daughter of Smoke and Bone" I was therefore perfectly aware of the fact that only few paranormal fantasy books would possibly compete with such a masterpiece. Alas! Now I know that "Wander Dust" isn't one of them.
To motivate my 1.5 stars, I wrote a list of the main issues that made me twitch my nose and narrow my eyebrows so many times I'll have to undergo facial plastic surgery ASAP.

From now on: Spoilers!
(view spoiler)[
1) I hate vocabulary repetitions:
The verbs "cringe" & "shrug", for instance, recur obsessively throughout the narration, thus making the writing style redundant.
Well, as far as I know, being spoken all over the world, English is a language extremely rich in synonyms. My dear Michelle Warren, I suggest you buy yourself a good thesaurus dictionary where to look up for alternative words.

2) I can't stand when an author (that doesn't know how to fill up the pages) treats his/her readers like they were stupid. Referring 13 times to Bishop's "green eyes" didn't seem necessary to me. Thanks God I don't suffer from memory related diseases. Describing his eyes once or twice would have been enough, unless this is to be considered a device aimed at covering the fact that Bishop is just a flat, void, empty character with no other qualities but his beauty?! (And I'm sorry but, once again, Laini Taylor's handsome Akiva comes to my mind. No way the two can compete!!!)

4) the character of Sera's father is simply unbearable and his sudden appearance at the Academy the very first day Sera enters the new school makes no sense at all.
The same happens with Sera's new friends: one day they are attending the normal school and the next they just show up at the Academy without explaining when, how or why. Doesn't it seem a shortcut the author used to fill up the pages?

5) Still talking about characters: what a long gallery of stereotypes Ms Warren created! The ugly and bed Grungy Gang, the stinky clochard or the double-dealer wicked Perpetua. None of them will be unforgettable, trust me. Not to mention Gabe! He reminded me of Miss J. Alexander of ANTM with all his fashion advices. Just hilarious! And Ce.ce? What kind of scary name is that?!? My kids might have come up with something more original!

6)When Sera and Bishop were in Venice and she suddendly run away, a question arose in my mind: is she mad or what?!? I really didn't get the point of Sera's not kissing him. If the author's idea was that of increasing emotional strain, it didn't work on me. I ended up laughing at the whole scene so much as I laughed at many other characters and situations whose purposes I didn't understand. (Please note that I hadn't reach 65% of the book yet. I'll let you guess how eager I was to finish it at this point.) (hide spoiler)]

To end this long and boring sort of review let me say that this story disappointed me on so many levels I should stay up all night to write them down. I only hope the next book I pick up will be better but I'm sure it won't possibly be worse than this.(less)

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Dec 12, 2011 Demoiselle Yen rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

"I wish you wouldn't have given the sundial bracelet to Terease"

"Why?" I question and press my head onto his chest, pushing my arms back into his open jacket and around his back.

"If I had it to lead me to my deepest desire, I know it would always be a direct path to you."

Okaaaaay, I'm melting with Maxwell Bishop's words!! Haha. I love this book to bits! Although it is somewhat confusing and you have to really imagine a lot of things. As what Mona says "be open-minded". This book is magical!! I w...more

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Nov 28, 2011 Connie Garcia rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: done-reading

This Ebook was lent to my by the Author Michelle Warren. As a Bookreview Blogger I will be on her Book Tour Conniesbookreview.blogspot.com and was lucky to get a ecopy of this book to read and review.

From Goodreads

Ever since her sixteenth birthday, strange things keep happening to Seraphina Parrish.

The Lady in Black… burns Sera’s memories.

Unexplainable Premonitions… catapult her to other cities.

The Grungy Gang… wants to kill her.

And a beautiful, mysterious boy… stalks her.

