Reviews

Blackout by Meredith McCardle

rikerandom's review against another edition

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4.0

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Meredith McCardles Serie „Die Zeitspringer-Saga“ ist eine dieser Serien, bei denen ich mich beim Erscheinen des ersten Bandes einfach nicht mehr daran erinnern kann, was in Band 1 passiert ist. Also war so ziemlich alles, was ich noch wusste, als ich „Die Farbe der Zukunft“ angefangen habe, dass es hier um eine Art Zeitreise-Regierungs-Agency-Thriller handelt.

Der Wiedereinstieg in die Serie ist mir dabei nicht wirklich leicht gefallen, denn es hat eine ganze Weile gedauert, bis ich mich so richtig erinnern konnte, was in Band 1 passiert eigentlich passiert war und wieder wusste, wer wer ist und wie die Beziehungen zwischen den einzelnen Charakteren nochmal aussahen. Nach einer Weile hat mich der Roman dann aber doch noch voll und ganz in seinen Bann gezogen.

Denn auch im zweiten Teil der Saga geht es rasant zu, die Wächter haben nach den Ereignissen des ersten Bands einen neuen Boss und werden das Gefühl nicht los, dass man versucht, sie von ernsthaften Ermittlungen abzuhalten. Statt durch die Zeit zu springen und herauszufinden, wer hinter dem mysteriösen Kürzel XP steht, sichten sie Steuerunterlagen und führen langweilige Observationen durch.

Ich gebe zu, Iris/Amanda finde ich immer noch etwas nervig, weil sie sich hauptsächlich für sich selbst interessiert und dadurch die anderen Charaktere etwas zu kurz kommen in ihren Charakterisierungen. Auch dass die Geschichte hauptsächlich den Thrilleraspekt im 21. Jahrhundert verflogt und es nicht so viel historisches Feeling gibt, wie ich mir wünschen würde, finde ich nach wie vor schade. Allerdings ändert das nichts daran, dass die Geschichte wirklich spannend ist und mich bis hin zu diesem wirklich fieses Cliffhanger in ihren Bann gezogen hat.

Alles in allem hat mir Meredith McCardles „Die Farbe der Zukunft“ nach einigen anfänglichen Problemen und obwohl ich mich noch immer nicht wirklich für die Protagonistin begeistern kann wirklich gut gefallen und ich bin sehr gespannt darauf, wie die Geschichte im nächsten Teil weitergeht und schlussendlich aufgelöst wird.

ameserole's review

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4.0

I've said this countless times but I really do hate cliffhangers! WHY DO AUTHORS ALWAYS DO THIS TO ME?
I refuse to accept cliffhangers anymore!

Also, this sequel was better than I expected as well! I'm so happy I haven't hit the terrible two's lately or read super bad books this week alone. Overall, I really loved this book. It gives you a whole bunch of stuff, like: deception, corruption, time travelling, betrayals, truths and like I said A WHOLE BUNCH OF STUFF.

Amanda/Iris is still a member of the Annum Guard and when she thought everything was going to change for the better - it didn't. Nope, because there's a new thorn in her paw (metaphorically speaking!) and that thorns name is: Jane Bonner. I was kind of hesitant on how their relationship would be because I didn't want anything bad to happen to Amanda/Iris because there was someone new in charge that was making things difficult.

Then there are the amazing missions that kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time. I couldn't look away from the pages. I was just so freaking invested that I wanted more and I didn't really want the chapter or the book to end, ever.

Trust me, it was so freaking good! I couldn't put the book down! I was just devouring it so quickly that I really had to physically step away from this book. I hate going through books so quickly now because I'm basically already done with my reading challenge for the YEAR. I just haven't typed up all of the reviews that I've read so far. Trust me, there's a whole bunch of reviews I need to type but life gets in the way. SO even though I read very quickly and work is always getting in the way, I will probably write my reviews more slowly?!? Maybe?!? I don't know!

