The Time Traveler's Boyfriend by Annabelle Costa (4 stars)

About The Time Traveler's Boyfriend

Print Length: 250 pages
Publisher: Dev Love Press (February 2, 2014)

Claudia’s geeky boyfriend Adam has just invented a time machine.

No, really—he has.  She doesn’t believe it either until Adam provides her with definitive proof that he does, in fact, have a functioning time travel device sitting in the living room of his Manhattan brownstone.

But instead of getting ready to accept the Nobel Prize, Adam has very different plans for his groundbreaking invention.  He wants Claudia to use the machine to travel back in time and stop the accident that landed him in a wheelchair over a decade ago, and prevent the trajectory of events that he believes ruined his life.

When Claudia reluctantly agrees to become the first human time traveler, she knows she’s making a big gamble.  If she succeeds, she could have the happy ending with commitment-phobic Adam that she’s always dreamed of.  But if she fails, it could mean the end of the universe as she knows it.

“Costa’s wild imagination and keen writing style will keep readers on their toes as they breeze through this book which is quite an emotional roller-coaster ride and guaranteed to produce giggles and possibly a tear.” -Jaime A. Geraldi, The Romantic Times

Read the first chapter HERE.



Review

Claudia is in love with Adam, a man of science with commitment issues. One day, he asks her a special favor: go back in time, via his own invention, and change his destiny; a destiny that lands him in a wheelchair.

How can she deny him this one thing? Her adventure back is eye-opening. Everything she thought she understood about their life together is upended. 

Time travel is a tricky subject. No matter how well explained it is, the potential paradox problems are too often glaring. So it takes a good story to make the reader forget all of that. Thus is the case here. I was caught up in Claudia and Adam's love story. What began as a light story quickly became more complex: some things are simply meant to happen, no matter how much we think changing them would improve our lives.

Claudia is an endearing character; she's hurting from unfulfilled expectations--she thought she'd be a wife and mother by now--and fighting to get back what she thinks she's lost. Adam, who at first seems distant, comes full circle through the revelations of time travel. Thanks to strong emotions, it develops into a sweet (just the right amount, not overly sweet) romance.

If you enjoy a romance with an interesting twist, I recommend The Time Traveler's Boyfriend.

Rating: 4 stars

About Annabelle Costa

Annabelle Costa is a teacher who writes in her free time.  She enjoys the wounded hero genre, involving male love interests with physical disabilities, who don’t follow the typical Hollywood perception of sexy.

Buy The Time Traveler's Boyfriend on Amazon.

Blue 52 by Elaine Cantrell (4.5 stars)

About Blue 52
(from GoodReads)

"First Lady Kills President Lovinggood"
December 29, 2018

Thirty years later Hank Lovinggood embarks on a quest to prove his mother's innocence and punish the killers who took his family from him. Together Hank and lovely physicist Kathryn Sinclair confront an implacable, twisted, merciless enemy who'll do whatever it takes to hide the truth forever.

Buy on Amazon

Review

The Lovinggood's are political royalty, but they've paid some steep dues along the way. Years ago, Hank Lovinggood lost his parents--then the President and First Lady--tragically. Something he could never fully accept. When a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity allows him to change his fate, and theirs, will he have the courage to take it? If you could go back and change the course of your own life, would you?

I don't want to give away too much in my review, especially since the book synopsis doesn't. What I can say is... Wow! I love the concept of this book from start to finish. It's a mystery, but with the twist of being set in the future (and all the possibilities that entails). But it's also about love--not just romance, but the importance of family and how they affect who we will be. 

For those who love the exhilarating feeling of being on the edge of your seat, this book will keep you engaged. But it's so much more, because the characters are rich and intricately interwoven and the romance has heart. My only slight complaint... I felt Hank's romance was rushed. But given the intense circumstances, it's understandable. I just wanted to savor it a bit more.

Honestly, I didn't want the book to end. Simply wonderful.

Rating: 4.5 stars

I also greatly enjoyed this author's book, The Enchanted. Read the review here.

About the Author

Elaine Cantrell was born and raised in South Carolina where she obtained a master’s degree in personnel services from Clemson University.  She is a member of Alpha Delta Kappa, an international honorary society for women educators, Romance Writers of America, and EPIC authors.  Her first novel, A New Leaf, was the 2003 winner of the Timeless Love Contest.  When she’s not writing or teaching, she enjoys movies, quilting, reading, and collecting vintage Christmas ornaments. 

 

Visit her website at www.elainecantrell.com. Also, connect with Elaine Cantrell on Twitter, Facebook, and GoodReads.

Note: I received a complimentary copy for review purposes. A positive review was not requested or guaranteed; the opinions expressed are my own.