The Traveling House: A Novel

by Kristin Cashore

A woman returns home and begins unraveling long-buried family secrets in this captivating novel of time travel, love, and legacy from the New York Times bestselling author of the Graceling Realm series.

In her mid-thirties, newly single and at loose ends, Matilda Frost has come home again. Settling back into a life she thought she’d outgrown, all she wants to do is hide from the world and devote her attention to building the miniature house she has been meticulously at work on.

Around her, things are largely the same. Her sister is still a force of nature. Her brother is still estranged, his whereabouts unknown. And her relationship with her best friend, Max, is still complicated; now back in each other’s orbit, old feelings might be resurfacing. But most familiar of all, her grandfather’s shadow still looms large over the house and the town. Decades ago, Grandfather Winthrop invented time-travel. His miraculous time-box stopped working when he died, and scientists have yet to figure out why.

When her beloved Uncle Ant disappears, Matilda realizes that in order to find him, she may need to dig into some of her grandfather's deepest-held secrets. But Grandfather Winthrop might not be the only family member with things to hide. . . .

Genres: Science Fiction, Time Travel, Mystery, Fantasy, Fiction, Adult, Family

416 pages, Hardcover

Expected publication February 16, 2027

About the author

Kristin Cashore grew up in the northeast Pennsylvania countryside as the second of four daughters. She received a bachelor's degree from Williams College and a master's from the Center for the Study of Children's Literature at Simmons College. She currently lives in the Boston area.

Reviews

[Angela]

When I saw that Kristin Cashore had a novel about time travel coming out, my excitement was sky high for The Traveling House. Shortly after I started the book, however, everything came crashing down.

Our main character, Matilda, is insufferable. She is ridiculously self-centered and incapable of looking outside her own situation—which I assume is the only reason she can't seem to put two and two together on just about anything. She is a terrible sister and friend, making it all the more confusing that Max remains so steadfastly attached to her. I could forgive her for doing him dirty when she was 20 (when she kissed him before promptly abandoning him with her then-boyfriend). But her continuous failure to understand why Max has cut contact with his father, who treated him and his mother terribly, simply because she lost contact with her brother when she was a teen is insane. She is thirty years old! How is she so incapable of any level of empathy?? Particularly for her supposed best friend! But I digress. All of this makes the humongous character growth she experiences in the last ten percent of the book hugely unbelievable.

Overall, the family is so dysfunctional it would border on comedy if it weren't so frustrating. The book is supposed to be centered around the complexity of the family dynamics, so this makes sense to an extent. However, each individual seems to represent a different caricature of a classic textbook therapy case (i.e. avoidant father, narcissistic mother, depressed teenager turned angry adult, etc.), which diminishes the emotional elements of the story.

Matilda spends inordinate amounts of time describing things around her for absolutely no reason (e.g. why are we hearing about the grass being cut several times). I assumed initially that it was breadcrumbing for Uncle Ant's disappearance, but that was not the case. The time taken on these inanities would be better spent experiencing and understanding the familial dynamics. Instead, a lot of heavy lifting is left to the caricatures. I think a third person limited point of view might have served this story better. We’d still have a focus on Matilda and her eventual character growth, but it would provide the opportunity for more emotional investment in the family at large. Regarding Uncle Ant’s disappearance specifically, I think flashbacks of him and Matilda's interactions would have resulted in greater payoff for the big reveal. As it was, I was very blasé about what was occurring.

Lastly, the plot absolutely drags for the first two-thirds of the novel. When Matilda finally starts acting instead of thinking (re: wallowing) the pace picks up. I wish more time had been spent when she was traveling to the past. That deserved a few chapters. It is a bit confusing to me how her three-minute interaction with Toddler-Uncle Ant left such an impact that he remembered her well into his adulthood. I can give a pass to Child-Nora remembering Aberlin/Matilda in adulthood because they found a dead body together. If all of this happened a bit earlier Matilda’s development could have taken more time and been more believable. I truly believe cutting 30 pages at the beginning of the book and giving them to the end would have made for a much better book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy.