Back to this book - it was amazing. It was fantastic. It had me on the edge of my couch the entire time. I'm pretty sure I'm almost spilled wine or dropped my glass a couple of times. I loved everything about it and I can't wait to dive into the next book!

erinarkin20's review

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5.0

Ahhh....that ending!!!

Blackout by Meredith McCardle is the second book in the Annum Guard series and I have been waiting (a bit impatiently) for this book to come out. Not only because I love time-travel books but because the mystery of what is going to happen next with these characters always keeps me turning the pages. Keep in mind that if you haven’t read book one, this review might mention some things that you might not want to know yet.

Amanda Obermann is Iris and she still a member of the Annum Guard, a covert government organization that keeps history on track, and things are necessarily going as she had hoped they would once Alpha was killed. Now Jane Bonner is the interim leader and she is definitely making things difficult – for everyone. It is hard for Amanda to believe Bonner is there to make things better and as Amanda continues to dig into who she is and why she is now in charge, she finds out some interesting things.

The one bright spot for Amanda is that Abe now works for the Guard too even though it has created a tense situation with his grandfather. Abe balances Amanda out and while she continues to figure out what is going on with the guard as well as what to do with her mother, she is able to lean on Abe and he provides support, guidance, and at times, a bit of tough love to help Amanda figure things out.

As the guard continues to go on missions, things begin to get dangerous due to the fact that the guardians are disappearing and no one knows what really is happening to them. Amanda covertly begins working with Red to figure out what is really going on and what Bonner is up to and finds out some very interesting things about not only those individuals with the Annum Guard now but also those that started the organization.

McCardle does a wonderful job of pulling the reader into the time-travel by providing some great descriptions and keeping the story moving. I found myself turning the pages just to find out what was going to happen next - I wanted to know what else Amanda was going to find out. The mysteries really help move the story but I also love that there is a lot of action too and not just a history lesson – and this is from someone who loves history.

I thought this was a great second book that helped move the story forward and was happy to see that there was a great mix of action, character development, and story progression. Relationships change along the way and major things happen – I know that is so, so vague but I can’t say what without really giving anything away…so I won’t. Just trust me when I say, if you haven’t started this series, you should get started. I loved everything that McCardle did with this story, even if the end of this book almost killed me (figuratively…obviously). I have no idea what will happen next for Amanda and am excited to see what McCardle does next with this series.

Thank you to Netgalley and Skyscape for the review copy!

ahaines's review

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adventurous hopeful mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

samiism's review

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4.0

3.5 stars.

Cliffhanger. Not cool. What else is not cool? The last 20% of the book. I found myself flying through it--skimming, more like. All the jumping around was too much to keep up with.

I guess I'll hve to wait for book three. Ugh.

willac's review

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4.0

Readers will need to read the first volume in this series to have any idea of what's going on. I felt that this one was a little hard to get into, but once I did, it was very suspenseful, and I didn't want to put it down. The ending makes it clear that there will be another installment, which I am looking forward to.

The series deals with a group of young people who are genetically able to time travel -- their DNA is tied to a special watch that they keep on them. In most of this book, the time travel journeys had political motives, which I wouldn't normally be interested in, but it was well written and very suspenseful.

I received this book from NetGalley in return for an honest review.

_tabae's review

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4.0

Solider zweiter Band mit Spannung und sehr überraschendem Ende!

ezichinny's review

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3.0

This is a series that should be read relatively close together. I had forgotten so much and it took me a while to remember people and events.
Review to come

v_nerdbooks's review

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4.0

This book probably need to be read quite close to the 1st as there is no real recap from it and it just dives right on in there so it was slightly confusing for me, luckily I was reading as a buddy read so we were able to remind ourselves on things/people.

The colours got quite confusing too at the beginning however by the time I had got a third into the book I was hooked again.

I can't wait until the 3rd book to find out what the hell went on and how Iris is going to be able to fix this mess she has gotten herself into!

megball21's review against another edition

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5.0

O MY GOD THAT ENDING???????? HOLY PLOT TWIST!