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Future Girls #2
Future Gold
What part of the past would you change?
Jordan didn’t want to travel back in time. She thought the members of the Time Cult were, frankly, a little whacked. But as the daughter of a daughter of a daughter, she had little choice but to prepare, take part, be knowledgeable and be ready to travel back in time. But nothing could prepare her for what happened. Or when.
Jordan didn’t want to travel back in time. She thought the members of the Time Cult were, frankly, a little whacked. But as the daughter of a daughter of a daughter, she had little choice but to prepare, take part, be knowledgeable and be ready to travel back in time. But nothing could prepare her for what happened. Or when.
234 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 1, 2015
210 people want to read
About the author
Catharine Bramkamp
35 books49 followersCatharine Bramkamp is an award winning poet/author/champion of Newbie Writers. Her new book, Don't Write Like We Talk, is based on 5 years of podcasts interviewing Agents and Authors, Publishers and Poets.
She is a successful writing coach and author of a dozen books including Future Girls (Eternal Press). She holds two degrees in English, and is an adjunct professor of writing for JKF University.
For a good time she reads, writes and visits galleries and museums. For a good time her husband collects selfies of himself standing OUTSIDE the museum.
She and her husband have parented two boys past the age of self-destruction and into the age of annoying two word text missives.
She is a successful writing coach and author of a dozen books including Future Girls (Eternal Press). She holds two degrees in English, and is an adjunct professor of writing for JKF University.
For a good time she reads, writes and visits galleries and museums. For a good time her husband collects selfies of himself standing OUTSIDE the museum.
She and her husband have parented two boys past the age of self-destruction and into the age of annoying two word text missives.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
September 13, 2017
A great read! If only all the time travelling women we read about had managed to raise the status of women generally, more quickly. In this case a girl from a barren dystopian world, where everyone prefers to spend time in the Cloud rather than the impoverished reality, is part of a cult group. The women each study differing time periods and steal computer time to boost one or more of their number to the past. Our heroine Jordan doesn't expect the plot to change time to work, and is astonished to find herself back in gold-rush San Francisco.
I particularly love the many references to books Jordan has read, from 1984 to Two Years Before The Mast. However, Jordan has no idea what to do, how to dress, to earn money, and works hard to fit in - her colouring means she is taken for a Mexican, not well regarded. I love the evocative world conjured up for the reader, everything from cholera to brothels and gold embedded in mercury. In fact we learn a great deal about gold mining.
The characters are distinct and strong, including children, the adventures breathless and outcomes large. We find a romance and a running crime story. Jordan's musing on the contrasts with her home time are nicely slipped in among events and we learn some of the local history. Can the girl change anything for the better, or worse? Can she get home again? Grab this book and don't let it go.
The tale would suit adults or mature young adults, and contains a small amount of strong language and adult references. As this is second in a linked series I'll be looking out for the first book, but it stands well alone.
I received an e-ARC through Fresh Fiction. This is an unbiased review.
I particularly love the many references to books Jordan has read, from 1984 to Two Years Before The Mast. However, Jordan has no idea what to do, how to dress, to earn money, and works hard to fit in - her colouring means she is taken for a Mexican, not well regarded. I love the evocative world conjured up for the reader, everything from cholera to brothels and gold embedded in mercury. In fact we learn a great deal about gold mining.
The characters are distinct and strong, including children, the adventures breathless and outcomes large. We find a romance and a running crime story. Jordan's musing on the contrasts with her home time are nicely slipped in among events and we learn some of the local history. Can the girl change anything for the better, or worse? Can she get home again? Grab this book and don't let it go.
The tale would suit adults or mature young adults, and contains a small amount of strong language and adult references. As this is second in a linked series I'll be looking out for the first book, but it stands well alone.
I received an e-ARC through Fresh Fiction. This is an unbiased review.
August 5, 2015
After enjoying the fantasy of a young girl travelling back in time to change the future for the better, in Future Girl (book 1), I was happy to continue the series with Future Gold. Either book could be read as a stand alone, although the reader may grasp the futuristic elements of book 2 more easily if they are already familiar with the background from book 1.
Set further still in the future, Future Gold follows a different character in Jordan, than in Future Girls’ Charity, and this time Jordan goes back to the 19th century, the Wild West in 1861. I particularly love reading about this era, it’s rawness and desperation, crimes and outlaws, as well as the constructing of towns and communities.
As a Time Cult member, Jordan studies history, in particular Western history, but doesn’t prepare herself one hundred percent for her time travel experience, believing that a time to change the past, and thus the future, probably wouldn’t come about.
“…Their stated story, should anyone ask, was that they were a history group, a society for the study of the past. What was studying history if not a form of time travel?… She (Jordan) would spend the next ten years earning an advanced degree in her historic period of choice, just in case. What she believed was she would never need or use the information. She would spend ten good years pretending that when the time came, if the time came, she was prepared to make a difference.”
