Review ~ Clockwise by Elle Strauss

A teenage time traveler accidentally takes her secret crush back in time. Awkward.

Boy watching with her best friend would be enough excitement for fifteen year old Casey Donovan. She doesn't even mind life at the bottom of the Cambridge High social ladder, if only she didn’t have this other much bigger problem. Unscheduled trips to the nineteenth century!

When Casey gets talked into going to the Fall Dance, the unthinkable happens--she accidentally takes Nate Mackenzie, the cutest boy in the school, back in time.

Protocol pressures her to tell their 1860 hosts that he is her brother and when Casey finds she has a handsome, wealthy (and unwanted) suitor, something changes in Nate. Are those romantic sparks or is it just ‘brotherly’ protectiveness?

When they return to the present things go back to the way they were before: Casey at the bottom of the social totem pole and Nate perched on the very the top. Except this time her heart is broken. Plus, her best friend is mad, her parents are split up, and her little brother gets escorted home by the police. The only thing that could make life worse is if, by some strange twist of fate, she took Nate back to the past again.

Which of course, she does. (From GoodReads)

Clockwise, by Elle Strauss is a fun, lighthearted book about Casey, a time traveler, and her struggles to manage school, friends, family, and her crush, all while trying to navigate the world in two different time periods. And when Casey accidentally takes her crush, Nate, into the past with her, her world becomes even more complicated.
There were two big aspects to the book that I felt the author got spot-on right away. The first is the tone of the book. From the very first sentence I knew that I would, at the very least, have a nice time reading Clockwise. The second aspect I liked was the fact that I never felt a huge secret was being dangled over my head. Strauss lets the reader in on the secret from the get-go. And I can't say how much I appreciated that.

There were just a few small issues I had with Clockwise. The first was Nate. I know that hot, popular guys are "supposed" to be jerks to the poor wallflowers who love them, but his back and forth, hot and cold attitude wore pretty thin on me. Does the boy finally wise up and get his act together? I'll let you read and find out! The other issue is the lack in explanation of Casey's time-tripping abilities. Maybe that will be explored in a second book? I just wish I had a little more detail.

Here's what I loved about Clockwise. The historical references tied in to Casey's travels. The author managed to sneak in some really great lessons on race and  gender equality. And, I almost forgot! There was a super-cool, out-of-nowhere shocker. It was awesome and I never saw it coming.

Clockwise would be a fabulous choice for a young reader who is itching to read a fun, paranormal young adult book.

3 Smooches

Worthy of some extra loving!

Favorite Quote ~
" I followed Sara into the Good Ol' Book Shoppe, stunned  by the great and ancient literary works. I
  picked up a volume of Gray's Anatomy, Descriptive and Surgical. And here I thought Grey's
 Anatomy was just a TV Drama."

Paperback, print, 290 pages

Expected publication: November 21st 2011 by ESB Publishing

You can purchase Clockwise at:

Barnes & Noble | Amazon