A review by noladawnreads
Stealing Time by Tilia Klebenov Jacobs, Norman Birnbach

adventurous challenging funny 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? It's complicated

4.0

Thank you #partners @getredprbooks @lindentreereads and the authors for my #gifted copy. 

STEALING TIME 
Tilia Klebenov Jacobs @tiliakjacobs 
Norman Birnbach @normanbirnbach 

I’ve come to realize that I LOVE time travel books and this one is done so well! Tori is in the middle of a crisis. It’s the first week of the pandemic, she lives in NYC and her parents are splitting up, which is taking her to Boston, both cities which were hotbeds in the early throws of the pandemic. As she’s reflecting on her dad, Bob, and all the problems she has with him she does some research on her grandfather, Victor (whom she’s named after), and finds out that he spent time in prison for a massive jewel heist involving the Desert Storm diamond, a ginormous yellow diamond. As she’s looking up the diamond she suddenly shifts to 1980, in her own bedroom that’s not exactly hers anymore. Instead it’s the childhood bedroom of her father. 
She then meets the 15yo Bobby, her dad at her age. Bobby is brilliant and also a huge sci-fi nerd. She spills her story and amazingly, he believes her. Now, Tori and Bobby must try to figure out a way to get Tori home and possibly stop the heist. 

I really enjoyed the father/daughter relationship (as same age teens), the heist was thrilling, it was wisely funny, and the glimpse into 1980 was so nostalgic. Imagine being thrust back to that time period and not having the amenities you’re used to, like Google and having to find a phone booth to call someone while out. 

The authors have been friends since college and you can absolutely tell that they are in sync with their storytelling. This was inspired by the 1964 heist of the American Museum of Natural History and the Star of India.