But when Sera move...more

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Dec 17, 2011 Dani rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: super-human, sci-fi

Seraphina Parrish’s 16th birthday promises to be an extremely underwhelming event, until a mysterious Lady in Black causes her to see and feel things that shouldn’t be possible. Ever since that strange night, Sera’s world has slowly taken a turn for the weird and unexplainable, especially when she realizes that she herself can do the impossible… wander through time. Confused and uncertain of what her ability means and entails, she fears she may be losing her grip on reality. Then her dad, with w...more Seraphina Parrish’s 16th birthday promises to be an extremely underwhelming event, until a mysterious Lady in Black causes her to see and feel things that shouldn’t be possible. Ever since that strange night, Sera’s world has slowly taken a turn for the weird and unexplainable, especially when she realizes that she herself can do the impossible… wander through time. Confused and uncertain of what her ability means and entails, she fears she may be losing her grip on reality. Then her dad, with whom she’s never been particularly close, decides to send her to finish out the school year with her aunt in Chicago. Chicago just may hold the answers she’s looking for, as well as many dangers she never anticipated.

Slightly reminiscent of X-Men, channeling some of the ancient, historically significant feel of Harry Potter but with an interesting Egyptian/Judeo-Christian mythology that’s all her own, Warren has created a fascinating world that exists beneath our very own. In this world, some people are born with super human abilities that allow them to be one of three things: protectors, seers or wanderers. What that entails I’ll leave you, Dear Reader, to discover for yourselves, but I will say that I found the rules of Warren’s universe to be original and creative. The world of the wanderers feels grand in scope, has a good foundational, historical weight to it and an appealing overall aesthetic.

Seraphina. Though she is definitely an independent individual, she’s not really what I’d consider a rebel, despite the lengths she may go to to secure her dad’s attention. I found Sera’s relationship with her dad to be very revealing about her character as a whole, and Warren’s introduction to Sera in the context of her relationship to her dad laid a good foundation as to what she really wants and why she does the things she does. It’s also interesting to see her character develop as she becomes more of her own person and as she finds a place of her own in her new situation in Chicago. While I had a little difficulty pinning down aspects of Sera’s personality, there’s no denying that she’s brave, intelligent, determined, perhaps a bit impulsive and has admirable sense of honor.

Bishop. After her frightening encounter with the Lady in Black on her sixteenth birthday, Sera receives a cryptic envelope with only the photograph of an unknown boy tucked inside. She’s never met him, but she feels an unexplainable instant connection to him. When she discovers the living, breathing version of the boy at her new school in Chicago, she determines to find out more about him. Though Warren keeps him a largely mysterious character in terms of his back story and personal history, she reveals enough about Max Bishop for the reader to know the important aspects of his character – the things that truly matter. Bishop is level-headed, compassionate, also honorable, loyal, a bit on the quiet side and manages to ride that fine line between being protective but not overbearing. All in all, he’s decidedly dreamy, and though he and Sera have this immediate connection, it makes sense within the context of the story – there is a satisfactory reason behind it.

Though I really did enjoy Wander Dust, there are a few things that nagged at me. One in particular being that while the mystery is compelling, Sera makes two specific logical leaps to keep the plot progressing that I just wasn’t able to easily follow. It seemed a bit of a stretch. Also the character of the Lady in Black. I just couldn’t get a bead on her, and maybe I wasn’t supposed to, but I just wish that there had been a bit more development done with her character, mostly because I just wanted to find out more about her and her motivations.

On the other hand, there were certain things I really enjoyed about this story, particularly the clever way that Warren handles certain events, and the reasoning behind why those events occur. I apologize, Dear Reader, that I can’t be anymore specific than that. I also love that the characters in this book travel to different places. Weird personal preference, but I prefer movement in my stories – characters on the move, instead of statically remaining in one place. The climax of this book was also worthy of the build up leading up to it, it was exciting, a bit shocking and forces Sera to make some extremely hard decisions. Maybe I’m just a mean person, but I love when characters I root for get backed into a corner, it’s interesting to see how they’ll react or get out of their circumstances — those situations do a lot for character building. The world building and the potential romance already had me hooked, and these few things are several more big points in Wander Dust’s favor.