[Kali]

ARC. This book was a challenge. While the story was compelling, practically all the characters were difficult to like, Matilda read more like a seventeen year old than a 35yr old woman. This family isn’t garden variety dysfunctional to the point of being almost unpleasant to read. Have you ever read a true crime novel where it’s so unsettling you start to question if you actually want to know what happened, like these people are too horrible to exist. This book gave me that feeling which made this a hard to finish. I found it incredibly difficult to fathom why Matilda would ever come back to this town. Also I found myself getting bogged down in why Uncle Winchester is wearing a multi-million dollar watch while not paying his niece enough to afford an apartment, while said niece drives her buddy’s million dollar car but still has student loans from her 15mins in college. So your beloved uncle has an 11 million dollar painting but doesn’t offer an escape. Additionally the fact that everyone seems to have been aware of where Winter was well into the 2010’s and just didn’t ever mention it away from Nora. The music references made the story feel quite dated even though all this takes place in the future. Given that this is all taking place in the future the fact that no one used all that technology to make even a cursory attempt to communicate with one another just annoying. The most bothersome aspect for me was the resolution of the entire plot that Matilda was the driver of all these events, which requires a level of delusion by Nora that makes her seem dangerously unbalanced to point that it’s almost unbelievable she has a high responsibility career. Time travel ended up taking a backseat to why anyone would want to be around this awful bunch of people.

[Emma Cathryne]

KRISTIN CASHORE ADULT TIME TRAVEL NOVEL........i feel faint....

[Sarah Mitchell]

*Review for an ARC received from NetGalley*

I wanted to like this book. The plot sounded interesting and it had the potential to be a great story…but it just did not live up to my hopes.

I honestly struggled to get through this one a lot and contemplated DNF-ing multiple times. Matilda is insufferable. Her family is insufferable. I do not believe she was 35, her thoughts and actions made me feel like she was a teenager. She was extremely selfish and didn’t think about anyone else. The fact that she had her “mantra” to repeat to herself that included her age almost felt like she was trying to convince herself she was actually 35. It just didn’t feel believable given her actions.

Max deserved better. He should not have had to wait for Mat to experience her own family being truly terrible for her to understand his relationship with his father and to stop judging him for going no contact. At that point to me, she lost her chance. But of course, like with everything else, she was making it about herself

I think I should have just DNF’d early on when Elon Musk was mentioned. If you have to make up a reason to justify that one of your characters owning a Tesla isn’t a bad thing anymore…just choose a different EV, or better yet, make up your own company in your fantasy time travel world and don’t bring problematic real world people into your story.

[B.E.Love]

I absolutely loved this book and inhaled it. This was one of those books I couldn't put down and forced myself to when it was so late at night and I knew I had to be a responsible adult and get up early the next morning. I could have read this book in one sitting. As I read I was surprised every time I'd look and I would be so much further in the book than I thought I should be because I was so engrossed in the story. I didn't want to put this book down. I read this authors books years ago when Graveling first came out, so when I saw she had a new book I instantly requested it and I am so glad I did.

This book has a lot going on and I say that in the best way possible so there is no way my review will give it justice however here's my try. Matilda lives with her parents in their family home after having to move back home, which no 35 year is happy about however Matilda's family isn't normal. It's 2030 and Matildas grandfather invited time travel in 1978, he changed the world then in 1988 he died and time travel died with him. Everyone has tried to bring time travel back but once he passed it all ended. Matildas family knows the truths about time travel that has been kept a secret. The public knows their truth about time travel and the family have kept the truths to themselves.

Matilda's brother left and never came back that has shaped Matilda. Her sister left but eventually came back and the two now are close but struggle with their parents and the past. Living her otherwise boring life Matilda works at one of her uncles stores. She loves her Uncle she works for and has a very strained relationship with her parents but her uncle Ant is her favorite. Then her uncle Ant goes missing and Matildas life is once agin turned upside down. Now Matilda knows she must find the truth and while searching for it hidden secrets come to life that makes Matilda question everything she knows.

I loved this book, it is one of my favorites on 2026, so much happens in this book Kristin Cashore does an outstanding job of creating this world and rules of time travel then creating a story with more layers than an onion. This is a book you have to pay attention to but I say that in a good way so much happens and the story is so well thought out if you think you will skim you will miss so much detail and so much of the intricately woven story.

Again I loved this book, I didn't want it to end as the percentage continued to rise the more I wanted this book to continue. And when I was finished I just wished the story could continue. I was so invested I wanted to know every minute detail left unsaid. Don't get me wrong the story is very wrapped up but I was so locked in I wanted to know about every small detail. I can't recommend this book enough. I loved it so much I will be buying it on audible because this will be one I either read again or listen to in the future.

