Sideswiped (Kindle Single) (The Peri Reed Chronicles)

This is an amazing book by a great author. You can not go into this book expecting The Hollows (her long running series that ended) she delivers some pretty awesome characters and a fast paced, intriguing plot. There are a lot of twists and turns in this book.

This teaser was such a sweet treat! Enough of a background to set in motion the Drafter.
A new kind of work from my favorite author, Kim Harrison.
I was worried that I was going to miss the Hallows, my Cincinnati based fixation, but a surprising change.
This is a short story that sets up the story line behind what is going to be a best seller.
I can see a movie. Or a TV series.

This is a great snapshot of what is coming in this series, but I felt like it left more questions than answers. Who is the mysterious Peri? Where did she come from, what's her story? Why are Summer and Silas so desperate for each other? I know this is a short story, but there aren't a lot of clues about character motivation or the strange technology mentioned. I was left feeling like I wanted more, which is maybe the point.

I'm kind of at a loss . . .

I don't like time travel. Unless it's in one direction and more or less permanent. Technically, I don't particularly like it even then, but in that context it doesn't bother me, so that's something at least.

I don't like the time travel you more frequently encounter, b/c it's too easy . . . Authors can't seem to help themselves, and they take more liberties than they ever would under any other circumstances b/c who-the-hell-cares?-we-can-just-go-back-in-time-and-FIX-it.

I bloody hate that.

But that's not what's going on here . . .

In Peri Reed's world, a very small fraction of the population has the ability to "draft" or move backwards in time. An equally small fraction of the population has the ability to "anchor" a Drafters dual memories, preventing . . . insanity? Brought on by numerous versions of reality?

Drafters and Anchors predictably work together in teams of two.

The problem is that I don't really see the point.

You see . . . there are extreme limitations on this drafting ability:

"Ethan could draft more than a minute into the past, but he could only physically affect a circular block. Heidi had never exceeded ten seconds, but her reach was a breathtaking mile across."

I don't know about you, but "more than a minute" sounds like it's meant to be impressive . . . But even if Ethan could draft a full minute back in time with Heidi's "breathtaking mile" reach, what the hell could that actually accomplish?

Unless they've also got clairvoyants (no sign of that) to direct the drafters in advance to where they need to be, only being able---at the outside limit---to go sixty seconds backwards (sideways?), isn't really helpful in the greater scheme of things.

And the likelihood that someone who happens to be able to draft, also happening to be Johnny-on-the-spot when the ability would be helpful is . . . not incredibly likely . . .

So again, I ask . . . What's the point?

Maybe there will be further explanation in the full-length novel that I'm definitely planning to read:

1. Kim Harrison.
2. Aside from the questionable usefulness of the drafting ability, this prequel was highly engaging.

In only sixty or so pages, Harrison once again demonstrated her ability to create compelling, extremely likable characters. Plus her sometimes eyebrow-raising flair for simile and metaphor has grown on me over the years . . .

I still find it hard to believe that anything could be like "trying to get lemonade from a cow patty," but it makes me laugh that she would say so.

But none of that matters b/c Harrison is an autobuy author for me, so I will be reading THE DRAFTER regardless of the questions SIDESWIPED has raised. I'll report back, hopefully with more information, as soon as that's accomplished. Stay tuned . . .

IN HINDSIGHT after being thoroughly confused about the seemingly pointless drafting ability (and after discussing it with my book bff who agreed with me), I mentioned the concept to my husband who annoyingly hit the nail on the head:

"Well, obviously they'd be highly trained for some kind of dangerous government job increasing the likelihood that the ability would be useful."

GAH. *kicks aluminum can*

Wanted to like it, I like the author's other series, but it just didn't work for me, the characters were not very consistent and the story line was kind of predictable, done before, and not interesting enough (to me) to make me want to follow this if it becomes a series. I did like the ending and thought that was well done and satisfying.

I wanted so much to like this new series of Kim Harrison's. I loved the Hollows books. I just couldn't work up any interest in this new universe. Too bad. I almost feel guilty that I don't love it (that's how much I like Kim and the Hollows).

