Tempest by Julie Cross

Genre:Young Adult-Time Travel
Source: ARC and egalley from Publisher
Series: Yes, 1st in a Trilogy
Buy It: The Book Depository
Challenge: Free Reads, Debut Author Challenge
First Line: "'How far back should I go?' I asked Adam."

The year is 2009.  Nineteen-year-old Jackson Meyer is a normal guy… he’s in college, has a girlfriend… and he can travel back through time. But it’s not like the movies – nothing changes in the present after his jumps, there’s no space-time continuum issues or broken flux capacitors – it’s just harmless fun.

That is… until the day strangers burst in on Jackson and his girlfriend, Holly, and during a struggle with Jackson, Holly is fatally shot. In his panic, Jackson jumps back two years to 2007, but this is not like his previous time jumps. Now he’s stuck in 2007 and can’t get back to the future.

Desperate to somehow return to 2009 to save Holly but unable to return to his rightful year, Jackson settles into 2007 and learns what he can about his abilities.

But it’s not long before the people who shot Holly in 2009 come looking for Jackson in the past, and these “Enemies of Time” will stop at nothing to recruit this powerful young time-traveler.  Recruit… or kill him.

Piecing together the clues about his father, the Enemies of Time, and himself, Jackson must decide how far he’s willing to go to save Holly… and possibly the entire world.

      About a month or two ago, I remember hearing a ton of buzz for a book called Tempest.  I also remember really wanting to read it and loving the synopsis.  I don't regret reading this book.  I absolutely loved Tempest by Julie Cross!  The storyline of the book is amazing!  Tempest is filled with action and will keep you guessing.
     I really loved the characters in this book.  I've been dying for a male point of view for a long time now!  I loved Jackson's voice in the story and it was really interesting to see all different parts of his life.  The time travel definitely made flashbacks a lot more fun!  I also liked reading his journal entries and thought they were a great way to recap what had happened in the past few chapters.  I really enjoyed all of the different emotions Jackson had throughout the book.  Julie Cross did a phenomenal job mixing together grievance, confusion, romance, action, and time travel into one novel!  I also really loved Holly's character.  I thought 07 Holly seemed like tons of fun.  On the other hand, 09 Holly seemed a lot more mature but, I actually liked the contrast between the two Hollys.  I thought it was an interesting way to show character growth in a short amount of time.  I actually really enjoyed all of the characters in this book, including the villains!
     The storyline of Tempest never slowed down.  It was really a page-turner!  Jackson had to make a lot of important decisions, come up with disguises, and not reveal his abilities.  I loved all of the twists and turns in the story and learning about the time traveling was fun!
     I honestly cannot think of much to say that I didn't like about the book!  One thing that bothered me a bit (but didn't really affect the story), was the year(s) it was set in.  Reading 2009 and 2007 made me feel like I couldn't connect to the story time-wise.  This didn't really bother me all that much but, I would have liked it if the years were updated.  On the other hand, it was actually sort of interesting to see when Julie Cross (probably) wrote the book!  I also really liked the cover of the book.  Its definitely sort of "cheesy" but, I really like all the colors on the cover.  I also really like the artwork, regardless of it's "cheesiness" ;) .
     Tempest has earned a spot on my favorites list!  Definitely check this one out!  The writing is great and the male point of view was refreshing!  Julie Cross knows how to mix together all of the elements for an amazing read!  Don't pass this book up!

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     PS- I'll be interviewing Julie on the blog soon so if you'd like me to ask her a specific question, tell me in the comments! :)