*Thank you Netgalley and Dutton for this ARC

[LeahReadsStuff]

I received an ARC of this book. My review is based on that copy. The published work may differ from what I read.

The premise and the ideas are laid out in a descriptive and economic way and Cashore establishes the setting and the feel immediately. The point of view character, Matilda, is acidic and sharp. I wanted to shake her, more than once, and I don’t buy her being 35. She reads as maybe mid twenties? And that’s generous. She’s remarkably immature for her age and has zero self awareness. Self centered, self pitying, highly avoidant, and whiny, she is almost impossible to root for. Other people’s issues and trauma are inconveniences to her own emotional state, and every conversation has to be about herself. She’s a pretty terrible human being. By the halfway point in the book I hated her so much that a growth arc was too little, too late.

In spite of the fantastical elements, the reality of family conflict and trauma depicted here rang true. The slow reveal of buried issues and secrets and history is compelling. I also found the clash of people with healthy boundaries vs people who don’t, familiar. Some of the characters in the family are HARD to deal with, especially through the lens of Matilda’s abdication of accountability. Her mother is a full blown narcissist, and the way we revisit childhood memories while Matilda is adamantly refusing to acknowledge the reality of her experience was painful and uncomfortable.

I liked the ideas in the story. However, this would benefit from a tighter edit. The pacing drags. The amount of navel gazing exposition by the POV character slows down the story to the point of making it challenging to stay engaged. There are chunks of the book that could be removed without changing anything important. It was exhausting being stuck in Matilda’s head the entire time, with her “woe is me” and “I’m too self centered to care about anyone but myself” attitudes. The story would have been so much more compelling outside of her head. This book needed more of the ideas and less of the main character.

The plot also goes off the rails. For ¾’s of this book essentially nothing happens. And then there is a crazy reveal, followed by crazier reveals, that come out of left field with little to no build up. The book goes from a painful family drama with a slightly fantastical setting, to a thriller with almost no transition point. The aftermath is drawn out, and Matilda’s sudden emotional maturity happens way too fast. It’s like a switch flips and suddenly she’s not the selfish asshole she’s been for the entire book.

It was so frustrating! There was so much potential! The ideas and the prose were there. The story and the main character just let everything down.

[Kim]

My subjective enjoyment score is probably closer to a 2.5/5. I'm torn, because I really wanted to love The Traveling House. Kristin Cashore's Graceling series has a special place in my heart, and I requested this ARC without knowing anything about the story.

For the first few chapters, I was hooked. We learn that time travel exists and was created by the MC's grandfather in the 70s, but stopped working during his death years later. We got glimpses of how time travel affected the world, such as off hand comments made about areas of study in universities, and other low key references. That aspect reminded me of how flawlessly and subtle the world building was in movies like Looper or Chronicle, and what I like the most about magical realism stories.

As it became clear that the family dynamics, not time travel, was going to be the focus of the story, I hoped that the world building would still be a strong secondary theme, but it wasn't. And the family dynamics piece to me was the least compelling part of the book. As someone who's been around enmeshed / dysfunctional families, I had a hard time understanding why anyone in this family would still talk to each other. The MC's mother was awful. None of the characters had a redemption arc, and most were people I'd have cut off ages ago.

I've seen other reviewers talk about how insufferable the MC was or how young she acted, and I don't necessarily agree with this. I could see her being her current age (mid 30s) given her life experiences, and being unsure about a friend-to-lover possibility doesn't make you a bad person. Regardless, I had a hard time connecting with her.

A secondary focus of the book is the MC's miniatures, and I did love those parts.

Other reviewer comments are legit and I agree, such as the painstaking detail with things that don't matter much, and how the plot feels like it drags for the first 2/3 of the book. A time travel mystery dominates the last 10-20% of the book and was more interesting, but the twists felt both rushed and out of nowhere for me, and also wrapped up extremely quickly.

Overall? It's hard to say why the book didn't land for me. I think a combo of the pacing, the overattention to detail with certain things, the horrible family, and time travel and world building taking a back seat would sum it up. The author definitely delivered her usual beautiful prose. I just wish I liked the finished product more.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for this ARC.

