Take a photo of a barcode or cover
A review by theeditorreads
The Exchange by M.F. Lorson
3.0
Synopsis:
The Exchange is a YA time travel tale where the Institute at Pendleton in 2030 brings on exchange students from various important timelines so that the students of the present day can learn from them first-hand about their respective histories. But there is something that the Institute is not telling them. How is it that when these exchange students are sent back and no one says anything about their experiences which would surely have found a place in history somewhere?
Review:
This is Ari and James Cooper's story. Also, it is my first read by the author. It starts with a prologue from both their point of views. She's at the Institute in Pendleton, waiting to eavesdrop on the conversation between her father and her professor. The year is 2030 and Professor Limmerick is serious about ousting her from the student exchange program because of her actions. She is currently enrolled in Pendleton High School. In another time in the world, James is a simple farm boy who is in his final year of school at Heppner but he has big dreams. The year is 1903 when he comes to know about the Institute which will take on students for an Exchange Program based on a fair assessment. His 500-word essay on "Why I want to help the future remember the past" sealed the deal for him. But, what the Institute doesn't know is that he has no intention of returning to his past.
The concept is fresh and very interesting. A YA novel involving a student exchange program but with a twist. Because it isn't your usual country to country student exchange, rather it involves the past and future - time travels. But the story is filled with loopholes.
The references to the past brought on a nostalgic quality, what with Ari's father driving a 1956 Chevy pickup. But then again, Marvin hasn't been able to ever do much good by his daughter, what with his loyalty to the Institute even when he felt the loss of her mother so strongly. A loss brought about by the Institute's meddlesome habits. It's said that he's busy in his attempts to try to change the past though it's not revealed whether it was fruitful or not in the end. Also, who knows what was he doing for him to appear so fatigued to Ari. There are some shocking revelations about her parents towards the end of the story, but they remain unexplained.
Most of the story takes place in 2030 only after James reaches there as an exchange student. Due to her past misdemeanours, Ari has to work as a transition guide against her wishes. The work entails helping the new exchange students to settle down in the present. She hates the Institute and everything that it stands for. Having lost a friend earlier to the exchange program, she wants nothing to do with it but her father losing his dear job is what reins her in. She is paired up with James, while her gay and only best friend Michael Allen is paired up with Elizabeth. The story progresses from three POVs - Ari's, James' and Michael's.
The Institute, in the name of working on a time travel student exchange program which wants to preserve history, works in a very hush-hush way. And there is something off about James being an exchange student which he is determined to find out about. He doesn't exactly fit into the criteria of the students that are selected for the program. Another unexplained thing is why was James picked up for the program. Gradually, the sinister begins to take shape in the form of Ari questioning herself about how exactly the institute managed to keep a lid on the Exchange Program and how no one ever in the past mentioned it.
Ari and James both are socially awkward, and it takes time for them to break the ice. That slow burn development of friendship is also something that I liked about this book, which slowly transformed into romance.
The Time Ball is an event held close to the conclusion of the Exchange Program and the cover, while it wasn't preferred by many readers, is something that accurately defines the story.
There was a Jurassic Park reference and I was kind of expecting that. And how funny it is to read that the male protagonist would have preferred an Emily Dickinson poster, had there been such things in 1903. Maybe I should get one of my favourite author's poster too.
What starts as a sci-fi/fantasy turns into a romance and somewhere in between it falls flat since some main plot points are left unexplored and some relevant questions unanswered. It is an abrupt ending which leaves much to be desired. Even James and Ari's happiness couldn't eclipse the questions that I had. What happened to Ari's mother? What will happen with Marvin now? What exactly was the purpose of time travel? Is what Professor Limerick is doing wrong, unethical somehow? What exactly happens to students of the past when their window of teaching is up, how are they kept shut up? Michael had a strong voice in the entire story but he's nowhere at the end and neither we know what happens with Elizabeth. Some explanations have been provided but some of them are so vague that I couldn't be sure about them.
In the end, all I want to say is that this standalone fiction needs a sequel.
Now, on a lighter note:
Yikes, nothing changes in the next decade too? Oops!
I hope that does happen within the next decade, the world will be a much better place to live in.
Thank you to the author and NetGalley for a review copy of the book.
UPDATE
The author just announced on her Instagram post that there will be a sequel, so I'll be updating my review accordingly later on.
Originally posted on:
Shaina's Musings
The Exchange is a YA time travel tale where the Institute at Pendleton in 2030 brings on exchange students from various important timelines so that the students of the present day can learn from them first-hand about their respective histories. But there is something that the Institute is not telling them. How is it that when these exchange students are sent back and no one says anything about their experiences which would surely have found a place in history somewhere?
