kaylabeck

Review originally posted at Bibliophilia, Please

Timespell is Diana Paz's debut young adult novel that follows three protagonists: Julia, Angie, and Kaitlyn. We enter the story with Julia and Angie looking for the the third Daughter of Fate, who is necessary to seal their magic, or they will lose it when Angie turns seventeen. Julia and Angie have been friends for years, and Angie was raised knowing that she had magic. She has already sealed Julia to her, and they both have been mentored in their magical powers by Indira, a mysterious woman with a great store of knowledge about the Daughters of Fate. Through her, they have learned that their job will be to keep the monsters of Mythos and the Sorceress from destroying time. There have been no Daughters joined together in centuries and much rides on them to complete that magic. When it is discovered that Kaitlyn (the reason for Angie breaking up with her boyfriend) is to be their third – and bound to them for all time – they are less than enthusiastic about joining forces with her and ready to give up their magic. However, the arrival of the mysterious Ethan pushes the girls to choose to join together. What follows is betrayal and a whole lot of drama.

Angie, Julia, and Kaitlyn are typical teenaged, high school girls and all the implications thereof. That is to say, none of them are without their faults. Angie does not want to forgive Kaitlyn, Julia’s commitment to her boyfriend is questionable, and Kaitlyn is a jealous mean girl through and through. Julia and Angie are already best friends, which does not make it easy for Kaitlyn being a part of the group. This leads to an interesting dynamic as the girls have to learn to work together in their assignments from Fate. There are catfights left and right as they make mistakes while learning to use their powers as a team. Most of the chapters are from Angie and Julia’s points of view, but there is enough from Kaitlyn to show why she is the way she is. The girls are interesting and very realistic.

The best part of Timespell is the world-building. Mythological creatures like gorgons and minotaurs, who enter the world through portals to wreck havoc, are great nemeses because the Daughters are unable to kill them with their magic. One of the last Daughters betrayed her sisters and joined forces with the Sorceress. However, the real treat is the way Diana Paz fleshes out this all out. Each scene was vivid, whether it was Venice Beach or 18th Century France. (The novel being yo-yoed between the two is genius as the beach and France are both places that most people dream about visiting.) Details for the clothing and surroundings are expertly described in each scene, past and present. When I was reading Timespell, I felt like I was there and did not want to put it down.

Timespell is a very strong debut that I think will appeal to teens and older readers alike. Even though the drama between the girls was not my thing, I enjoyed being sucked in to the rich world. I think Diana Paz is an author to watch, and I look forward to reading her work in the future.

3.5 Stars

To satisfy FTC guidelines, I am disclosing that I received a copy of the book from Xpresso Book Tours in exchange for an honest review. It has in no way affected the outcome. All opinions expressed are rambling, honest, and completely my own.