Kim used to be a wonderful author...then she decided to get political and publicly insult half her readership. If I could get my money back from all her books I previously purchased I would as while I agree with her right to free speech, we also have rights as consumers not to support her or her views.

Sideswiped by Kim Harrison is a novella that starts the series The Peri Reed Chronicles. Silas is a researcher at a training facility for a company called, Opti, and is working to prove his alternative theory to explain how time rewrites work. A certain subset of the population has the inherent ability to rewrite small sequences of time. These Drafters require individuals, Anchors, who can help remember what these changes are. While Silas works as a researcher and has the capability to become an Anchor, his Drafter girlfriend and their friends are working to graduate from the Opti school. When their final exam goes awry and Silas is involved, the group of Drafters and Anchors enlist the help of younger Drafter, Peri Reed, to help them resolve their problems and potentially graduate.

While this is a prequel to The Peri Reed Chronicles, Peri Reed is not the main character in this novella, but rather Silas is. This made the start of the novella initially confusing. The beginning of the novella was difficult to get into simply because it was confusing. Both in the beginning and later on, I had to listen to a few parts a few times to try to make sure I understood the mechanisms of the time travel as well as what had actually ended up happening in the time drafts. I also had a hard time placing the ages of characters. However, by half way through the novella, I was hooked! I loved each of the characters and they had their own distinct personalities. I specifically found Silas, Peri and the professors (even though they were a bit flat) to be the most well-defined. The plot was engrossing, exciting, and complex, which can be a little difficult in novellas. Having to figure out what was happening wasn’t necessarily a liability as this is a time travel story and in general they can be somewhat inherently confusing. Figuring out the story and the time travel logistics actually made the novella more fun for me.

The narration by January LaVoy was good in general. I’m not sure if she did this on purpose, but one of the characters sounded like a whiny immature individual. I also felt that one of the characters’ voices seemed to change in tone abruptly. Overall, I really enjoyed this novella and I would recommend this novella to anyone who likes time travel stories with a touch of school antics.

Audiobook purchased for review by ABR.

Please find this complete review and many others at my review blog

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Sideswiped (2015) is the first volume in the Pero Reed series. It is set in Detroit, Michigan about a decade from now.

Drafters are people capable of changing the past for a few seconds and over a finite area. They forget both the original timeline and the changed version. Anchors, however, can remember both timelines and remove the original from the drafters memory.

Opti is a government agency that uses drafters for covert operations. The alliance is another organization using drafters and anchors, but is trying to prove that Opti is corrupt. They have infiltrated Opti with their own agents.

In this novelette, Peri Reed is a drafter. She is a wild woman.

Silas is an anchor. He has a doctorate in Psychology, but is now working on another doctorate in Drafter Studies. He is working for Opti while earning the second doctorate.

Summer is a drafter. She is Silas' girlfriend.

Allen is an anchor. He is Summer's partner.

In this story, Silas is taking a Opti test with others. The man behind him is a mouth breather. Silas hunches down and continues the test.

Then a window breaks and a drone flies into the room. It lands on the floor and visibly short circuits. A woman also comes through the window with a remote in her hand.

She tucks the remote into her waist band and jumps to the floor. She says "excuse me" to the students and picks up the drone. Silas doesn't recognize her, but she is obviously in the field agent program.

She runs toward the window. One of the students trips her. Then Professor Milo opens the door to the test room.

The woman drafts and jumps over the student's foot this time. Milo notices that she has drafted and asks questions.

However, Milo has come to get Silas to fill in for an absent colleague. He says that Silas might get some good data for his thesis. So Silas takes his tablet to the night club where the test is to be conducted.

He notices that Summer and Allen are being tested. Two agent trainees are already there and have obtained the box of chocolates, which is the target, Two more arrive after Summer and Allen. Then a bouncer starts shooting a rifle.

This tale allows Silas to rabbit punch Milo. Allen is shot and Summer drafts to save him. Milo declares that they have all flunked the test.

Silas later meets Peri in the bar where everybody in winding down. The next installment in this sequence is The Drafter.

