Ruby Red (Precious Stone Trilogy, #1) in Into the Forest

Apr 18, 2011 Cara rated it liked it

Shelves: 2011, fantasy

I decided I was going to take some time to percolate my ideas for this book, but it's still up in the air what I exactly think. Had some aspects I liked (i.e. time-travel), and others I didn't (i.e. the arc of the story).

All right synopsis first: Gwen is a sixteen-year-old girl who lives in London (the book was written in German originally so I'm not sure why that setting was chosen). Normal enough, but she comes from a family who can time-travel. Thankfully the gene bypassed her and was given t I decided I was going to take some time to percolate my ideas for this book, but it's still up in the air what I exactly think. Had some aspects I liked (i.e. time-travel), and others I didn't (i.e. the arc of the story).

All right synopsis first: Gwen is a sixteen-year-old girl who lives in London (the book was written in German originally so I'm not sure why that setting was chosen). Normal enough, but she comes from a family who can time-travel. Thankfully the gene bypassed her and was given to her perfect cousin Charlotte. Gwen can enjoy a normal life without all the drama that comes with having the "special" gene. Well can you tell what's gonna happen? Gosh darn it you got it! (I'm not usually this cynical really; I'm just kind of irritated about my feelings about the book). Gwen's got the gene instead and there is lots of mystery shrouded around why this is. Now with Gwen thrown into this whole new world she meets Gideon (who is a bit of distraction to Gwen, to her great dismay); together they have an important mission to accomplish but it's hard to tell who are the bad and good guys, and if they can even trust each other.

The workings and the history behind the society is interesting. It reminds me of setups of other secret societies actually. What kind of bothered me was how Gwen has thoughts and says things like a twelve or thirteen year old which would have been fine if that was her age. Then when she meets Gideon and gets in deep with the time-traveling stuff she shifts, which was nice to see but kind of abrupt for me. Of course it has those cool scenes of how events clash the present, past and future. I’ve always loved stuff like that, and that was in here. Even though I have my reservations about it, I know others will just eat this up.

I hate when I'm indecisive about a book, but you need some books like that so you can appreciate the amazing ones. What I think is bothering me so much is that I did expect to love it and for it to be epic, and it had all the pieces but it wasn’t quite there yet. *sigh* Anyhow, at the end it leaves you in mid-stride. There is no major piece of the puzzle solved but it tantalizes you mercilessly and I will read the sequel. No matter my confusion of what I think I have to know what happens. HAVE TO. ...more

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Jul 20, 2013 Melanti rated it liked it

Shelves: 2013, young-adult, library, time-travel, group-reads

I'm unimpressed... This is just not my type of book To be honest, I wasn't all that interested even from the summary, but it was a group read, and I'm a lemming. If my friends jump off cliffs, I suppose I'm obligated to follow.

It really felt like the book was just barely getting started by halfway into it. And we had hardly any further movement in the "plot" by the end of the book. So, a slow, long, drawn-out beginning and then a "continued in book two..." I've nothing against series in general, ...more

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