Overall, with wonderful characters and a curious underlying mythology, Wander Dust boasts an alluring and mysterious world full of intrigue, romance, danger, betrayal and beauty.(less)

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Sep 24, 2012 Emily Gossett rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

First I would like to say, this book was awesome! One of my favorite parts was the ending, it was amazing! The beginning chapters I was confused a bit about certain things, it moved from scene to scene very fast, a little to fast, I felt a little whiplashed...Without giving spoilers away, when she reached. "the school" I was instantly reminded of Vampire academy. In a different kind of light though. It was great and exciting. One word Max!!!! Loved him, I almost felt the Edward connection to Bel...more

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Oct 03, 2012 Jackie -Sated Faery rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: other-paranormal

Wow! This was a fascinating and unique story! It was impossible to put down! I loved the mystery of Sera trying to figure out what on earth is happening to her or if she might just be going crazy. She is a wonderful & caring person despite living with her emotionless father & moving around a lot. And then there's Bishop, who is absolutely amazing & definitely adds to the mystery as he seems to randomly appear when Sera least expects it. The other characters each add their own flair t...more

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Oct 05, 2012 Girls*heart*Books rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: lana-is-reading, lana-s-favorites, mel-is-reading, mel-s-favorites

Wander Dust is the first book in the Seraphina Parrish trilogy by Michelle Warren. I was lucky enough to be given an opportunity by the author to review this book & I’m ordering a physical copy for my bookshelf as soon as I’m done writing this. The story takes place in our modern day world where the Normals (regular people) don’t know about the Wanderers roaming through their lives in the past, present and future. It’s a must read, in my opinion.

The story is told from the point of view of o...more Wander Dust is the first book in the Seraphina Parrish trilogy by Michelle Warren. I was lucky enough to be given an opportunity by the author to review this book & I’m ordering a physical copy for my bookshelf as soon as I’m done writing this. The story takes place in our modern day world where the Normals (regular people) don’t know about the Wanderers roaming through their lives in the past, present and future. It’s a must read, in my opinion.

The story is told from the point of view of our main character, Seraphina. She is witty, strong, independent and extremely likeable. My very favorite thing about Sera though, is that she’s unique; no cookie cutter heroine here. She very clearly is not a damsel in distress (amen!) and never wants to find herself in a situation where she needs to rely on someone else to save her. She also manages to stay true to herself as a person while still growing where she needs to. Then we have the male lead, Bishop; he is Sera’s Protector and he is something of an enigma throughout the book. Honestly, though, the more you learn about him, the more you just love him.

The story is fast paced from beginning to end and beautifully told. There are no lulls in the plot; it flies right on through without a wasted word. I was on the edge of my seat through the whole book. I simply HAD to know what was going to happen next. The twists in the story really keep you guessing and I will definitely be re-reading this one before too long. ~Mel
5/5 Quills
I...I am having serious problems, here. I don't know what to do. All the awesome is screwing me up. I want this in a physical copy it is SO GOOD. And I'm troubled because I don't know if I want to order Wander Dust and Protecting Truth in paperback copies and just wait for the next one, or if I should download the sequel and just get right into it. This will plague me all night, I'm sure.

Anyway, no one cares about my personal dilemma, do they? They want to know my opinion on this amazing book right here. Well, I will tell you.

Wander Dust by Michelle Warren is one of the first books Mel told me I absolutely HAD to read. It is one of her favorites, and, like a current favorite of mine, she told me several times I needed to read it so she could fangirl to somebody. I'm a little slow in my readings, unfortunately, so I hadn't gotten to it. But when Michelle was looking for reviewers, Mel actually TEXTED ME and told me this was something I must jump at. And I did. And Mel? *hugs* THANK YOU!

This book is filled with drama and suspense, with a fierce and funny main character that never whined or annoyed me. Not ONCE. Ha! *happy-dance* Sera, I think, handles things surprisingly well, while keeping it realistic. She didn't automatically believe it, nor did she protest and protest until 50% of the population was dead. She has got to be one of my favorite characters. And don't get me started on Bishop. Really. Don't. I don't think you have enough time to listen to me ramble about him, I really don't.