[Kat]

I received a free copy from Dutton via Netgalley in exchange for a fair review. Release date February 16th, 2027.

I liked Cashore's work as a teen (Fire, Bitterblue), so I was excited to see how her skill would transfer to writing adult fantasy. In The Traveling House, Matilda is thirty-something, just quit her master of library science program, and has moved back to her small town to live with her parents. Matilda only wants a few quiet months to put her life back together, but her family's secrets about Matilda's grandfather, who invented time travel fifty years ago, may be coming back to haunt them...

Despite featuring time travel, The Traveling House is not a book about time travel. Matilda's grandfather invented time travel decades ago, it was confined to closed loops, and only he was able to use it. The invention of time travel doesn't seem to have affected history much, aside from a few sly hints that Cashore drops, like dramatically killing off a certain South African trillionaire. But the focus here isn't on how time travel has affected the world. It's about how time travel has affected Matilda's family and all the things they refuse to speak about (many). There's also a slow and gentle romance with Matilda's best friend Max, but while it's well-executed, their relationship is firmly a secondary plot.

For a book about family, I found much of the interpersonal relationships deeply frustrating. Matilda believes a healthy relationship is when there's no yelling, and gently condescends to people who do draw boundaries. Meanwhile, her mother runs her over like a steamroller... However, I'll forgive Cashore, since Matilda's arc is the realization that her attitude has genuinely hurt her loved ones, including her older sister and her best friend. And I liked how deeply felt and intense the relationships were. Cashore doesn't skip over the interpersonal drama—she lets it shine as the center of the novel. I won't spoil some of the later stuff, but I liked how Matilda's relationship with her beloved older brother was written. He left when she was fifteen, and the sense that she'll never know where he is, or get answers, or say goodbye, is devastating.

A quiet, slow novel as intricate and thoughtful as the tiny scale models Matilda builds. There's no saving the world or doomed empires or really all that much time travelling here, but that leaves Cashore with more space to shine an unflinching light on one thirty-something's complex relationship with her family. A lovely novel.

[Lady Juliette]

Dear Reader,
I thoroughly enjoyed this. Actually, I inhaled it. This book made me feel seen in ways I haven’t in a long time. In particular, that feeling I had in my thirties of not quite being taken seriously as an adult, but not quite having everything together yet either and the frustration of living in that liminal space. It’s a story in many ways of coming into one’s own.
The relationships between the main character and those around her (her mother in particular) got to me and I’ll need to sit with myself a bit longer to understand why. This all may not have told you much about the book yet, but what I am intending is: the characters in this book feel/are so real. I don’t doubt for a second that they exist. I’ve met them. I know them.
This story contains many layers and I truly felt that each part had to be there. It was all tightly plotted and interconnected. I won’t be able to describe it with justice. You’ll just have to read it and experience it for yourself. I’m left touched and in awe at how much meaning and care was woven in.

This book is a love letter to so many things, but somehow manages to deeply explore each: a maserati (haha), music (the playlist of which I cannot wait to listen to), art (but unique mediums I don’t usually hear about like glassblowing and miniatures), advice columns, tea, cows, siblings and the special people in our lives who give us care and love. In a lot of ways, although it takes place in 2030, this book feels like stepping back in time to the simpler times of my childhood before the turn of the century.

A few of my favorite quotes to entice you, although I’ve left the really good ones out because of spoilers (please note that these may be different from the published version):
“Objects have souls, and homes.”
“How did you let go of the things you made?”
“Why not try letting yourself have what you want?”

This book would go best with tea and gingerbread cookies, but also ice cream, toast and roast chicken (?) When you get to that part, you’ll know what I mean:) I hope you enjoy this read.
Yours ever,
Lady J

P.S. Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an ARC

[Amy Cooper]

Thank u netgalley & publisher for the arc! <3

2.75????? Arghhhh this sucks… I was so, so excited for this one :( The Graceling series is one of my all-time favourite series (with Fire being one of my all-time fav BOOKS, filled with some of my ultimate comfort characters), so I was verrrryyyy excited to read a) something new from KC & b) something so different!! Unfortunately… bit of a miss. I put it down after the first 30% and then came back determined to finish it two weeks later, and whilst the final act did dredge up some emotion for me, the rest was… rough going.

