ABICUS TURNE

A debut novel sees an orphan with the ability to rewind time pursued by powerful enemies seeking the ultimate weapon.

Fourteen-year-old Abicus Turne and his 12-year-old sister, Binny, are orphans at the Sisters of Mending Hearts Children’s Home in Philadelphia. Three years have passed since their parents’ deaths, and they dream of running away to live with their grandfather in Oregon. Binny is a math prodigy. Abicus lacks any such aptitude, but he does have a unique talent—when the odious Sister Hildegard contrives to poison Binny’s kitten, an abacus appears in the boy’s mind. By sliding the beads from right to left, he finds himself transported back in time. Having saved the kitten, Abicus soon learns to control the time shift. By predetermining the result of a “guess the marbles” contest, he wins enough money for him and Binny—and their friends Kendra and Bosh—to set out for Oregon. But in doing so, Abicus attracts the attention of Weston Fairbanks, a ruthless villain who would use the teen’s special ability to steal a weapon of mass destruction. It’s a weapon that Abicus and Binny’s parents helped design. On the run from both Fairbanks and a black-books government agency, can Abicus, Binny, and friends survive to save the day? Roth writes in a simple descriptive style, narrating primarily in the first person from Abicus’ perspective but occasionally in the third person when he isn’t present, keeping both readers and the protagonist truly in the picture. Dialogue is frequently used to communicate plot points—a contrivance that detracts from the story’s sense of realism—and the characters are similarly middle-grade in their lack of shading. The children are ethical and good. The bad guys are wantonly cruel. Such flaws, though, are by no means fatal. The author develops Abicus’ power in stages, exploring possible repercussions and devising clever means (both physical and moral) by which to limit his use of it. The tale, at the crossroads of middle grade and YA, is thus nicely balanced. Problems beget solutions beget problems in an exciting, well-paced progression. Younger readers in particular will find much here to entertain them.

An inventive and lively escapade.