Wander Dust doesn't have a dull or boring moment. I tore through the book the entire way through, and now, as said above, I'm having a problem... *sigh*

I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a fast, entertaining and hilarious read! Warren is genius!~Lana
5/5 Quills(less)

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Sep 10, 2012 Kirsty Vizard rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: romance, paranormal

Review can also be found on http://kvlovesbooks.blogspot.co.uk/

Wander Dust is the story of Seraphina who, having lost her mother at an early age, lives with her emotionally defective father and has spent her life moving from place to place. However, following a move to Miami Beach and her sixteenth birthday, Sera experiences several bizarre occurrences and her father, putting it down to bad behaviour, sends her to Chicago to live with her Aunt.
Whilst in Chicago strange things continue to happen...more

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Sep 05, 2012 J.A. Belfield rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I received a copy of Wander Dust in exchange for an honest review and I wanted to love it, I really did. Unfortunately, it simply had too many issues for me, and I hit the 50% mark and realised I was forcing myself to read on. Well, as I read for relaxation and pleasure, I decided it might be better if I stopped. So this one is a DNF for me.
Why?
Well, whilst I didn’t dislike Sera at all as an MC, I did find her back and forth musings to be pretty contradictory at times, which made her appear pret...more I received a copy of Wander Dust in exchange for an honest review and I wanted to love it, I really did. Unfortunately, it simply had too many issues for me, and I hit the 50% mark and realised I was forcing myself to read on. Well, as I read for relaxation and pleasure, I decided it might be better if I stopped. So this one is a DNF for me.
Why?
Well, whilst I didn’t dislike Sera at all as an MC, I did find her back and forth musings to be pretty contradictory at times, which made her appear pretty unreliable as narrator, and I felt as though I wasn’t really given the goods required for me to connect to her.
I also had a hard time connecting with any of the secondary characters. I’m not sure how much of this was to do with the amount of ‘tell’ in the book overshadowing any ‘show’ that occurred.
On top of this, there was instance on top of instance of POV breaches. With pretty much every side character, the MC ‘tells’ the reader of their motivations/reasons for actions/behaviour when she can’t possibly know this information. Whenever an MC decides the reasoning behind another characters behaviour/actions, this becomes an assumption and should be treated as such, and there needs to be a clear indication as to why the assumption is made. But there was none of this. The entire 50% of the book I read is full of the MC explaining why every other character is doing what they’re doing.
Then we have the very first ‘wormhole’ incidence. The MC is dragged through a wormhole, without ever knowing that she has this ability, or without ever having travelled a wormhole before, yet she decides straight away that she is in a wormhole. Where was the terror and utter confusion she should have been feeling at this situation. I’m sorry, but it was far too convenient a way to tell the reader what was happening instead of allowing the MC to slowly make discoveries and taking the reader along for the ride. I also felt the couple of comparisons to occurrences in other fictional tales was a little lazy for explanation, too.
On top of this, the dialogue between Sera and her aunt was extremely stilted and unnatural sounding. I had a hard time with the flow during their scenes.
And then just after Sera finds out she needs to be at the ‘special’ school, her friends she made at the ‘normal’ school suddenly appear at her special school at exactly the same time as she does with absolutely no question or discussion on this from the MC. Man, this is even more convenient than the wormhole incident.
It was around this point when I realised I wasn’t really enjoying the read, that I was ploughing through rather than being hauled through by intrigue. I did kind of hope the dude in it would teak my interest enough that he’d make me want to keep going, but it’s taking so long to get to him, maybe because the pace is vastly slowed down by all the over descriptions of everything (I found myself skimming a lot)—descriptions that could have been cut to allow room for more show and plot unfolding and character development … I just got a little fed up of waiting, and when he did make a decent appearance, I found I didn’t like him very much. So I’m definitely going to stop at this point. Sorry, but this wasn’t quite my cup of tea.
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Jun 30, 2012 Wafiyah rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: No one

Recommended to Wafiyah by: My idiotic self

Shelves: family, fantasy, horrible-romance, worst, not-so-good, paranormal-romance, terrible-protagonist, skimmed

Not at all a book worth wasting my time for, in my opinion. I know it's paranormal fantasy and with all the time travel it should seem very cool and unrealistic but in a good way, but when I was reading it my most common reaction asked me and the people around what the hell I was reading. There was major loads of information just dumped on me and I barely got a word out of it, and the pacing was extremely corrupted. At one point, this girl - Seraphina - would be at her house one moment and the n...more Not at all a book worth wasting my time for, in my opinion. I know it's paranormal fantasy and with all the time travel it should seem very cool and unrealistic but in a good way, but when I was reading it my most common reaction asked me and the people around what the hell I was reading. There was major loads of information just dumped on me and I barely got a word out of it, and the pacing was extremely corrupted. At one point, this girl - Seraphina - would be at her house one moment and the next she would be running somewhere outdoors, and then at another point the events would happen so damn slowly I would be getting extreme headaches. It should've at least seemed like the events were moving in a certain order, instead of going at uneven paces.

