Before the Storm

Description

Fox and BC travel through time from the distant future to 1901. As elite cadets in the Imperial Army, they are young, handsome, well-mannered and now...Mutineers. They have journeyed into the past to save the opening ceremony of Australia's first parliament from being bombed. If the cadets fail, thousands will die, sparking a century of total war. However, to change the destiny of the world, the young warriors will need the help of three ordinary teenagers...

Sean McMullen is one of Australia's leading SF and fantasy authors, with 14 books and 60 stories published, for which he has won over a dozen awards. His most recent novels are The Ancient Hero (2004) and Voidfarer (2006). When not writing, he is a computer training manager, and when not at a keyboard he is a karate instructor.

Ford St could not have picked a better debut novel. Before the Storm is a highly original tale that brings to mind an unlikely though satisfying marriage between The Terminator and the Bronte sisters. It is an expertly written mix of SF, heart-thudding adventure and humour (with the merest hint of romance). This story delivers on so many levels. Rather than causing distance, McMullens use of an omniscient narrator creates an intimacy with all these characters, and is possibly one of the best uses of the viewpoint I have encountered. A thoroughly riveting read, Before the Storm will appeal equally to male and female YA readers everywhere. - Jenny Mounfield