Review:
This is Ari and James Cooper's story. Also, it is my first read by the author. It starts with a prologue from both their point of views. She's at the Institute in Pendleton, waiting to eavesdrop on the conversation between her father and her professor. The year is 2030 and Professor Limmerick is serious about ousting her from the student exchange program because of her actions. She is currently enrolled in Pendleton High School. In another time in the world, James is a simple farm boy who is in his final year of school at Heppner but he has big dreams. The year is 1903 when he comes to know about the Institute which will take on students for an Exchange Program based on a fair assessment. His 500-word essay on "Why I want to help the future remember the past" sealed the deal for him. But, what the Institute doesn't know is that he has no intention of returning to his past.
The concept is fresh and very interesting. A YA novel involving a student exchange program but with a twist. Because it isn't your usual country to country student exchange, rather it involves the past and future - time travels. But the story is filled with loopholes.
The references to the past brought on a nostalgic quality, what with Ari's father driving a 1956 Chevy pickup. But then again, Marvin hasn't been able to ever do much good by his daughter, what with his loyalty to the Institute even when he felt the loss of her mother so strongly. A loss brought about by the Institute's meddlesome habits. It's said that he's busy in his attempts to try to change the past though it's not revealed whether it was fruitful or not in the end. Also, who knows what was he doing for him to appear so fatigued to Ari. There are some shocking revelations about her parents towards the end of the story, but they remain unexplained.
Most of the story takes place in 2030 only after James reaches there as an exchange student. Due to her past misdemeanours, Ari has to work as a transition guide against her wishes. The work entails helping the new exchange students to settle down in the present. She hates the Institute and everything that it stands for. Having lost a friend earlier to the exchange program, she wants nothing to do with it but her father losing his dear job is what reins her in. She is paired up with James, while her gay and only best friend Michael Allen is paired up with Elizabeth. The story progresses from three POVs - Ari's, James' and Michael's.
The Institute, in the name of working on a time travel student exchange program which wants to preserve history, works in a very hush-hush way. And there is something off about James being an exchange student which he is determined to find out about. He doesn't exactly fit into the criteria of the students that are selected for the program. Another unexplained thing is why was James picked up for the program. Gradually, the sinister begins to take shape in the form of Ari questioning herself about how exactly the institute managed to keep a lid on the Exchange Program and how no one ever in the past mentioned it.
Ari and James both are socially awkward, and it takes time for them to break the ice. That slow burn development of friendship is also something that I liked about this book, which slowly transformed into romance.
She was Cinderella, ready for the ball and he was the farm boy who drove the pumpkin carriage, not the prince.
The Time Ball is an event held close to the conclusion of the Exchange Program and the cover, while it wasn't preferred by many readers, is something that accurately defines the story.
There was a Jurassic Park reference and I was kind of expecting that. And how funny it is to read that the male protagonist would have preferred an Emily Dickinson poster, had there been such things in 1903. Maybe I should get one of my favourite author's poster too.
What starts as a sci-fi/fantasy turns into a romance and somewhere in between it falls flat since some main plot points are left unexplored and some relevant questions unanswered. It is an abrupt ending which leaves much to be desired. Even James and Ari's happiness couldn't eclipse the questions that I had. What happened to Ari's mother? What will happen with Marvin now? What exactly was the purpose of time travel? Is what Professor Limerick is doing wrong, unethical somehow? What exactly happens to students of the past when their window of teaching is up, how are they kept shut up? Michael had a strong voice in the entire story but he's nowhere at the end and neither we know what happens with Elizabeth. Some explanations have been provided but some of them are so vague that I couldn't be sure about them.
In the end, all I want to say is that this standalone fiction needs a sequel.
Now, on a lighter note:
She and James finished the rest of the pizza in silence. The news had moved on to one of those obnoxious political pundit talk shows where everyone talks over each other and loses their temper.
Yikes, nothing changes in the next decade too? Oops!
He’d been just a toddler when his mother had marched for women’s rights in 2017, but it’d had only taken a few years for real change to happen and for most of the old, white, homophobic men to get booted out of power. The only world he had ever known was one of total equality.
I hope that does happen within the next decade, the world will be a much better place to live in.
Thank you to the author and NetGalley for a review copy of the book.
UPDATE
The author just announced on her Instagram post that there will be a sequel, so I'll be updating my review accordingly later on.
Originally posted on:
Shaina's Musings