Review – Sojourn (Time Rovers, Book 1) by Jana Oliver (5/5 stars)

Reading Level: Adult
Genre: Historical Fantasy
Length: 372 pages
Publisher:‎ Nevermore Press
Release Date: September 27, 2011
ASIN: B005Q2N39M
Stand Alone or Series: 1st book in the Time Rovers series
Source: Bought ebook for Kindle
Rating: 5/5 stars

“London, September 1888
The threat of anarchy hovers in the air as a new kind of evil lurks in the back alleys of Whitechapel.

Enter Time Rover Jacynda Lassiter whose job is to find an overdue ‘tourist’ and return him to 2057 before he changes history. But Victorian London is a dangerous place for the unwary. Mysterious shape-shifters haunt the streets, making friend and foe indistinguishable. When a fellow Time Rover is murdered, Jacynda’s mission becomes personal. Dare she trust the two gentlemen who come to her aid, or do they harbor their own dark secrets?

In a few days, Jack the Ripper will add to his bloody legacy. But Jack isn’t the only threat in Whitechapel. Unless Jacynda can outwit a madman her Victorian sojourn will rewrite history—and end at the point of a blade.”

Series Info/Source: This is the first book in the Time Rovers series. I bought a copy of this as an ebook for my Kindle.

Thoughts: Previous to reading this book I had read Oliver’s Demon Trappers series (loved it) and some of her other stand alone books (they were okay). I was excited to start this series and it was definitely worth the read. It’s an intriguing story; engaging and very well written.

Jacynda is a Time Rover in 2057. She is involved in tracking down and bringing back time tourists who don’t return at their expected time. When she goes back to Victorian London to retrieve a waylaid academic tourist, she is dangerously close to Jack the Ripper’s time line. She ends up getting involved with a couple of locals and finds out that her retrieval is a lot more complicated than she thought it was going to be. To complicate the situation even more, back in 2057, things are going belly-up with the company she works for and she may struggle to find a way to get back to her time.

I really enjoyed this book a lot. The world-building and plot here are really spectacular. There are so many things going on. I loved the world portrayed in 2057, it’s futuristic but believably so. I also love the Victoria England period, so it was fun to spend time there as well. There are multiple plot threads here that were masterfully woven together. The main plot appears to Jacynda’s retrieval of her wayward tourist. However, this plot starts to intertwine with what’s happening with the time travel company in 2057 and with her discovery of a shapeshifting race that is around in Victorian London.

The characters were very well done too. I enjoyed Jacynda as she struggled to fit into 2057 and very much enjoyed the characters she meets there. Additionally, there are some wonderful characters introduced in 2057 as well. While this isn’t a character driven story, I definitely enjoyed the characters here. There is a hint of romance throughout and some fantastic friendships that form along Jacynda’s adventures.

Oliver’s writing is wonderful and very well-rounded. The action scenes are great, the mystery is well done and there is excellent description. The story is effortless to read and flows nicely. I liked where the story ended and look forward to reading the next book in the series.

My Summary (5/5): Overall I really enjoyed this first installment in the Time Rovers series. This is an excellent story, with creative world-building and easy to engage with characters. It was a fun and entertaining read that I never struggled to stay engaged with. I am normally not a huge fan of time travel reads, but it really worked well for this book. I am incredibly eager to read the next book in this series!