Erasing Time, by C.J. Hill

On a perfectly ordinary evening, twins Sheridan and Taylor get sucked through some sort of time portal and end up 400 years in the future with no way home. They find themselves in a domed city with no animals, a strange dialect of English, and psychedelic fashions that look kind of ridiculous to their 21st century eyes. Their only friends, or at least the only people they can converse with, are two linguists who have studied the 21st century dialect, a father and son duo who explain that the girls were brought into the future by accident when a group of scientists tried to bring a famed 21st century physicist instead. The girls are warned about the totalitarian government and a mafia-esque Dakine group who will surely be after them as soon as they find out about the girls from the past. Taylor and Sheridan know that they need to get out of the city as soon as they can, and must put their faith and trust in the mysterious Echo, the linguist's son who has his own reasons for trying to escape.

The time travel concept behind this book was a lot more unique than I expected, probably because there was almost no hope that the girls would go home. It was fascinating to have twins be the main characters, instead of what would have usually been a pair of best friends or a girl and a boy who would end up together at the end of the novel. Furthermore, having two points of views-one from the present past and one from the future present truly showed all sides of this new era that that book takes place in. From Sheridan's POV we saw the world as we would see it, and from Echo we saw it as those who were born in it do.

Before I get to the things that I love I'm going to get the things that I didn't love out of the way as fast as I can. The romance was a bit too fast for my taste. Sheridan and Echo were making out after knowing each other for how long? My other disappointment was not in the author, but in me as I couldn't really remember the names of half the characters (mostly villains). I was able to follow the story and I knew who most of the important people were but at some point I started putting all the government villains into a folder in my head labeled "all seem like the same person so don't waste brain cells on them".

Now for some particular things I loved about this novel. The jawdropping moments were just that-jawdropping. I actually got out of bed to go discuss it with my sister because of how shocked I was. I can usually predict these things in books so it was nice to be completely surprised and then look back to realize all the hints. The sisterly love between Sheridan and Taylor was also very sweet. They understood that they were all each other had left and stuck together through everything. Needless to say it was very heartwarming.

4.8 stars

 When twins Sheridan and Taylor wake up 400 years in the future, they find a changed world: domed cities, no animals, and a language that's so different, it barely sounds like English. And the worst news: They can't go back home.

The twenty-fifth-century government transported the girls to their city hoping to find a famous scientist to help perfect a devastating new weapon. The same government has implanted tracking devices in the citizens, limiting and examining everything they do. Taylor and Sheridan have to find a way out of the city before the government discovers their secrets. To complicate matters, the moblike Dakine has interest in getting hold of them too. The only way for the girls to elude their pursuers is to put their trust in Echo, a guy with secrets of his own. The trio must put their faith in the unknown to make a harrowing escape into the wilds beyond the city.

Full of adrenaline-injected chases and heartbreaking confessions, Erasing Time explores the strength of the bonds between twins, the risks and rewards of trust, and the hard road to finding the courage to fight for what you believe in.