Review Detail

A big thanks to NetGalley and Edelweiss and Walker Books for providing an eARC, and YABC for providing a physical ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I don't know why, but going into this book I felt like it was going to be BIG Addie LaRue vibes, and it kinda was. But not in the way you're expecting.

Skipshock by Caroline O'Donoghue is a YA fantasy novel that follows the unexpectedly intertwining lives of Margo and Moon. Margo is a troubled schoolgirl. After the death of her father, she’s on her way to a new boarding school in a new city. Moon is a salesman. He makes his living traveling through a series of interconnected worlds on a network of barely used train lines. They never should have met. But when Margo suddenly appears one day on Moon’s train, their fates become inextricably linked. If Margo wants to survive, she has to pass as a traveling salesman, too—except it’s not that easy. Move north on the train line and time speeds up, a day passing in mere hours. Move south and time slows down—a day can last several weeks. Slow worlds are the richest you live longer, your youth lasting decades. Fast worlds are sharp, cruel, and don’t have time for pleasantries. Death is frequent. Salesmen die young of skipshock. That is, if they’re not shot down by the Southern Guard first. As Margo moves between worlds and her attachment to Moon intensifies, she feels her youth start to slip between her fingers. But is Moon everything he seems? Is Margo?

What I loved most about this book was it's writing style. O'Donoghue sets ups the world of Moon and Margo with sweeping language that transports the reader further into the story. In that the reader is almost another character in O'Donoghue's world. And the details are nothing short of amazing, in that every little piece O'Donoghue shares is important.

One thing I did have a problem with, was the romance. Which I know is something I always have a problem with, given I'm not much of an avid romance reader (main or sub plot wise). Margo and Moon's budding relationship was indeed sweet and sweeping, but I thought it almost seemed instant-lovey, in the sense that they could have used a few more in-depth conversations before fully committing. But hey, that's probably just a me thing.

Overall, I have never read a book quite like Skipshock, and I cannot wait to read the sequel. And I will be wallowing until it eventually comes out. Curse you O'Donoghue for leaving it at THAT ending!