Ruby Red

Ruby Red

By Kerstin Gier (Translated to English by Anthea Bell from German)

Published May 10, 2011 by Henry Holt and Co.

Four Stars

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.

-goodreads.com

Ruby Red was a $2.99 buy I purchased months back on my nook. I liked the idea of the book. It intrigued me; even though I am not a huge fantasy fiction fan. There is something about time travel and the past that I enjoy. What I wasn’t truly prepared for was the allure of secret societies on top of everything else. And, I mean secret, secret society. Intriguing, right? Yes, indeed. Especially for Gywenth Shepard who has spent her whole life on the outside of her family’s heritage. Charlotte was being groomed and welcomed to what the secret was. Gwen knew that there was a secret plan for the last time traveler. But, she just wasn’t sure how far and deep the secret and the society went.

Even after being the true Ruby Red, the last with the supposed most power abilities, she was treated with the utmost disrespect. She was untrained, not as groomed, and not knowledgeable in the least. Something she has learned to accept as her family and the other time traveling family, de Villiers.

Gwen is a great heroine, but it is her best friend that I enjoyed the most, Leslie Hays. She is the brains. She researches everything Gwen tells her, helping Gwen the most. Not only is she a great cheerleader, she is the one person I would trust with my time-traveling life. Her humor is great; her feelings open; and she is a great friend.

Gwen could get a little nervy, yet it was great heading into different centuries: the eighteen hundreds, 1912, and the seventeen hundreds. Each time, there was a different London and more adventures. Thankfully Gwen was never alone, but her companion Gideon was all but open to this new change. He was possibly one of my least favorite characters.

Still, I couldn’t help it, but each time Gwen came back from time traveling I pictured that she had the ruby shoes from The Wizard of Oz. Of course, she didn’t. But she is the Ruby.

I am looking forward to book two, which I downloaded for free as an audio book. I started already, and love it. Oh, the intrigue.

I would recommend this series to anyone who likes little YA fantasy, time travel, and outcasts. It is a pleasantly quick read at only 203 pages as an e-book.

Books... Portals to other worlds.

If only that was the true world she traveled. But I will settle for London.