Return Once More

Trisha Leigh

Oct 2015 · Bloomsbury Publishing USA

About this eBook

If you could learn the identity of your one true love-even though you will never meet- would you?

Years have passed since refugees from a ruined earth took to space, eventually settling a new system of planets. Science has not only made the leaps necessary to allow time travel, but the process engineered a strange side effect-predicting your one true love.

If you could save your one true love from an untimely death, would you be able to resist?

Sixteen-year-old Kaia Vespasian is an apprentice to the Historians-a group charged with using time travel to document the triumphs and failures of the past-and she can't resist a peek at her long-dead soul mate in Ancient Egypt. Before she knows it, she's broken every rule in the book, and the consequences of getting caught could destroy more than just her new romance.

Or would you have the strength to watch him die?

But when Kaia notices a fellow classmate snooping around in a time where he doesn't belong, she suspects he has a secret of his own-and the conspiracy she uncovers could threaten the entire universe. If her experience has taught her anything, to changing history means facing the consequences. The Historians trained her to observe and record the past, but Kaia never guessed she might have to protect it- in a race across time to save her only chance at a future.

Ratings and reviews

So time travel books, in my experience, have usually gone two ways: Lots of rules, science and techno-speak that I didn't understand; or none of that and a huge lack of answers to the basic questions of how time travel is even possible. This book? Neither. Stunningly, happily, remarkably neither. It was some magical happy medium, where I understood what was happening and there was legitimate technology to back it up. Anyway, let's move along. Kaia is living on a planet that is not Earth, because basically everyone has made a hot mess of Earth and Kaia has learned all the stories about her ancestors who, several generations ago, fled the planet. They now have a new system and do everything they can to ensure that the same mistakes that brought Earth to its demise don't happen again. One way they do this is via the Historians, who basically travel back to record specific events so that whatever happened during these life-altering times do not repeat. And since science has evolved a ton, not only can people travel back in time, but there is some kind of scientific analysis that allows people to find out who their "true" match is. Incidentally, this was the one part of the story I found a bit beyond the realm of believability, but it really only stuck with me briefly- it didn't impact my overall enjoyment of the story. And of course, since Kaia is 17, she doesn't always make the logical choice. Maybe that's a good thing, maybe it isn't, but she just had to meet her True. Only... he's from ancient Egypt. Clearly, this takes forbidden romance to a new level. But while Kaia has a lot of romance concerns, there is something amiss at the school. So basically, here's what we have: History, and lots of different parts of it, which I adore. From ancient Rome to the twentieth century, Kaia takes us all over history, and it is so amazing (and quite well researched, especially the specific events in question). There's also a lot of discussion about the age-old questions of the ramifications of changing history. How far would you have to go (or how little would it it take) to change it? Fabulous, complex characters. Kaia, I adored. She's smart, but she's feisty, and she isn't a superfan of the rules. She has a tendency to want to see all the things, even when an assignment demands her to pay attention to one specific event. It isn't that Kaia is rebellious, she's just curious. And a teenager, who sometimes makes some impulsive choices without thinking out the consequences. She has two fabulous best friends, Analeigh who is level-headed and the general voice of reason, and Sarah who has shockingly found her True right in their very school. Oz, Sarah's True, is an enigma throughout the book, and intrigued me to no end. Kaia's brother Jonah is a fugitive, running from planet to planet evading secrets that Kaia has yet to uncover. And her True... well, I love her True. FEELS. I had lots of feels. Lots. From the horrific nature of some of the places in history they'd gone to, to shock at some of the revelations, to happiness and laughter, to absolutely inconsolable sobbing, I had every emotion possible. And that, for me, is the surest sign that a book is quality. Bottom Line: Can I have the second book yet? Because the ending was intense, and I need to know so, so many more things. This world is very clearly just beginning, but there was absolutely nothing lacking in this first book of the series. Return Once More is unequivocally my favorite time travel book to date.