Firstly, this is faaaarrr more a book about a family and their dynamics than it is a book about time travel. And, like, that’s not necessarily a bad thing at all… but fuck me, the family is infuriatingly fucked up.

Our MC, Matilda, is the youngest of three, has recently moved back home to her childhood home with her parents, is working in her uncle’s store, and is one of THE most head-in-the-sand characters I think I’ve ever read. She gets frustrated and triggered by the way that her mum is both narcissistic and avoidant, but then… she’s lowkey the same? The first 80% of the book was honestly pretty hard to stick with, since it’s just her actively avoiding all of the signs RIGHT IN FRONT OF HER FACE that things in her family aren’t what she had grown up thinking they were.

To its credit, I did genuinely enjoy the emotional resolutions of the final 15-20%. Therapy finally enters the chat (thank godddd), and that’s honestly what pulled this up from a flat two stars.

Apart from that…. yeah. It was a book! Idk, I’m very sad that I found so many of these characters so bone-gratingly annoying, when so many of the Graceling characters are my literal family. I will 1000% still read whatever she writes next though, don’t get me wrong!!

[Leanne]

The Traveling House is a beautifully layered, quietly magical novel that blends time travel, family legacy, and emotional rediscovery into something both intimate and sweeping. Kristin Cashore has a gift for writing characters who feel achingly real, and Matilda Frost is no exception. Returning home in her mid‑thirties, bruised by life and craving solitude, she’s the kind of protagonist whose vulnerability draws you in from the first page.

The story unfolds with a gentle, compelling rhythm. Matilda’s miniature house project becomes a lovely metaphor for the way she’s trying to rebuild herself—piece by piece, detail by detail—while the world around her remains stubbornly familiar. Her complicated bond with Max, her force‑of‑nature sister, and the long shadow of Grandfather Winthrop’s time‑travel invention all create a rich emotional landscape that feels lived‑in and quietly charged.

Cashore handles the time‑travel element with a deft touch. It’s less about spectacle and more about legacy, grief, and the secrets families bury to protect themselves. When Uncle Ant disappears, the mystery deepens in a way that feels organic, pulling Matilda into a past she never fully understood. The revelations are thoughtful rather than explosive, and that restraint makes them all the more satisfying.

What I loved most is how the novel balances wonder with tenderness. It’s a story about coming home, confronting what you’ve inherited, and choosing what you’ll carry forward. Cashore’s writing is warm, textured, and full of heart—perfect for readers who enjoy speculative fiction that prioritizes character over chaos.

A captivating, quietly powerful read that lingers long after you close the book.

With thanks to Kristin Cashore, the publisher and netgalley for the ARC

[erin]

When I saw Kristin Cashore was writing a novel for adults, I perked up in my chair at work. Graceling and Fire were (and still are) some of my favorite YA books from my teenagerhood, and they remain cradled on my childhood bookshelf to this day, no matter my parents’ insistence that I “pare down” my little library.

There’s this thing about YA-turned-Regular Fiction authors. They have something to prove. I’ve read several books (Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo, for example) that involve a messed up woman with a messed up background in a messed up (ahem ‘real’) world. The Traveling House is no different. It’s grammatically, syntactically well-written — I would expect nothing less from Cashore — but I found myself unable to connect with any of the characters because it felt like Cashore was standing behind them with a sign that says “Hey! Look how f-ed up this family is!” The family is a capital ‘M’ Mess, and only gets messier in the final 30% of the novel when the mystery begins to unfold.

There comes a point where snark and grit and generally gray atmospheres bogs me down now, and not even the promise of a time-traveling mystery can keep my attention. There are simply too many books to read and my time on Earth is limited. I don’t doubt that there’s an audience out there for this book, but I feel like I’ve aged out of it.

I will continue to read whatever Cashore publishes, and may even pick this up again in the future — after its publication. A part of me wonders if this is simply the case of “right book; wrong time” but a gut instinct refuses to fully lean into that excuse.

Thank you NetGalley and Dutton for the e-ARC. Always grateful for the opportunity to read and review :-)

[Shane Night]

Kristin Cashore has been one of my favorite authors since I was a child, and I was thrilled to try her debut adult novel. This story follows the grandaughter of the creator of time travel through an unexpected mystery to find her uncle, and maybe her brother along the way. I'm not typically a fan of mystery, but our main character, Matilda, wasn't sleuthing in a typical or logical way, just following her grief and curiosity, and keeping track of truths, to uncover what she could about why her family is so dysfunctional. There are times in the narrative where Matilda must remind herself that she is a 35yr old woman, and times where I have to remind myself of the same. Especially during her interactions with her best friend Max and the few friends she makes throughout the story and how often she's crying or sullen. She is solidly the youngest child trying her best to hold on to every part of her messy family.

