*** 4.35 ***A buddy read with my MacHalo Freaks and weirdness enthusiasts!!! I keep being surprised by how good and innovative this series is... I guess I should not be, but we all tend to fall into patterns of genre expectations and when something comes outside the color-in lines, it smacks our brains with a brick and makes us think:):):) At least, that is what seems to make me wake up and think... the brick... smacking me that is... Yeeeaaaa, none too eager to move that muscle, I guess:) So, as I told my MacHalos, I was young when I overdosed on time-travel novels and they make me very weary... I try to stay away from them with all my heart, since I get frustrated and tend to resent them even when the unfortunate books do not deserve it... I did not see that twist coming when we started this series. And I was, naturally, hoping it would not go there, despite all the signs that started popping up in the beginning of this installment... However, as freshly as the author presents the concept of zombies by turning them into the Galvanized, I think she did a wonderful job at looking and deconstructing the time-traveling issue as well!!! I was already a bit in awe of Monk, but now I am realy starting to respect the way this author looks on the world and can revive themes which seem worn out and sucked out dry!!! Just as with every good book, I am terrified to mention anything about the plot, since it is so delicious to discover it for yourself, but I have to say that there is not only the going against the clock or doom and gloom will ensue plot, but also some very sweet romance, some very human longing, and some very devious and evil bad guys, who balance the gang of misfits with good intentions and the other dubious characters perfectly, playing with the dynamic of good, evil and indifferent by tugging here and pushing there enough, to keep you on your toes!!! Nothing is guarantied, nothing is promised to us, and we are left with no security blankets at all... Intense and fascinating, despite the pacing seeming slow at times. And it ends with a BANG!!! Just so we are absolutely unsettled for the next book, in case the rest of it was not enough... I am soooo scared to read the next book, since the possibilities of it going good or bad are about equal!!! This read I recommend to all who like a story which thinks outside of the accepted lines, who can deal with changes of tempo. Also, it is a book which can be read by the whole spectrum of ages and not offend anyone:):):) However, you have to start from the beginning - it can not be read as a strand alone... I strongly recommend it!!! Now, I wish all of you Happy Reading and may every book challenge your thoughts and feelings and leave you richer for it!!!!