This volume is an eBook from Simon & Schuster. Apparently no one has yet published a hardcopy.

Highly recommended for Harrison fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales of test environments, realistic scenarios, and a bit of humor. Read and enjoy!

-Arthur W. Jordin

Sideswiped takes the reader back five years before The Drafter begins and introduces us to key players. They are all brilliant college students who are in their senior year and taking their final exams. One of those tests involves a mission to retrieve an item in a real world environment. Told from the perspective of Silas we learn about the characters, witness their test and see them band together to change the outcome.

Harrison was clever allowing Silas to tell us their story; He shared his relationships with his fellow students and introduced us to Peri Reed the main character of The Drafter. The idea of drafting, anchors and the technology are briefly described teasing the reader with tid-bits. We learn that upon graduation they will all find careers as drafters or anchors working for the government. Silas is already a doctor and is also a student he is working on his thesis. His theory is that drafters are actual shifting sideways in time to alternate versions of reality and not going back in time as the scientist believe.

Events that occur in Sideswiped clearly have a strong impact on Silas, Perri and their friends. A stranger introduced near the end hints that there is an alternate path for their careers.
While I have a million questions, Sideswiped left me excited for the Drafter and crossing my fingers we meet up again with all of these characters in the Drafter. If you are like me, and love the backstory then I recommend picking up Sideswiped before you begin the Drafter.

Sideswiped is a prequel Novella for Kim Harrison’s new series The Peri Reed Chronicles. This is a good introduction for this science fiction series.

In Sideswiped we meet Silas and Peri. Releasing a prequel novella as the first book for a series can be tricky as I found it difficult to understand what was going on. The first scene is of Silas in a classroom so I was missing the when, where, why and how of the story. But as I read more it finally became clear that these were all students of time traveling. Silas and Peri have a bright future ahead of them – Peri was the youngest time traveler to be discovered and Silas’ research is on the brink of changing all the theories of time travel. A series of events brings them together and it is clear that fans will be taken on a suspenseful and action pact ride in this series.

I wished there was more details revealed about this world so I hope the first book, The Drafter, answers all my questions. Despite the slow start I am intrigued with this series and can’t wait to read more.

Sideswiped by Kim Harrison is a 2015 Pocket Books publication. I was provided a copy of this book as a member of the XOXperts- The Official Street Team of XOXO After Dark.

Kim Harrison's imagination is second to none!

For those who are familiar with Kim Harrison via her “Hallows” series, you will find this new one to be quite a departure. Sideswiped is the prequel to the new Peri Reed Chronicles- a sci-fi- time travel trilogy.

I knew going in, the book was science fiction, that it involved time travel, but I had no idea how to prepare myself for it. To be completely honest I don't read a lot of science fiction, in fact, it's almost dead last on my list of genres I will consider reading. I do like time travel romance novels, but normally those are classified as paranormal. No, this one wouldn't be anything like that, so what was it going to be like? And the bigger question, given my aversion to science fiction, would I like it?

For starters we are introduced to Silas, who is taking his final drafter exam at Opti when a drone flies through the window effectively invalidating the exam. The operator of said drone is Peri Reed. Rounding out the cast is Summer, Silas's girlfriend and his best friend, Allen. When the group of students become pawns in an evil professor's diabolical plan to oust Silas, they bond together to save their university careers, by doing what they do best... reset time.

Well, I should have known with Kim Harrison at the helm, she would have me eating out of her hands in no time. This very short story didn't waste time on filler, that's for sure. The story got off to a very fast pace and covered a lot of ground in a limited amount of time. I got a big enough bite to know I will certainly want to go back for seconds. This is an excellent start to a new series and I think we are all going love Peri Reed. Be aware that as with many prequel novellas, this one does end with a bit of cliffhanger. So, naturally, I can't wait for the first full length novel in this series- “The Drafter”.

4 stars

This was a complexing dive into Kim Harrison’s new science fiction series, The Peri Reed Chronicles. Sideswiped is the prequel to the first full-length novel, The Drafter, set to release September 1st.

