Review: Marking Time (The Immortal Descendants #1) by April White

Seventeen year old Saira Elian’s life is a lonely one. Her mom tends to disappear randomly for weeks at a time and when she returns they often pack up and move to a new location.

She hasn’t met her father nor does she really know anything about him and she basically has never known anyone she could call a friend.

Saira spends her free time tagging the underground around Venice Beach until one night she over hears a conversation she shouldn’t.

The next thing she knows she is being chased by a group of men when the police pick her up and arrest her. With her mother gone again she is taken in by her grandmother who lives in England.

When Saira arrives at Elian Manor she is in for a rude awakening, her grandmother begrudgingly took her in and she intends to make Saira into a proper lady while she stays under her roof.

The first night there, Saira tries to runaway and the second she leaves the grounds she is being pursued by the same men from Venice Beach when a boy stops and picks her up. Suddenly Saira finds herself in Victorian London where she meets the same boy who picked her up at Elian Manor. How is this even possible?

Saira learns she is one of many gifted people who all belong to a special group of descendants….they are the Immortal Descendant’s.

Saira is what the other Immortal Descendant’s call a ‘clocker’ or someone who can time travel, the other Immortals have different powers: Seers who can see the future, Suckers or vampires are the descendants of death, Shapeshifters, and Mongers who are the descendants of war to name a few.

During her accidental trip to Victorian London Saira meets an attractive boy names Archer who looks eerily like the boy who picked her up in the car near Elian Manor. Archer realizes she is a clocker and while he tries to help her get back to her time they encounter the murderous Jack the Ripper. While they race back to the portal the Ripper follows them and suddenly Saira sees her mother right there in the Underground station. What the hell is her mother doing in Victorian London?

When she returns to the modern era her grandmother is beyond pissed and sends Saira to a special school for other Immortal Descendants partly to keep her out of the way and partly so she can learn about her powers.

At the school Saira meets new friends and starts learning about her powers and she hopes she will be able to find a way to help her mother. While Saira toggles between the modern era and Victorian London, we meet a host of intriguing characters and an epic and intelligent story!

I was completely surprised by this book. I absolutely loved the concept behind it! This was a highly intelligent YA read, I loved the time time travel concept and I loved the little hints of steampunk, fantasy, and magical YA all mixed together.

This book reminded me of a little of Harry Potter, The Infernal Devices series/The Mortal Instruments series, and a little Twilight all mixed together. Now don’t be put off by the Twilight reference, when I say Twilight I mean it’s got the teenage vampire element.

This wasn’t just a bubble gum teen YA read, this book was so well thought out and smart. I loved the references to all the scientific genetics in combination with the historic research…..absolutely brilliant. I thought the Jack the Ripper aspect was going to be a little strange and hokey but it really wasn’t the focus of the novel which I liked. I loved traveling through Victorian London and then back to the magical school and trying to make sense of all the clues that Saira got while time traveling.

I adored Saira’s character. She was smart, independent, street smart, sharp, witty, and inquisitive. She wasn’t unfeeling or harsh, or nieve and silly. She knew what she wanted and what she didn’t want both in life and in her relationships. She wasn’t complicated, she was straight forward from the beginning.

The only thing that I thought needed a little more development was the relationship between Saira and Archer. I liked Archer’s character and thought he was honorable and more than worthy of Saira’s affections but at the same time I thought it was a little too much too soon. I wished there was a little more courtship and more tension between the two. For me personally I just didn’t buy it right away, I thought there was more attention and chemistry between Saira and Adam. By the end of the novel I was convinced about the relationship between Archer and Saira but I thought the beginning needed some work in regards to that aspect.

Besides that I loved this book! I am really looking forward to the next book in the series. I really hope I can score an ARC for it when the time comes because I am dying to know what happens next! I was completely consumed by the world White created and am anxious to find out what happens next to my favorite characters and what happens with the prophecy. It left off at a good spot but now I want more!

If you are looking for a fresh YA read that has some magic, adventure, and romance, then this is the novel for you. It’s a smart, intelligent, and creative read!

Challenge/Book Summary:

Book: Marking Time (The Immortal Descendant’s #1) by April White

This book counts toward: NA

• Hosted by: NA
• Books for Challenge Completed: NA

Recommendation: 4.5 out of 5

Genre: YA, fantasy, Victorian lit, Steampunk

Memorable lines/quotes: 

A man chooses what he becomes and he must accept responsibility for his choices