There were some interesting tidbits that sparked my scientifc mind such as "-a winding route for light to move from point A to point B- faster than if it moved in a straight line", but other than a few similar sentences I would not reccomend this book to anyone interested in the actual science of time travel. This book focuses on the social and cultural implications of short time travel, and from the pov of someone who despises it and how it affected her family.

Overall I thoughly enjoyed my read! I got sucked in gradually and then couldn't put it down for the second half and adored the ending! This book rekindled my love of miniatures, and got me interested in teleidoscopes.

[Alexandra Carter]

The Traveling House by Kristin Cashore
Matilda comes from a family made famous by her grandfather's invention of time travel — a miraculous, decade-long window that closed forever with his death from cancer. This all happened before she was born and now in her early thirties, she's drifted back home. Directionless and avoidant, she pours her focus & energy into building elaborate miniatures instead of her sorting out her own life.

The opening is slow, and for a good stretch of the middle section I found myself wondering if this was really a sci-fi novel at all. The focus stays tightly on human relationships and Matilda's internal stagnation rather than on time travel. But looking back, I think that slowness is the point. In real life, we often puddle along in the same rut far longer than we should, waiting for the right nudge to finally get us moving again. Matilda's long, stuck middle felt honest rather than draggy — and when I was impatient with her, I believed her.
That nudge arrives when her beloved Uncle Ant disappears. Matilda starts searching for him, and the book shifts into gear. The last quarter is where it truly comes alive — I couldn't put it down! The story stayed with me even when I wasn't reading.
My one wish: more time spent establishing why Ant matters so specifically to Matilda, and not to the rest of the family. That bond is the engine of the back half, and I wanted to feel its roots a little more deeply to be pulled into her drive and obsession.
Slow start, gorgeous payoff — this one rewards patience.
Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and Dutton for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Kristin]

I can easily say Kristin Cashore is one of my favorite authors. I love the Graceling-realm and I'm always recommending the series for people who want to get started reading fantasy.

The Traveling House is a science-fiction novel, but it's very low-key. It's time travel, and that's the only thing sci-fi about it. It's still magical though. Matilda has grown up with big family secrets and she feels the weight of these secrets as she moves through life. Turns out, there are family secrets even she isn't privy to.

A missing uncle, a lost brother, and a crocodile plushie: can Matilda figure out where her brother has gone? And what did happen to her uncle the night he disappeared? And why does her mother refuse to answer her questions?

I did find Matilda a bit frustrating at times but it was also completely understandable why she acted like she did. I liked the way Cashore portrays the two different relationship with Matilda's siblings, her brother who moved away and her sister who stayed but is a bit distant. Still, they are always there for each other and I found that very heartwarming.

Sometimes, I wish the plot would move just a bit faster but despite that I did enjoy this book. It was mysterious and exciting, and I'm always weak for time travel and the ways it can shock you because you never know where, when or who!

[Kathy Laviolette]

I obtained an ARC through NetGally.

⭐️ 1 Star — DNF at 75%

I really love Kristin Cashore’s writing, so I had high hopes for The Traveling House. Unfortunately, this one just wasn’t for me.

The story had such a slow start that I struggled to become invested and found myself repeatedly reading a little, stepping away, and trying again. A couple of intriguing mysteries eventually piqued my interest, but the overall pacing remained too slow and focused heavily on everyday life and family trauma.

I kept pushing because I adore this author and truly wanted the story to click for me, but at 75%, I finally decided to DNF. By that point, I had fallen into such a reading slump that I knew it was time to move on.

I think part of the disconnect was simply expectation versus reality. I went in anticipating more time-travel adventure, mystery, and fantasy, but found a much more introspective, emotionally driven story than I expected. Some of the scenes also felt awkward to me, and I never fully connected with the story or characters.

Definitely a case of the right book for a different reader—this one just wasn’t for me. 📖✨

[Mary Argetsvell]

I picked this up due to my love of Fire and Graceling when I was younger. I was a bit apprehensive because mystery and contemporary settings aren't usually my cup of tea, but overall, I enjoyed this one.