With an influx of romance stories in my collection of recent reads, this science fiction story was a refreshing step away from that world. Coming into this story with a blank slate in regards to the author and very little experience for the genre, had me skeptical, yet curious at the same time.

The reader is immediately jolted into a scene in which time travel is occurring. We’re introduced to an array of characters all playing roles in the research of time traveling.
We’re given a good amount of information to build a strong story and have us asking enough questions to keep us intrigued until the next book.

This sci-fi world is slowly built up, but presents quite a bit of knowledge to acquaint the reader with the type of atmosphere they’ll see in the Peri Reed Chronicles to come. For the length of this novella, it’s packed with a decent amount of intel on the ins and outs of the “Drafting” universe. It may be bumpy to keep up with all the terms, so I suggest reading it at a leisurely pace in order to fully absorb the details given. The basic concept of what the students are doing will obviously play a major role in the upcoming books. So it’s best to be prepared for what I’m sure will be a fast paced series.

The final words left me feeling satiated with this story and prepped for what’s to come in Peri and Silas’ time traveling endeavors.

For the romance reader looking to delve into something entirely different, this could be a possible contender for you. There’s plenty of mystery to have you theorizing, comedy to keep you laughing, and a touch of romance to satiate that sexy craving.

Silas’s size has kept him from being an agent instead stuck in the background knowing that one day his girlfriend will leave him. Drafting is where the agent replays time changing something that happened previously to create a new outcome. Silas doesn’t believe that’s how it really works he has this idea that there are alternate realities and they are sliding laterality into one and changing it before sliding back. Silas has always been extremely intelligent even smarter than some of the professors which has rubbed one the wrong way. While on a routine exam things go horribly wrong, changing the path of his life forever.

I like Silas he’s against the odds but he’s determined not to give up on what he thinks is really going on when someone drafts. He’s not your typical heartthrob but I like it makes him a unique and refreshing male main character and I’m curious see more of him in the full novel. We also had a little glimpse at Peri she’s kind of awesome in an I go my own way path. I’m looking forward to getting to know more of her.

I’ve read most of Kim Harrison’s book so of course with the anticipation of the new one I had to read Sideswiped. We are given a short fast paced action packed tease into the world of the drafters, and our main characters first interactions. I like the concept idea it’s interesting with the idea of being able to change the past by just shifting into another alternate reality is really unique. I also like the character we aren’t only give a little bit but what I’ve read has me hook and I can’t wait to get my hands on the first book to see how the story will play out. I love Kim Harrison’s writing style it’s one of my favorites and I’m excited for the new series. Sideswiped it a perfect tease it has me now impatiently waiting for the moment the delivery shows up with my book.

Sidewiped is a prequel to The Drafter, the first book in Kim Harrison’s new Peri Reed Chronicles, due out September 1st, 2015. Sideswiped follows character Silas, told in third person, and introduces us to other characters, such as his girlfriend Summer, Allen, and of course, Peri Reed. We get a first look at how the world dynamics, what a drafter is, the role an anchor plays, and repercussions they have when they use their time traveling power. In this prequel, they are still in school and trying to take their finals. That unfortunately, does not goes as planned, and the result is a campus wide migraine, along with failure of the exam. I loved their solution. ?

I will be completely honest, this is totally different than anything I have ever read, as time travel stories have never been very interesting to me. But this is Kim Harrison, and if anybody can make it entertaining, it is her. This novella actually pulled me in, another oddity since I really don’t like short stories much. I cannot wait to read the Drafter next week, and I will post a review as soon as I have read it. I am hoping this is the start to another fantastic series by Kim Harrison, and from the looks of it, I think it’s possible. As well as possibly getting me into a new genre of reading.

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Dr. Silas Denier is a drafter but has been relegated to being a lab rat. His inventions earning his place for his theories. He has a new theory about drafting. Silas loves Summer yet fears their relationship is going to end soon. Summer's drafter partner Allen is an anchor and also Silas's best friend. Professor Milo is holding a test for several drafter/anchor teams while Silas watched for his theories. A young drafter named Peri Reed has incredible drafter talent. When Professor Milo fails drafter/anchor teams along with Silas. A plan is hatch to alter the results where there is no more grades. Can Silas prove his theories? Where does Peri Reed fit in? Why does Professor Milo hate Silas so much? Find out in Sideswiped.

