Saving Lucas Biggs - Marisa de los Santos & David Teague

Saving Lucas Biggs by Marisa de los Santos & David Teague
Publisher: Harper Collins
Publication Date: April 29, 2014
Source/Format: Edelweiss (Thanks Harper Collins!) || e-galley

[I received this book for review from the publisher. This in no way affects the thoughts expressed in my review.]

When thirteen-year-old Margaret's father is unfairly sentenced to death by the cruel Judge Biggs, she is determined to save him, even if it means using her family's secret-and forbidden-ability to time travel. With the help of her best friend, Charlie, and his grandpa Josh, Margaret goes back to a time when Judge Biggs was a young boy and tries to prevent the chain of events that transformed him into a corrupt, jaded man. (from Goodreads)

Before I begin telling you about Saving Lucas Biggs, can we take a minute to marvel at how gorgeous this cover is? I'm really obsessed with the colors, and the whimsical look to it.

Saving Lucas Biggs was definitely a good read. The novel combined whimsical elements (the time travel) with more realistic ones (Margaret's father's current circumstances) in a really appealing way. Honestly, I expected this story to be pretty straightforward and predictable, but the way things were resolved still managed to surprise me - and I like it!

For such a young set of main characters (yes, thirteen feels young to me!), they are facing such serious issues. I won't go into detail here, but it has a lot to do with unfair pay, unjust decisions and unnecessary deaths, both in the present and past. These issues, however, lead our main characters on a journey that teaches readers an important lesson: how actions affect the course of a person's life, their choices and how they choose to be.

That, really, is the heart behind this novel. Margaret goes into the past, visiting her best friend Charlie's grandfather Josh at her age. Together, they attempt to change the future by altering the past to change the circumstances that turned Judge (Lucas) Biggs into the cold, hard man he is. The adventure is fraught with risk, tension and danger - and yet, I couldn't stop reading until I found out if they were going to succeed or not.

Apart from the moral lesson readers will take away, the characters were really great. Margaret and Josh were excellent main characters, and I could root for them immediately. Charlie, Margaret's best friend, is definitely a prime example of support and encouragement, and Josh, Charlie's grandfather and formerly Lucas' childhood friend, was wonderful as well.

The writing too, is a testament to the authors' skills, as it flows well, easing from one perspective to the next smoothly. The only complaint I have is the slightly abrupt ending, but it wasn't too off-putting overall.

I did like Saving Lucas Biggs. The concept is simple enough, but the authors really brought it to life with great characters, and excellent plotting. If you're intrigued by the sound of time travel and changing the future through altering the past, well then, Saving Lucas Biggs is probably right up your alley!