Starting with the positives, I liked this take on time travel and the use of the bootstrap paradox. I enjoyed watching Matilda come to terms with her family's history and seeing the relationships with her friends and relatives grow.

On the other hand, I do think there is merit to some of the other early reviews commenting on the age of Matilda. She is a 35 year old who has had to come back home and live with her parents after a series of backstory decisions and events. However, she often doesn't feel like a 35 year old. I don't necessarily agree that she reads as an annoying teenager, but if you told me she was in her early to midtwenties and carrying around the trauma we learn about throughout the novel, that would feel right to me.

Ultimately, I enjoyed this one and had a great time reading it. Thank you to NetGalley and Dutton for the chance to read The Traveling House in exchange for an honest review.

[Jill Elizabeth]

I really loved this! It was weird and unsettling and funny and frustrating - all in the best possible ways. The plot was complex without being unduly complicated - as were the characters and their relationships. It made for a smart and engaging read that kept my attention and my interest from the opening gambit right through to the end. I found the magical elements to be relatable and realistic in their presentation, even when they were odd and surprising as they played themselves out.

I want to devour everything I can find by Kristin Cashore now - her writing style was fabulous and the book was meticulous and an absolute shining star in my recent reading history! And how fabulous is the cover, by the way?? That, plus the title, were definitely what initially drew me to this one. The blurb helped. But then I started reading - and at that point I was all in, hook line and sinker!

(Incidentally, I hate writing reviews when I REALLY love a story and find it thoughtful and creative and original and wholly engrossing, because the complexity is usually very hard to talk about without spoilers, and I would not spoil a magical book for anything. Suffice to say that my dearth of details is actually my strongest support here - you have to explore and enjoy this one yourself, and I don't want to give you any preconceptions that might affect your read of it! Just know that I cannot recommend it strongly enough...)

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my obligation-free review copy.

[Abby Harkins]

The Travelling House
So, this book excited me. I loved the title! It was a slow start, but the vibes kept me reading. We had mystery throughout the book, and it all tied up nicely at the end.
I did feel that half the book felt like filler, and that a lot of the story was irrelevant to the mystery side of the book. Now, normally, that would take away my interest, but I actually really enjoyed the story and found myself thinking, I need to know what happens to these characters, regardless of the plot and mystery.
I was disappointed that we didn’t get to see much of the time travelling. I feel like we got told a lot about it (the rules, how it works, etc.) but in reality, not much travelling actually happens. Again, though, I just really enjoyed the book for its vibes, hence the 4-star rating from me! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I really enjoyed the writer’s writing style and found it easy to follow and engage with.
Overall, I had a really fun time with this book once I realised it wasn’t really about time travelling, but more about who’s lying, who’s keeping secrets, and how relationships are formed.

[Shellie]

Many thanks to Dutton and NetGalley for providing this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

We follow Matilda, who is very hard on herself, and struggles with everything she thought she knew about her family, her grandfather who invented time-travel, and what she's going to do with her life.

The artistic pursuits of almost everyone in this book had me inspired to pick up hobbies I've long put down, and were just beautiful to read about.

The time travel itself was unique, and not overly sciencey. I'm a lover of overly sciencey books, but this book simply didn't need it.

The relationships between everyone was frustrating at times, but in a way that was mostly relatable.

I don't want to say much more because you need to let this book wrap around you without too much info.

By 30% I was locked in! This book crept from 4 to 5 stars for me roughly around the halfway point.

[Jennifer]

I’m surprised this isn’t higher rated. For sure, the main character is unlikeable at times. Most the characters in this book are. But I couldn’t stop reading, even when the FMC’s retreats to replayed narratives, and her late epiphanies and narrow perspectives felt very YA (don’t worry, she grows!)

The mechanics of time travel take a back seat to more emotional exploration of family legends and seeing people as they really are. Maybe it was all the Miyazaki, but reading this felt like a fairytale about “how to take care with other people.”

The romance was a slow burn and smaller role when compared to BIG feelings about how sad and meaningless the world can feel as we reconcile previously unexamined truths, but also empowering and full of new promise for an unwritten story.

Thank you to the author and publisher Dutton for an ARC through NetGalley.

