I loved this book so much I read it twice! Caroline O’Donoghue is the author of the romance novel The Rachel Incident, a supernatural young adult (YA) series, and host of the popular podcast Sentimental Garbage, but her new YA novel Skipshock is unlike anything she’s done previously.

When 17-year-old Margo is on a train to Dublin, something strange happens: suddenly she is on a different train in a world where no one has even heard of Dublin. The only other passenger is Moon, who, although the same age as her, has been working for years as a travelling salesman. Here, as in the Railhead series by Philip Reeve, trains transport people between worlds. However, worlds differ in the length of hours that constitute a day, and Margo has just landed in a world with only a six-hour day. ‘Skipshock’, like jetlag, is an unfortunate physical side effect caused by the challenge of moving rapidly between worlds.

There is a dominant power, the Semper, trying to control the trains and thus all the worlds. There is also a well-organised resistance called PACT; an ostracised race, the Lunati, to which Moon belongs; and a watch, given to Margo by her father, that can break trains connecting worlds. This watch makes Margo an important figure to both the Semper and PACT.

Skipshock is science fiction, with all the high concepts and fascinating ideas you’d expect, but it’s also a character-based romance between Margo and Moon. Written with the utmost authenticity and compassion, it makes you wish with all your heart that, against all odds, things will work out for them. My only complaint is that the cliffhanger ending will remain unresolved for readers until the sequel is published in 2026! Skipshock is an entirely original and utterly brilliant novel for adults and teens aged 14+.