Did I ever mention I hate insta-love? Because that's what it was, another reason for hating this book. Bishop was just so damn perfect it aggravated me. You can't find these British masterpieces everywhere in reality. This description fricking pissed me off, too:

His ocean green eyes peer at me with such intensity, I’m not sure if I should be scared or mesmerized. The two, green jewels sit gently on the brim of dark, thick-fringed lashes. Little shards of milk chocolate hair peek out from under his beanie cap.

Seriously? Seriously? Green jewels nestled in eyes like nests? I'm having visions of emeralds sitting in bird nests or something extremely gruesome which I won't mention here. And then she winds up acting like a complete idiot around him, gaining the what we would call "Bella Swan Syndrome" that includes much flushing, blushing, hushing, [insert other weird rhyming words], and basically gazing at the jerk with goo-goo eyes and getting jealous of the evil "girlfriend". Are the bells ringing yet? Are people starting to think of, perhaps, this book?

What really, really got me ticked was the beginning, when Sera seemed to think that she was all rebellious and whatnot, and her father fricking disowned her. I'm no expert, but all parents should love their children, unless they're seriously deranged or they're not the biological parents of those children. There are probably other factors, but Ray disowned Sera because she was doing simple and barely harmless things like dyeing a few strands of her hair purple, not going to school at proper times, spending a lot of her time with her band, and pretending to have a concussion or something. And this was before he even knew she had a belly piercing. If he did, what would he do? Send her chopped body parts to Mona with no note and turn right back to his slutty girlfriend? That was just a major no-no.

It was just so boring, and if anyone thought that the whole time-travel aspect was just so darn awesome and all, I have to seriously disagree with you. It was downright boring and I think this book spent more time discussing and describing images and places and pretty much everything, but less time describing proper emotions, which do not include being embarrassed, jealous, or sad. The little action at the end, the part writers are somehow obligated to adding for more effect? Did no justice.

Yeah, that about sums it up.

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May 21, 2012 Maria rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I picked up this book because I read the word "time travel" in its description. Even though I've read some horrible (with a capital H) books on time traveling, I cannot help but pick them up. I just feel like the possibilities are endless - you just need the authors to do it right.

And Michelle Warren does it awesomely!

To try to explain exactly how time travel works in this book would be really long-winded, and I'd probably end up confusing you, lol. We'll leave that part up to the author.

But wha...more

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May 05, 2012 Diana rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I like the idea of wandering and the things that this book presents, there's the protector, wanderer and the seer. Everything is like magic and this book makes me imagine a lot. Time traveling is a very interesting idea and the fact that there's a whole school of them is thrilling. What I've read in this book is fresh and new. I just got the idea in here. I like Warren's imagination, so cool and amazing. It's just that this book lacks the action and thrill of uncovering mysteries and puzzles. Ev...more I like the idea of wandering and the things that this book presents, there's the protector, wanderer and the seer. Everything is like magic and this book makes me imagine a lot. Time traveling is a very interesting idea and the fact that there's a whole school of them is thrilling. What I've read in this book is fresh and new. I just got the idea in here. I like Warren's imagination, so cool and amazing. It's just that this book lacks the action and thrill of uncovering mysteries and puzzles. Everything happened too fast but the development is still interesting.

Although Sera also has issues about her feelings, at least she can keep it in control. She doesn't do things that annoy me. She's a likable character. She keeps everything in check. She doesn't try to impress anybody. She only wants her father's attention which I think she really deserves. Her father is the caught up with his own self and world. I also like Sam and Bishop. Yeah, especially Maxwell Bishop. Hmn, he is charming and adorable. They are not too cheesy but they are still cute. :) I'm still thinking about the picture that Sera got of him. Even I think that I won't resist not being able to look at it. Sam is the kid with the angst and a soft side you won't be able to see unless you pay attention and you gain her trust. All the while, I thought I won't like her but I do.

