The Time Weaver: A Novel [Hardcover]

Shana Abe (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2010

 
From the highly acclaimed author of The Treasure Keeper and Queen of Dragons comes this mesmerizing new novel of the drákon, a supersensual race of shapeshifters whose world exists side by side with our own. In The Time Weaver, a young drákon woman discovers she possesses a unique gift, one that brings her closer to her destined love—at the cost of their very lives. 
  
Honor Carlisle may have been born into the drákon clan but she’s always felt like a stranger to her kin. It’s an intuition that proves true when she receives a mysterious letter—a letter sent by her future self. Honor learns she is a Time Weaver: a creature with the extraordinary ability to transport herself into the past or future.

But the letter contains a dire warning. If Honor remains in her home at Darkfrith, she is certain to be killed. Fleeing for sanctuary among old friends in Spain, she practices her Weaving and unknowingly draws closer to an even more immediate danger. For on one of her Weaves into the future, Honor encounters the very man she should most avoid: the prince of a rival tribe of drákon.

Drawn to Prince Alexandru of Zaharen, Honor is unable to resist the temptation of Weaving to him again and again across time. As they surrender to a desire that brings the present and future ever closer, they realize they are true soulmates. But they also risk fulfilling a terrible prophecy—for their union is destined to wreak havoc. Now Honor and Sandu must place their trust—and their lives—in each other’s hands, and their faith in a magical love that could restore order to the drákon universe—or destroy it forever.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Abé's fifth Drákon fantasy romance (after 2009's The Treasure Keeper) introduces Honor Carlisle, whose time-traveling powers help her fit into a dragon society hidden in the midst of 18th-century England. In an original and ambitious spin on time travel stories, Honor is at once the heroine and, from a future time line, the nemesis who drives the plot. The slow revelation of why and how such a sympathetic character could turn against her values adds dramatic tension, and the drákon's well-meant efforts to avert tragedy lead them to horrific expedients, making a welcome change from stock villains. Despite occasional purple prose and an unsatisfying ending precipitated by a third party who forces resolution on the conflicted protagonists, this story delivers a real sense of wonder. (June)
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Review

“Abé is an immensely gifted storyteller.”—Karen Marie Moning, New York Times bestselling author

“Stunningly lyrical, sensual, and mesmerizing . . . a stellar addition to [Shana] Abé’s imaginative shape-shifting dragon series.”—Library Journal

“Spellbinding . . . Soar with Abé and be breathless with awe at her talents.”—RT Book Reviews (Top Pick)

“Sumptuous prose . . . The entire series is worthy of a Perfect 10.”—Romance Reviews Today


From the Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: Bantam; First Edition edition (June 1, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0553806866
• ISBN-13: 978-0553806861
• Product Dimensions: 6.2 x 1.2 x 9.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #805,344 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Shana Abé is the author of Queen of Dragons, The Dream Thief, and The Smoke Thief. She lives in Denver, Colorado.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Worth Hardcover, Great Read, June 19, 2010

By 

E. A. Montgomery (Florida, USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Time Weaver: A Novel (Hardcover)

The Drakon series has been frustrating. Some books feel too rushed, others fail to make sense. The Time Weaver is one of the best in the series, with a sense of wonder restored, the problematic abuse issues removed, and logical character development. It's not perfect, but it's everything I like about this series and very little that I don't. Honor, who we've met in other books briefly, is kidnapped from the Drakon for her own safety. From there, her story is about the peril of trying to fix the past from the future, instead of living in today.

Honor is able to move through time, but not without cost. She is drawn to her future lover, Sandu without knowing who he is. The tone of Honor's girlhood is perfect - her frustration with herself, her second guessing of her actions, her knowledge that no matter how much she tries to offer herself guidance, she won't listen. Honor and Sandu's story unfolds beautifully, with real magic in the telling of it. Alternating between different versions of themselves, the story is told through their eyes at different levels of experience.

What keeps The Time Weaver from being a five star read is the ending. While Honor's actions in other books are beautifully explained and provide real dramatic tension, the ending feels off. I don't want to spoil anything, because this is a book that is served by letting each section quietly unfold from the one before it, but the resolution bothered me. It doesn't arise from the rest of the story, except indirectly, and it supports an aspect of the Drakon culture (imperialism and conquest) I don't care for. Things in Sandu's life are never developed, because Honor drives both the crisis and the solution. The overriding message of the series - that someone else in your life is better poised to decide what you want / need remains, but it's softer. The characters have choices to make instead of orders to follow.

The Time Weaver was an interesting read. It reminded me why I come back to this series again and again while telling familiar parts of the story in a fresh way. It offers an alternative to the Drakon's male dominated & violent culture. At times, it seems as though the author is done with this world and is spinning it closed, but some key characters from prior books are left in limbo. There is resolution in The Time Weaver both for Honor and Sandu and, if the author chooses, for the Drakon world itself. This book would stand alone, but if you've been following the series it is a must read entry.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I loved it!, June 2, 2010

A Kid's Review

This review is from: The Time Weaver: A Novel (Hardcover)

As with all of her works the book grabs you from the first page. The story is so well written you immediately feel a connection with Honor, all her thoughts and longings. The ending was unique but utterly fitting in with the story so far, even though I wish it had been a little more detailed. This is one book you cannot miss out on. If you're waiting on a paperback don't! Its rare that you read a romance novel that completely comes out with a new twist, and this one is definately worth the money! I'm so excited even now and I just finished it! I only wish I knew what was coming next.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not the best in this series, but ok, April 15, 2011

By 

Aerobebibliophile - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Time Weaver: A Novel (Kindle Edition)

I really enjoyed the Abe's Drakon series, this is the fifth installment and is definitly not up to par with the rest of the series. Perhaps stopping at # 4 would have been better. Unlike most of her fiction this one felt a bit slapped together and definitly not what I expected. But I did finish the whole book so Abe's storytelling ability is definitly still present and many readers may really like this, it just wasn't my cup of tea.