However, after regularly taking part in the Equinox and Solstice, this time unlike the others, something changed. Jordan found herself in a slightly confused state… back in time!
One of my favourite moments in the story was when I realised that the place Jordan found herself in initially was a bar called the Duck and Screw. This bar was featured in book 1, and therefore this connection, however small, and the fact that Jordan had gone back in time from a very surreal future, that kept the whole fantasy of the series flowing.
A little lost and confused, Jordan is taken in by a miner, Walter, and is invited to look after his children, Will and Emily, while he works. They spend time travelling to areas where they have been told there is a great deal of gold. Throughout the story there are a number of mines – some running out of gold, with workers losing their jobs, other mines with plenty of gold are being found, and there are the thieves who steal gold, leaving little for the workers thereafter. Knowing who to trust is even more difficult when times are so desperate for many.
Jordan has to keep up the pretence as one living in those times, whilst trying to become a little familiar with food, clothes, language, and general living that she simply has never experienced before. She pulls it off extremely well and seems to learn quickly, although being one to express her thoughts a little more freely, and especially being a woman, there are moments when she surprises some of her new acquaintances!
The story seemed to flow really well in this second book of the series, maybe it was because I had grasped the whole concept of what the author was trying to reach, and maybe because of the time it was set too. But I did feel the characters more as they stood out well, and the reader can grasp who are to be trusted more, as well as a possible love interest.
I found myself enjoying the scenes with Jordan and Frederick, longing for some romance to spark between them. Jordan has to be aware of everyone around her and not trust people too easily. And even though I questioned Frederick at times, even when I did this I still felt he was a strong, believable and likeable character.
The further the story continues, the more dramatic it becomes. and the action in the latter half is really good. It is written at just the right pace to keep you gripped and able to follow what is happening. You’ll certainly want to finish the story to see just what becomes of Jordan and what that means for all the characters involved.
An ARC was provided by the author in return for a fair and honest review.
Set further still in the future, Future Gold follows a different character in Jordan, than in Future Girls’ Charity, and this time Jordan goes back to the 19th century, the Wild West in 1861. I particularly love reading about this era, it’s rawness and desperation, crimes and outlaws, as well as the constructing of towns and communities.
As a Time Cult member, Jordan studies history, in particular Western history, but doesn’t prepare herself one hundred percent for her time travel experience, believing that a time to change the past, and thus the future, probably wouldn’t come about.
“…Their stated story, should anyone ask, was that they were a history group, a society for the study of the past. What was studying history if not a form of time travel?… She (Jordan) would spend the next ten years earning an advanced degree in her historic period of choice, just in case. What she believed was she would never need or use the information. She would spend ten good years pretending that when the time came, if the time came, she was prepared to make a difference.”
However, after regularly taking part in the Equinox and Solstice, this time unlike the others, something changed. Jordan found herself in a slightly confused state… back in time!
One of my favourite moments in the story was when I realised that the place Jordan found herself in initially was a bar called the Duck and Screw. This bar was featured in book 1, and therefore this connection, however small, and the fact that Jordan had gone back in time from a very surreal future, that kept the whole fantasy of the series flowing.
A little lost and confused, Jordan is taken in by a miner, Walter, and is invited to look after his children, Will and Emily, while he works. They spend time travelling to areas where they have been told there is a great deal of gold. Throughout the story there are a number of mines – some running out of gold, with workers losing their jobs, other mines with plenty of gold are being found, and there are the thieves who steal gold, leaving little for the workers thereafter. Knowing who to trust is even more difficult when times are so desperate for many.
Jordan has to keep up the pretence as one living in those times, whilst trying to become a little familiar with food, clothes, language, and general living that she simply has never experienced before. She pulls it off extremely well and seems to learn quickly, although being one to express her thoughts a little more freely, and especially being a woman, there are moments when she surprises some of her new acquaintances!
The story seemed to flow really well in this second book of the series, maybe it was because I had grasped the whole concept of what the author was trying to reach, and maybe because of the time it was set too. But I did feel the characters more as they stood out well, and the reader can grasp who are to be trusted more, as well as a possible love interest.
I found myself enjoying the scenes with Jordan and Frederick, longing for some romance to spark between them. Jordan has to be aware of everyone around her and not trust people too easily. And even though I questioned Frederick at times, even when I did this I still felt he was a strong, believable and likeable character.
The further the story continues, the more dramatic it becomes. and the action in the latter half is really good. It is written at just the right pace to keep you gripped and able to follow what is happening. You’ll certainly want to finish the story to see just what becomes of Jordan and what that means for all the characters involved.
An ARC was provided by the author in return for a fair and honest review.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews