Book Review: The Time Tripping Faradays: The Alchemist War by John Seven

The Time Tripping Faradays: The Alchemist War
Genre: Sci-fi, Historical Fiction, Children's
Source: Netgalley
Purchase: Amazon

Summary on Amazon: When their parents, two temporal researchers who travel through time to document history, are transferred to 16th-century Prague, Dawk and Hype hardly expect to find themselves in the middle of an alchemical mystery. In fact, the new, boring job is meant to be a punishment for Dawk and Hypes bad behavior at their last temporal post. The two teenagers are from the 25th centuryhow could medieval Prague compare? But when they meet a man who claims he can turn metal into gold, Dawk and Hype find out that Prague holds deeper secrets.

Please Note: I'm using a new review system. Let me know what you think of it as well as the book. Will use it in conjunction with the old way that I review.

Review

The Good: A family of professional time travelers in the 25th century get demoted after a stampede almost ruins their assignment as researchers who document history. The technology is well detailed and keeps readers informed on amazing possibilities of the future despite some distinct disadvantages that exists within this book's time period. A rich story line and a very manageable reading length helps lend credence to a book tweens and early teens will be able enjoy without being overwhelmed. The family gets reassigned from the Temporal History Time Division to the Historical Footwear Division. A boring job as punishment for Dawk's mistakes is at first seen by the two teens as torture (though for Hype less so) but opens a new adventure when Hype bucks into a man who turns out to be an alchemist who is able to'create' gold. The kids are taken through time yet again by another device along with a very shocked 17th Century tag along. Discovering a machine even more powerful than technology from their own time. How will they get back to their parents and solve this mystery?  You have to get a copy to find out.

The Bad: The book gets super technical for more than half the book. Making an already shorter read heavy and pushes out parts of a really good story. It's great to know about the 25th century but do we really need  to get the most difficult to follow details of the NeuroNet as if the reader plans to create it? Especially in a short book. Seems the author forgot a compact book needs compact writing. If the book was twice as long it would be more forgivable. But when it cuts into adventure and story line, that's not a good thing.

My Verdict: A must for kids who are into sci-fi, even though it gets very technical. Teens should definitely be able to read through this quickly and those age ten and over can get through it if the story holds their interest. Especially recommend to young boys who'll connect with a daring adventurer like Dawk. A really good start for a brand new series.

Targeted Age Group: 10-14

Rating: 3.5