By: Veronica R. Tabares
Publisher: Sun Break Publishing
Publication Date: June 2010
ISBN: 978-1609160029
Reviewed by: Ellen Feld
Review Date: July 23, 2010
Vanessa is one lucky young woman. She is happily married to Tony, a wonderful husband and loving father. She has three great kids, a trio of precocious girls, who just happen to be the center of Vanessa’s universe.
Vanessa and Tony both know that to advance their careers, they need to go back to school. They’d like to go to the University of Washington but want to be sure that one of them will always be home with the kids. When Vanessa and Tony realize that they can adjust their respective schedules so the girls are never alone, they head off to school.
To make things work, Vanessa spends many nights alone in the lab doing her homework, in the basement of the science building. One night, Vanessa hears an annoying humming sound coming from somewhere outside the lab. Curious, she traces the noise to a janitor’s closet. Vanessa slowly opens the door….
The next thing Vanessa remembers is slowly waking up, as if from a very deep sleep. When Vanessa comes to (How long has she been asleep? She does not know…) she finds herself in a strange land with robotic bunnies jumping around in a big field. Was it a dream or has she fallen through some sort of time portal?
Without giving too much of the story away, Vanessa is faced with staying where she is or going home. Of course she wants to get home to her husband and kids. Will she be allowed to go home? When she is told of a future discovery one of her children makes, all involved agree she must go home to nurture her child.
As the story continues, Vanessa’s inquisitiveness repeatedly gets her in trouble. Will she ever solve the mystery of the strange humming? What about the robotic rabbits? The reader also meets various people strangely dressed in various vintage clothing as if they've just walked off a movie set, a gigantic laboratory, a dark tunnel and questions that get answered and then forgotten again and again. Sound confusing? It really isn’t, you simply have to read the Department of Temporal Adjustment to get the answers for yourself.
This book is a quick read, full of mystery, and yes, humor. Vanessa is a bright woman but it is her curiosity that drives the story. And as she gets in trouble over and over again, you may just find yourself rolling your eyes and laughing at her ability to get into trouble over and over again (have you noticed the pattern yet?).
Quill says: A fascinating, and at times funny, look at time travel and the problems a bright and curious woman can cause the scientists of the future.
For more information on Department of Temporal Adjustment, please visit the author's website at: VeronicaTabares.org