I like everything from the school, their abilities and the characters. I just want something more about her mother. I think I'll get it with the other books. There are also many issues that is still not solved. Is Sera the one with the three abilities of being a wanderer, seer and protector at the same time? Then there's Gabe! I think I really like his character here. The fashionista and cool guide type.

Sera's encounter with Cece lacks some thrill for me. She didn't really use her abilities that much which isn't really helpful for what happened. Many things happened all at once which got me confused at first but after reading further, well, everything seems cooler. I just want more action and more information about Sera's abilities.

All in all, this is an exciting book to read. Kept me up all night until I finished it. Very nice:)

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Apr 23, 2012 Kate Copeseeley rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

3.5 stars

This is a good book, and I do recommend it. The world is fantastically original, the characters are (mostly) interesting and not annoying. The novel flows from beginning to end without any of those jarring plot holes that I find so prevalent in many YA novels. The prose is overall descriptive without going over the top.

That being said, there are a few things in this book that I just could not reconcile with.

1) There is a fair amount of the narrative where the author is telling us things...more

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Mar 05, 2012 Emma rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites

They say don't just a book by its cover, but when I saw the cover for Wander Dust amongst a list of other books, it stood out. I was drawn to the beautiful image and then the blurb for the novel drew in me further - I just had to read this!

The writing style is just fantastic. I fully enjoyed the descriptions that littered every page. The author feeds the reader every drop of necessary description in such a way it really is magical. I was impressed to see different locations around the real world...more

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Dec 10, 2011 Amanda rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

See My Full Review Here: http://www.hippiesbeautyandbooksohmy....

First Impressions: The cover is what initially attracted me to this book. I absolutely fell head over heels in love with it! Not to mention, I was really surprised to learn that this book was self-published. I hate to say it but, most self-published books have horrible, generic cover art that really turns me off.

Speaking of self-publishing, I want to give props to the author here for being so professional. I get a ton of review req...more See My Full Review Here: http://www.hippiesbeautyandbooksohmy....

First Impressions: The cover is what initially attracted me to this book. I absolutely fell head over heels in love with it! Not to mention, I was really surprised to learn that this book was self-published. I hate to say it but, most self-published books have horrible, generic cover art that really turns me off.

Speaking of self-publishing, I want to give props to the author here for being so professional. I get a ton of review requests from self-published authors who aren’t as professional as they should be. I turn 95% of these requests down for various reasons. When I first started to speak to Michelle about her book, I liked the fact that she was so enthusiastic about her novel, which made me excited to read it. She is an indie author doing it right and I wish more authors would make a note at what she is doing. She has a fantastic website, beautiful cover art, and she is extremely nice and easy to work with.

So, back to the book.

First 50 Pages: This is a very difficult book to review and write about without giving away too many spoilers, and we all know I hate spoilers. So I am going to start this by saying that I enjoyed the first 50 pages of this book. I got a great introduction to the main characters, and I didn’t find anything to be confusing. I also felt really bad for Sera, the main female protagonist. She is pretty much overlooked and ignored by her family right from the beginning of the story, and she has a horrible birthday party where she is almost set on fire from some crazy candles. Then she has her first run it with this very creepy Lady in Black. What a crappy 16th birthday! The beginning of the story definitely caught my attention and made me want to keep reading.

Characters & Plot: After the crazy birthday incident, Sera begins to have nightmares about the Lady in Black and she receives a mysterious envelope containing a picture of a boy. She kind of becomes obsessed with the picture and the reason why is told later on in the story. Other things begin to happen and Sera is sent to live with her aunt in Chicago where she attends a school. The school is very different. The best way I can describe it would be that is reminds me of a mix of Hogwarts, the Vampire Academy, and the school from the X-Men, all rolled into one. I love the fact that the setting is in Chicago and that Sera is able to find out that not everything is exactly as it seems.