Dear Trisha Leigh, You just seem to get me. I mean, time travel, boys, fate and a bit of mystery all in one book. GAH! I'm going to be needing the next book real soon please. No pressure. Full review is posted on Goodreads. I had my eye on Return Once More by Trisha Leigh way back when she was calling it The Historians so OF COURSE the first moment I saw this up on NetGalley I was going to request this. Not only did I love Leigh’s First Year series so I know her writing style is right up my alley, but for real…History and time travel – it’s like she asked me what my favorite books include and decided to write this story just for me. As always, I am going to try to do this review spoiler free…don’t hate me if I don’t answer all the questions and leave you wanting to know more. This book leads off by bringing us along to observe the death of Julius Caesar right alongside the Historians. I loved how Leigh pulled me right into this world where there is a look but don’t touch mentality. Here they are, faced with the death of a very influential leader and as Historians, they are not allowed to do anything but: “Research. Record. Reflect.” Not only can I see that as being very frustrating but if the event has something to do with you, would you be able to step back and allow something horrible to happen without a second thought? Something to think about. Kaia is the main character and she is living on Sanchi, a planet within the solar system Genesis, because Earth Before has environmental concerns and other issues that prompted the leaders to relocate. Now the role of the Historians is to make sure the same issues that plagued Earth Before don’t happen again. Kaia is also training to be a Historian and since the age of ten, has been living at the Historian Academy with her six classmates. As her birthday comes around, one of the questions Kaia has to ask is whether she would like to know the name of her True Companion – the one person (born or unborn) who was made to love her. I mention this because this plays a fairly large role in the story but I will come back to this. One thing I will mention here is that Leigh does a great job of creating this world that Kaia lives in. Not only are the descriptions of the places Kaia visits detailed, but the academy where she lives and the people and things she encounters along the way are very well done. Adding the science fiction to the story was a great way to show how Kaia and the people of Sanchi have the ability to transport to different eras as well as use tattoos to communicate, translate language, and pay for things. So it is probably pretty obvious that I really enjoyed this book but I will say it…Trisha Leigh knows how to write a fantastic story. She blends in a bit of history, some sci-fi, and wonderful world building to create something that had me turning the pages quickly just to find out what happens next for everyone. The only bad thing about reading this book so quickly is that I finished it soooo quickly. I am definitely looking forward to the next book of this series (is it too soon to ask when it comes out??) and trust me people, grab this one when you can! Thank you to NetGalley for the review copy!

Not your average time travel! Admittedly, I’m choosy when it comes to futuristic sci-fi or time travel books. I need to feel like the story and characters are still relatable and relevant to current life. When I found out Trisha Leigh had written a book about time travel, I KNEW it would break stereotypes and be something I’d love. I WAS NOT WRONG! What if you could find out at 17 yrs old who your one true love is - your soulmate? How many of of us would be dying of curiosity? But what if the trade off was knowing the likelihood of your one true love being in your own time was almost nil? Frankly, the curiosity would still get to me, just as it did to Kaia. She finds out her one true love is not only long dead but has to decide if it’s worth breaking every rule she’s been raised to adhere to in order to sneak a glance at him. She’ll never talk to him, of course … whoops, or maybe. Kaia is training to be a Historian charged with recording important historical events. One of the basic rules is to never interfere in the past, and she knows that all too well. But what happens when you not only fall hard for your soulmate but you find out things that will potentially mean disaster for your own time period. Do you break all the rules to investigate and risk everything? No matter where her body is, her heart continually returns to her one true love far in the past. Trisha’s love of history is evident in this book as she mixes the future with the distant past with a smoothness that only a true Historian could achieve. She never disappoints, and I can’t wait to see where she takes this series. With history behind us, the future open before us, and Leigh’s imagination to bridge the gap, we are in for a wild ride!

About the author

Trisha Leigh is a product of the Midwest, which means it's pop, not soda, garage sales, not tag sales, and you guys as opposed to y'all. Most of the time. She's been writing seriously for five years now, and has published 4 young adult novels and 4 new adult novels (under her pen name Lyla Payne). Her favorite things, in no particular order, include: reading, Game of Thrones, Hershey's kisses, reading, her dogs (Yoda and Jilly), summer, movies, reading, Jude Law, coffee, and rewatching WB series from the 90's-00's.

Trisha is the author of THE LAST YEAR series and the WHITMAN UNIVERSITY books as well as MISTLETOE AND MR. RIGHT coming out from Bloomsbury in October, 2015. She's represented by Kathleen Rushall at Marsal Lyon Literary Agency.

To learn more about Trisha Leigh, please visit her at trishaleigh.com.

If you enjoy New Adult books or a good contemporary romance, please check out her pen name, Lyla Payne!