Into the Dim

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Author(s)

Janet Taylor

Genre(s)

Age Range

12+

Release Date

March 01, 2016

ISBN

9780544602007

When fragile, sixteen-year-old Hope Walton loses her mom to an earthquake overseas, her secluded world crumbles. Agreeing to spend the summer in Scotland, Hope discovers that her mother was more than a brilliant academic, but also a member of a secret society of time travelers. And she's alive, though currently trapped in the twelfth century, during the age of Eleanor of Aquitaine. Hope has seventy-two hours to rescue her mother and get back to their own time. Passing through the Dim, Hope enters a brutal medieval world of political intrigue, danger, and violence. A place where any serious interference could alter the very course of history. And when she meets a boy whose face is impossibly familiar, she must decide between her mission and her heart—both of which could leave Hope trapped in the past forever. Addictive, romantic, and rich with historical detail, Into the Dim is an Outlander for teens

Editor reviews

2 reviews

A Good Addition to the Genre

April 24, 2016

Overall rating

3.0

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Hope Walton is understandably crushed when her mother is missing and presumed dead after an earthquake overseas. Hope's mom, Sarah, was her teacher, friend, and ally, and Sarah kept Hope well insulated from the rest of the world as she trained Hope to manage her photographic memory and many anxieties.

Seven months after losing her mom, Hope's step-father plans a getaway with his new girlfriend, and Hope has the opportunity to visit her mother's sister in Scotland--a trip she hasn't made before because of her fear of plane travel. Hope is willing to make it now to learn more about her mom's background and to avoid staying with her step-father's family.

Hope's arrival in Scotland sets the stage for a story that is a time travel thriller with a bit of romance. Sent with two others to 12th century England to find her not-really-dead mom, Hope's photographic memory serves her well as she navigates the time surrounding the coronation of Eleanor of Aquitaine and Henry II.

Although the pacing of INTO THE DIM is slow as the plot and characters develop, the historical details are rich and vivid--they're definitely the best part of this book. It would have been lovely to spend all of my reading time following the story of Eleanor of Aquitaine, and whenever she left the scene I wanted to go with her to see what she would be doing rather than Hope. That said, Hope is a good character. She's not perfect and unreasonably strong (in mind nor body), but she's also not a complete weakling who needs to be rescued at every turn. Her resiliency is her best trait, and her personal challenges make her relatable. The romance that develops through the course of the book between Hope and one of the male characters isn't one that captures the imagination, and the accents of the historical and present-day Scots characters don't ring true at all times, but INTO THE DIM is a good addition to the YA time travel/historical fiction genre with a lot to recommend it. It's the first in a series, and I'll happily read more about Hope and her friends as the rest of the books come out.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of the ebook in exchange for my honest review.

Good Points

Rich and vivid historical details

A relatable and resilient main character

Kristie Lowry, Promotions Manager Top 50 Reviewer 159 reviews

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User reviews

2 reviews

Overall rating

4.3

Plot

4.0(2)

Characters

4.5(2)

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4.5(2)

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'A great YA time-travelling romp through history'

April 29, 2016

Overall rating

4.7

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I fell in love with both the cover of this book and the premise as soon as I spotted it. I know that time-travel books have become a bit of a trend recently and some people seem to have a downer on them, but this is the first one I’ve read for a while and I really loved it!

Hope Walton is a really interesting protagonist. She has an eidectic memory and severe claustrophobia. She has just attended the funeral of her mother knowing the coffin is empty; her mum is presumed dead but Hope is still not convinced.

So when her mum’s parents get in touch and ask Hope to spend the summer with them at their manor in Scotland, Hope is both terrified (the flying) and excited (at the prospect of finding out more about her mum’s so-called death).

I loved that Hope was vulnerable. She isn't physically strong, or overly brave or daring, but she’s clever, resourceful, and head-strong. She doesn’t give up. When she arrives at the manor, she didn’t expect to make friends, but she does, easily, and I liked that this gave her confidence.

Hope gets more than she bargains for when she discovers that her Scottish side of the family are part of a secret band of time-travellers, and that her mum is in fact lost in the past. There’s a whole lot more to it than that, but we follow Hope and her new friends on a dangerous journey to find her mum and bring her back.

I loved the setting, the plot was interesting and a whole lot of fun, but mostly, I enjoyed the writing. Taylor’s words grabbed me instantly; she had such a vivid way of describing things in ways that I’d not seen before. It was totally unique and beautiful to read.

I enjoyed each of the characters and their very different strengths and weaknesses, including Bran – the love interest – who kept me guessing, but was swoon-worthy throughout.

I wasn’t a huge fan of the Scottish dialogue used – it was a bit OTT at times, but other than that, I thought this was a great YA time-travelling romp through history.

I’ve been wanting to read Outlander for a while now, but it’s such an investment of time. At 432 pages, Into the Dim isn’t short by any means, but it certainly felt it – it was a page-turner!

I look forward to the next instalment!

Lipsy Top 500 Reviewer 4 reviews

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Another Great Time Travel Read

February 21, 2016

Overall rating

4.0

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MY THOUGHTS
I love books with time travel, so once I found out about this book, I couldn't wait to read it! I honestly didn't know what to expect from this book, besides the time travel, so I was able to be surprised by the plot. I ended up enjoying this book!

Hope's mother is presumed dead after a devastating earthquake. Hope doesn't know what to do without her mom, and her father sends her away to stay with her mother's sister, an aunt she's never really known. It's there that Hope finds out that her mother belongs to a society of time travelers and that her mother never died in that earthquake. Her mother is still alive, but she's trapped in the 12th century. Hope must travel into the past and rescue her mother, but it's not as easy as it sounds and she may found out a few more family secrets along the way.

I thought that the way that the time travel was covered was very interesting. I liked the idea of the society of time travelers, and how there were two different societies. The plot was interesting and the historical elements felt well-researched. Some factors of the plot that were supposed to be surprises I kind of figured out early on, but I still liked where the author was going with these plot points and am very curious to see what will happen in the next book.

The set of characters were great. I liked Hope as a MC and I liked all of the supporting characters in the book. Many of the characters just met Hope and I liked how quickly they grew to care for her, and her for them.

As for romance, I was meh about it.There's a mysterious boy that Hope meets and I figured out pretty early on what was going on there. I can't say that I dislike him, but I really can't ship it. I'm not feeling it.

IN CONCLUSION
Overall, I really did enjoy reading this book! Despite the predictability and the romance, I loved the time travel and the plot! The historical elements were great and the characters were fantastic! The pacing of this book was a bit slow at first, but I still felt like a lot happened, and a lot was discovered, and I am very curious to see what will happen next!