Time Between Us - Tamara Ireland Stone

Time Between Us by Tamara Ireland Stone
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

'Anna and Bennett were never supposed to meet. Why would they? Anna's a sixteen-year-old in 1995, fiercely determined to secure a running scholarship so she can leave her quiet, dull town and finally travel the world. 

Bennett's a seventeen-year-old in 2012, living in San Francisco and trying to control his ability to travel through time - an incredible gift, but also an unpredictable curse, which constantly threatens to separate him from the people he loves.
When a minor lapse in judgment puts his sister Brooke in danger, Bennett finds himself two thousand miles and seventeen years away - in Anna's world. As he searches for Brooke, Bennett is strangely and inescapably drawn to Anna, who feels sure she's seen him somewhere before. Through the gorgeous, mysterious newcomer, able to travel anywhere in a split second, Anna visits deserted tropical beaches and stunning mediterranean coastlines for the first time, and they can't help falling for one another.


But they both know, deep down, that it can never last. For no matter how desperate Bennett is to stay with Anna, his uncontrollable condition will inevitably knock him right back to where he belongs - and Anna will be left to pick up the pieces.'

When I was sent this book from the publishers, I initially was a little unsure of it. I had never really been interested in time travel books before. This could have been because I could never get into them.

The story starts in 2012 when a woman turns meets a group of teenages; she knows one of their names – Bennett and asks to speak to him in private. She has a letter for him. He is a little confused, adamant that he doesn’t know who she is, she leaves the letter and goes.

We then visit 1995 Anna is a sixteen year old high school student and her best friend is Emma, a Brit who moved over a few years ago. Right from the start they clicked and have been best friends ever since. They live in quite a small town and everyone seems to know everyone, so when a new boy starts at the school, it’s not surprising that Emma knows about it before the day has even started.

The characters of Anna, Bennett, Emma and Justin were all developed very well and you felt you had a connection with them. Every character introduced into the story was done with care and thought. The story was beautifully written in places and the description of places, had you wishing you were there too.
I thought that this would take me a long time to read as to begin with I was unsure on the story, however I read this in two sittings, wanting to get involved in Anna’s life and travelling the world with her. This is a page turner, an emotional one and a brilliant debut novel. I cannot wait to see where Stone chooses to go next with her writing; whether she will develop Anna and Bennett further or not.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending me this beautiful story.