I guess I’ll have to spoil just a little more here. This book is about time traveling. It is totally unique and I don’t recall reading any other YA book about time travel. How cool would it be to time travel? I would have a whole list of places in history that I would want to go and visit. Sera’s time traveling does have a purpose though, which I won’t say what it is here.

Now, let’s talk just a little bit about Mr. Mystery. He has a name and it is Max Bishop. He is described as being super hot and majorly swoon-worthy. Sera and Max have an instant connection to one another, which bothered me a little bit and I think I would have preferred to have a more developed relationship. There is kind of a reason for the instant attraction, but still, the relationship could have been more solid.

Final Thoughts: I don’t want to give any more away then what I already have. I really enjoyed this book, but I did have a few annoyances with it. It isn’t perfect. The pace of the book felt a little bit off and I think that some things could have been better explained. I think the writing could have used some polishing. Overall, it was a very good book and I am excited to see what will happen in the second novel! I think fans of Harry Potter and The Vampire Academy series would love to check this one out!(less)

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Nov 05, 2012 Natalie rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Wander Dust is about Seraphina, a 16 year old girl who discovers her true heritage. She has the power to travel through time and space as a Wanderer. Throughout the book, she meets new people, new places and discovers truths that were kept hidden for a long time.

^^ Believe it or not, I made that blurb by myself. *grins*

Wander Dust is honestly amazing. I mean, the author made this world, and this system of traveling... And this characters who you learn to like... Sam, maybe? One of the things I...more

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May 08, 2013 Kristia rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: best-book-i-ve-read-this-year, epic-read, heart-breaking-reads, favorites-3, loved-it, lovely-read, mindblownaway, my-new-all-time-favorite-book, outstanding-read

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.
Peace, love, and Wander Dust!

I adore this book in many and all ways possible. Serephina (love the name), is a girl who is suddenly catapulted into a mythical world of Time-Travelers (Wanderers), Seers, and Protectors (who in this case is a Godly beautiful Bishop). Seraphina is a strong character, who gains a lot of burdens, secrets, and mysteries on her little shoulders. Also, throw in some confusing, sweet, and heart pounding tidbits of romance!

I am extremely impressed by Seraphina’s character....more
Peace, love, and Wander Dust!

I adore this book in many and all ways possible. Serephina (love the name), is a girl who is suddenly catapulted into a mythical world of Time-Travelers (Wanderers), Seers, and Protectors (who in this case is a Godly beautiful Bishop). Seraphina is a strong character, who gains a lot of burdens, secrets, and mysteries on her little shoulders. Also, throw in some confusing, sweet, and heart pounding tidbits of romance!

I am extremely impressed by Seraphina’s character. She isn’t exactly a damsel in distress, and she isn’t a quiet girl. She’s pretty rebellious when it comes to her distant-emotionally-challenged-father Ray. She got a purple streak in her hair to get his attention, and even a belly ring. She’s far from a soft-spoken damsel. At one point in the book, Sera wishes that she’s stronger and knew how to fight better, so she won’t be hiding behind people anymore. I find this endearing and makes me love her character all the more. And foremost, she’s brave, smart, and kind, things that immediately attract me to a character.

The world behind Wander Dust is beautiful and mind-blowing. With the Academy, the legends of the Wanderers, Seers, and Protectors is absolutely breath-taking! I really liked the legend on the Seraphim in the Bible being a link to their people. The teams that are assembled during these people’s high school years (some younger than others in some cases), the team consists of a Protector, a Seer, and a Wanderer, all centering on aiding the Wanderer in time-travel. They use “relics” to travel back to when the item crossed paths with an event or person, and they use that trail to go to that time. Like how Sera may have traveled back to her mother when she was attending the Academy, and that was a dosy of a Wander!

However, what is a story without the vilains?

The Underground (or as Sera calls them the Grungy Gang), consists of the anti-Wanderer Society, who are hell-bent on gaining power and will do anything possible to get it. Of course, when Sera is dumped into this world, they lay their eyes on her. I have a sense that she is the most powerful Wanderer yet, or perhaps, she’s all three in one?

