  | Full Text Reviews: Booklist - 06/01/2018 Twelve-year-old Matt Hudson’s parents have always warned him and his twin siblings, Corey and Ruby, never to use public transit, but when they awaken late for school one morning, they throw their parents’ travel ban out the window. The Hudsons hop on the New York subway, only to have it transform beneath their feet into the Vermillion, a time-traveling pirate frigate with a conniving captain and kid crew. Their first stop is Paris, 1911, where the captain steals the Mona Lisa from the Louvre, eager to solve an old mystery connected to the painting. Its clues spur more adventures, but a glitch with their compass threatens the Vermillion’s ability to navigate time, and Matt begins to suspect the ruthless captain is hiding something. Shurtliff’s first entry in the Time Castaways series is suspenseful, yet light and often humorous. The rollicking story is filled with intrigue right to the very end, which she leaves wide open for a sequel. Upper-elementary and middle-grade readers of her (Fairly) True Tales series will surely follow her here. - Copyright 2018 Booklist. School Library Journal - 08/01/2018 Gr 4–8—Three siblings disobey their parents' seemingly overprotective rule about never getting on the New York subway, only to find themselves aboard a time-traveling vessel whose mission is to collect artifacts around the world from different eras. Matt, the primary character and eldest, finds himself doubting their captain, the alternately creepy and fatherly Captain Vincent, as more is revealed. Third-person narration with memorable characters, an enticing plot, and some cool steampunklike magic will attract readers who love Jen Swann Downey's Ninja Librarians or Brian Farrey's Vengekeep Prophecies. A strong sense of the characters' humanity and interesting time travel paradoxes make up for what is lacking in humor or nail-biting tension. VERDICT The first in a promising series for fantasy adventure fans.—Rhona Campbell, Georgetown Day School, Washington, DC - Copyright 2018 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission. Loading...
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