[Nicole]

An interesting take on the time travel genre and I appreciated that the science of time travel particular to this world was well thought out. I also thought it was interesting to narrow the impact of time travel to just one family and in this way for it to be a unique vehicle for exploring the conflict that arises from familial expectations, I also enjoyed the different artistic endeavours described in the book. I do think some of the characterisations of the “villains” could be a bit cartoonish, especially towards the end, but I did like the characters in general and the relationships between them, in particular, between Matilda and Max, and her siblings and of course Antie. Overall an absorbing read!

[Mayra Lutteral]

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me this ARC!

3.5 rounded up to 4

I don't really understand why so many people dislike the main character, while her decisions and actions are prickly, can you blame her with her family life? Who i truly hate is the mother and father, my god. At first i was like "why is everyone so unpleasant in this family" until i got to the twist at the end and had a lightbulb turning on moment.

Overall, interesting book about family dynamics with an underlying time-travel plot and a satisfying resolution to its mystery. Its a biiiit of a stretch the way she finds Winter again....but ill allow it.

[Emily Reid]

Loved the concept immediately when reading the description. Mystery, bit of sci fi, but also family dynamics? Sounds like the perfect blend of everything I love. A solid read but unfortunately not a well balanced one. I did find it cool that they did a focus on time travel to this family vs expanding too far into the world, but did highlight that it created an industry the world was relying on. While it dragged for me, the end picked up very well and Matilda's emotional arc is lovely. Still worth the read. The final fifth had me very emotional myself.

Thank. you to Netgalley, the publisher and Cashore for this advanced eARC in exchange for an honest review

[Chelsie]

Mathilda is the granddaughter of the inventor of time travelling. She lives in the house her mother lived in as a child with a secret in the attic. The public and the secret family version of time travel differ and Mathilda is forced to be a secret keeper. A bit confused about what to do with her life, having dropped out of library school, working in her uncles store, while another beloved uncle Ant goes missing.

All the characters in this book are beautifully rendered and you might just be inspired to create miniatures, learn about glass blowing, and listen to some music.

I received an advance copy of this title from the publisher via NetGalley.

[Rachel Stansel]

I'm a sucker for a good time travel story, and this was that, but so much more. Mat is the granddaughter of the only person to time travel and the way this has impacted her life and her family is written in such a beautiful, winding and powerful way. The overarching theme of the trauma of secrets and how do you heal once they come to light are handled so beautifully. As is the relation with Max. I want to read it again knowing how everything turns out just to enjoy it at a deeper level.

Full disclosure - I received a copy of the book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

[nelly (LIAM NOOOOO!)]

REVIEW OF ADVANCED COPY RECEIVED BY NETGALLEY

i’m gonna be fully honest- this book was a challenge. i really liked the idea of this story but i found the characters difficult to like which to me is quite a deal breaker. the plot also feels a little messy- it totally went off the rails towards the end which just made it harder to focus on and finish since there was no real build up or any tension. this honestly had so so much potential and i hate that i don’t love it.

[Satsuki]

A time travel story that's also a mystery novel.
It's quite an ambitious undertaking. The beginning was definitely a little too slow for me, but hey, I kept reading so what does that say? It definitely picks up in the last quarter and then it's one reveal after the other. As for the characters, I'll be honest, there were moments I did not like Mat. It was very obvious that she was projecting her feelings onto other people's situations and that it was hurting them. However, what I loved is that this novel gives her the space to come to that realization and make the effort to redeem herself. But there's some solid secondary characters who leave an impression and by God, I disliked her mother very much!

[Kheyra Santos]

The Traveling House was a unique and emotional read for me. I really enjoyed the family secrets, complicated relationships, and the mystery surrounding the time travel. The beginning was a little slow for my taste, but once the story picked up, I became more invested and really wanted to see how everything would come together. There were a few surprises I didn’t see coming, and overall, I enjoyed this one.

[Jennybeast]

Whoa. This is so emotionally dense, and yet to read it is to drop into the flow of narrative and not want to come up. The characters have such depth. The many arts are engrossing, especially Matilda’s relationship with her miniatures. There is so much pain here— pain from trauma, pain from family, erasure, secrets, betrayals. There’s also the kindest types of healing, and relationships that last through and despite. Also relationships that end. I found it profoundly moving.

Advanced Readers Copy provided by edelweiss