Another element that I love about this book is the love interest, Maxwell Bishop. Bishop is the typical mysterious boy who has a striking interest in Sera from the beginning. Their relationship is playful and isn’t “forced”. But there is a pull between these two throughout the book. Sera can’t seem to get Bishop out of her head, and I am sure it is the same with him. Sear fights the pull because she presumes that Bishop is taken, but Bishop keeps making “the moves”, like him whispering in her ear, “Sera-phi-na.” and disappears, leaving Sera all flustered. I love how Bishop’s personality isn’t easily read, and keeps you wondering about him, but I also love how his feelings for Sera is pretty much in the open. Sera makes him open up a little bit.

This book is an addicting read that will leave you breathless and wanting more. I know it did me. I read it in one sitting! I cannot wait to get the next installment in the series “Protecting Truth” and then onto “Seeing Light”.
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Dec 30, 2012 Nicole Pope rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: authors-to-follow, favorite-indies

It is very rare that I give an indie book five stars because there are typically technical errors within the story. Such is not the case with Wander Dust! I devoured this novel and loved every moment of it. It was wonderfully spun; it was consistent, the story line was solid and well written, the story was not too verbose nor too vague, the character development was thorough, intriguing, and served to compliment the story. I must say that I am partial to time travel novels and actually read this...more

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Sep 30, 2012 Nereid rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

After receiving a bracelet from her absentee father for her 16th birthday, Sera accidentally discovers that she is a time traveller or wanderer. She can travel through time with the help of a relic or an object that is from the time period that she wishes to visit and ends up going to the Academy where her mother went to school. Intrigued by this gift, she experiences some things that cause her father to ship her off to her Aunt Mona's who is well aware that she may have the gift of wandering. S...more

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Feb 22, 2013 Kristina rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: kindle-residing

I don't knowwwww.

I do say that about a lot of books, don't I?
With Wander Dust I was very intrigued with the story because it was different. It wasn't the angel/vampire/werewolf/fairies type of thing that seems to be 3/4 of the fantasy genre nowadays. Honestly, I get a bit tired of it. Yes, I do enjoy some books with such things in them, and always try to remain open minded when recommended one, but that doesn't stop me from frowning every time I see it EVERYWHERE. This is basically why I downloa...more

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Sep 12, 2012 Karen Russell rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites

I had the honor of "wandering" onto Michelle Warren's website.. can't even remember how... and fell in love with her blog and the cover of this book. She was nice enough to let me read and review her book and I FELL IN LOVE!!!

Warren builds Sera's world from the very first paragraph, bringing in her relationships with her family, strange things happening, the Lady in Black... You are sucked in and taken to this place where you don't want to leave. A world built with words, details so descriptive...more

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May 21, 2012 Chrystal rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 50-book-challenge-2012, young-adult

So many secrets and so much excitement! Wander Dust captivated me from the very beginning with all of the mysterious happenings surrounding Sera - from her things that make her think she is going crazy to the mysterious people and items that just keep popping up in her life.

I love that Sera had no idea that she belonged to a secret group of people with abilities beyond normal comprehension. It made her character that much more engaging. Sera finds about about wandering at the same time as the r...more

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Feb 01, 2012 Kate Cowan rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Reading Wander Dust, I wasn't sure what to expect. It was one of my first Indie books - I'd never known they existed, really, until I got my iPad/Kobo app. I'd discovered it on Facebook, and, honestly, I had no idea it was self-published until just after. Past the (amazingly beautiful) cover, this book is great. It isn't what I've come to expect from YA paranormal books - there is no emotional love triangle, it isn't trying to be dark and depressing, and the guy isn't an immortal. Also, I've nev...more

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topics	posts	views	last activity
The Free Book Cha...: Wander Dust, Michelle Warren	3	14	Dec 02, 2012 07:09pm
YA Indie Carnival : Wander Dust	1	7	Dec 21, 2011 08:03am
Paranormal Book Club: Dec. BAM talk...!!!	3	16	Dec 16, 2011 09:33pm
Paranormal Book Club: December BAM......	13	39	Dec 14, 2011 11:01am

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Wander Dust (The Seraphina Parrish Trilogy #1)

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