27 Days to Midnight by Kristine Kruppa
Published by: Giant Squid Books on May 3rd 2016
Genre: YA, Steampunk Fiction, Science Fiction, Adventure
Pages: 287
Format: Online Document
Source: Courtesy of CBB Book Promotions

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Synopsis: Everyone in Dahlia’s world knows when they’re going to die. Except her.

Her father has never shown her the pocket watch counting down the days she has left to live. When he sacrifices himself to save her from her scheduled death, Dahlia abandons her comfortable home and sets off after his murderer to uncover the secrets her father died to protect…and the time research that could bring him back to life.

Then she meets Farren Reed. She should hate him. He’s an enemy soldier, a cowardly deserter, and the most insufferable man Dahlia’s ever met. Still, she needs all the help she can get, and Farren is the only chance she has to find the man who murdered her father. But Farren has only twenty-seven days left on his watch.

In that time, Dahlia must recover her father’s time research, foil a psychotic general’s plot, and learn to survive in a world that will never be the same. But the research holds secrets more dangerous than she had ever imagined. She will have to choose what is most important: revenge, Farren’s life, or her own. And time is running out.

Review: I haven’t read steampunk fiction before so this was a great eye opener into the genre. When I saw this book listed as a blog tour I signed right up for the chance to review the novel (Granted I had forgotten that I had done so and was pleasantly surprised to find it in my email a few days ago – oops).

There is In Time vibes with the mention of the watches and how if the time runs out on your watch you die. That concept I always find interesting to read. I also find that the concept is hard to do as people always like to look for inconsistencies.

What I liked:

• The time concept
• World building was great
• There wasn’t any slow points in the book, it was quite fast paced
• A unique storyline… I can say that I haven’t read anything like this before
• It didn’t feel young adult but the main character was 18
• Very adventurous and I enjoyed following along

What I didn’t like:

• Everything felt abrupt. The story could have been drawn out more. I would have loved if it went into further detail in certain situations. Like I would’ve liked more backstory of Farren, Keet and Tiberius
• There was insta-love
• I wanted more character development, I wanted to feel like I could picture the characters in front of me

Rating: 4/5 stars!

Kristine Kruppa is a mechanical engineer, writer, and world traveler. Her days are spent designing cool new car parts, but her evenings are filled with writing and cats. She has traveled solo to seventeen countries on five continents. Her other hobbies include hunting for the perfect cup of coffee, exploring used book stores, and accidentally climbing mountains. To keep up with her adventures, follow Kristine on Twitter @kskruppa