School Library Journal Review
Gr 7 Up-Tucker Feye and Lia continue their adventures through the Klaatu Diskos. The Diskos appear to be not so random anymore, and the pair, along with a few others, keep jumping into them willingly and are sucked into the Timesweeps along the way. Their journey takes them into the recent past, the present, and the distant future. Listeners who have already finished the first parts of this series will not be disappointed, but those who have not will be lost. Hautman weaves the many time streams together, and many questions previously left unanswered will be answered. Peter Berkrot's narration includes a variety of voices to go with the alternating viewpoints, and these distinctions will help listeners follow the story. The ending is worth the wait, and this will make a great addition to a high school or public library collection.-Elizabeth L. Kenyon, Merrillville High School, IN (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Horn Book Review
Protagonists Tucker and Lia (The Obsidian Blade, rev. 5/12; The Cydonian Pyramid, rev. 7/13) join together in the end stage of their journey through the millennia and the final confrontation with a murderous religious sect known as the Lambs of September, or the Lah Sept. Born in the same geographic locale hundreds of years apart, the two have been drawn to each other since Tucker first spotted Lia with his father, Reverend Adrian Feye (soon to become Father September). Other characters, similarly intertwined, also cross paths again, but in wholly unexpected ways, as Tucker unravels mysteries surrounding his mother's disappearance and uncovers his own role in Lah Sept history. This one is the most personal of the three books, filling in Tucker's family history, including a sweet but forbidden young romance between his mother, Emily, and his uncle, Kosh. Pulling together the elaborate strands of the first two books, the concluding volume rewards readers with a surprising yet cogent and satisfying chronicle across time. lauren adams (c) Copyright 2014. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
A dazzlingly imaginative science-fiction trilogy, spanning the rise and fall of religions, civilizations and the human race itself, deflates into an oddly pedestrian conclusion. Tucker Feye and Lia are finally reunited after ping-ponging through time and space; now, the focus shifts to Tucker's uncle Kosh and mother, Emily. The storyline alternates between 1997, when the two first met, and 2012, as Kosh frantically tries to rescue Emily's look-alike, "Emma," from the remnants of a fanatical cult. Interspersed are snippets describing the Boggsian invention of the diskos, the factions among the transhuman Klaatu, and Tucker and Lia's efforts to return to the present. Hautman builds any number of rich, intriguing settings: small rural towns, post-apocalyptic jungles and even the surface of another planet. Unfortunately, he piles fascinating details upon thought-provoking concepts at such a frenetic pace that the whole structure collapses. Most characters die at least once, but recurrent medical miracles drain away any suspense. Nearly everyone is rewarded at the end with (somewhat-creepy) bland domesticity, and with every plot loop tidily snipped off, the entire grand narrative edifice is reduced to the recursive repercussions of a teenage love triangle. Stories aren't required to provide answers to the big questions they raise about faith, choice, identity and responsibility, but these deserve better than to be dismissed with an uncaring shrug. (Science fiction. 12-18)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
Tucker is trapped atop a Romulan pyramid in the year 3,000 CE with no interdimensional disko. What, you're lost already? In this final book of the Klaatu Diskos trilogy, the multitalented Hautman a paragon of prose clarity concludes this most unclear of literary experiments. As before, it's a head-scratcher nearly impossible to follow at times, and yet and yet! so rich with fascinating ideas and unusual themes that bold readers will keep turning pages. The action this time is mostly divided between Tucker's futuristic search for ex-Pure Girl Lia and two different time planes involving Tucker's uncle, Kosh, whose relationship with Emily/Emma progresses in both 1997 and 2012. Characters echo throughout the ages, giving the book, and the series, the feel of a less linear take (if you can believe that) on Marcus Sedgwick's Midwinterblood (2013). What sticks out the most are Hautman's always deft hand at believable romance and his ability to use a sci-fi plot to generate Chariots of the Gods-style legends. Though not always fully cooked, this is one hell of a stew.--Kraus, Daniel Copyright 2014 Booklist