This new exciting new series from Kim Harrison. This story is unique, intriguing, and powerful. The characters are real, raw, fascinating, and
interesting. Definitely looking forward to reading The Drafter soon.

My Thoughts On The Book:

'Every hero, even the accidental ones, have a beginning.'

The Plot Of The Story:
This was my first foray into the worlds created by Kim Harrison, despite owning the whole of her The Hollows series, and I thought it was as good a place to start as any seeing as this is the first step in a brand new series.
What we have here in Sideswiped is the first look into that new series of drafters and anchors and it's a great start even if I say so myself even if the main character of the series, Peri Reed, is only a side character in this instance. This novella gives us an insight into what to expect from the upcoming release of the first book The Drafter and a brief glimpse into the world we'll be getting to know and it's an interesting world with a quite tantalizing premise.
Sideswiped introduces us to several of the characters from the upcoming series but focuses mainly on Silas but includes Peri's initial introduction to Silas and the others. The basic idea of the book is that these guys are all at 'Drafter/Anchor' school, for want of a better word, and after failing a major test they decided to hack into the school computers to fix their test results and ensure they all pass together. All very high school sounding isn't it?
Drafters have the ability to go back in time but only for seconds, maybe a minute but never much longer, which means they can reset something that has gone wrong. Anchors are their support, they are the ones that hold the threads of the timelines and keep their drafting partners from basically losing the plot and going a bit insane. They are a team and one can't work without the other. Peri is a drafter, as is Silas beloved girlfriend Summer where Silas wants to be an anchor but isn't, although he is responsible for the invention of the slick suits that the pairs wear during their test that monitor everything for the assessors.

What Is There To Love?
This is only a short piece of work and despite it's sounding like another teenage high school delinquent story this is a clever little piece of work with a complete end, middle and beginning. It's a great prequel with plenty to like about and it's great introduction to the first Peri Reed book.

What Is There To Dislike?
It was short so the idea of the drafters and anchors wasn't as clear as I would have liked initially but I have no doubt thing will become clear as the series progresses as right now it kind of feels like the whole drafter thing is a little pointless but I do have a sneaking suspicion that it will have it's uses going forward.

How's The Writing?
It's a clear and concise little book and is well composed and well thought out. The pacing is good and quick with no real lulls in it. The world-building is there but need more filing out which will happen when we get into the series properly I'm sure but you do a real sense for the world these characters dwell. The characterisations are good for the length of the story and again I am sure they'll get more detailed and feel more real, not that they don't here but they do need a certain amount of further filling out in my eyes.

Final Thoughts:
As a short introduction to Kim Harrison's new series this is a great little novella and it hints at a lot of potential for the series in the future and it's a series I will definitely be reading without a doubt as Harrison has me pretty intrigued with this one.
Do you need to read this before The Drafter, well I guess not BUT it does give you an initial feel into the world and the characters that will feature in the series and it could be a very interesting series indeed if this is anything to go by!

I recommend reading this first, before you read The Drafter.

Loved this intro into the members of Opti. I think I would have been lost in The Drafter without it just because the characters' relationships are so convoluted.

I usually hate time travel stories, but Kim Harrison has not created that kind of typical universe. Instead, this is much more sci-fi like, with relatively reasonable explanations for how short jumps of "time travel" works.

If you have read The Drafter, you will want to read this for the back story. It tells us about three of the main characters in that book and how they met, as well as what put one of them on the road away from Omni.

Loved this prequel to the new series. Really whet my appetite for the Drafter which I've already read too. Really glad I had this to get a better "whole stage" understanding of the landscape. Love Kim's style. She really makes her characters so identifiable.

I was extremely excited to see that Kim Harrison was working on another series. I loved the Hollows series, though wasn't a big fan of her other one. This prequel to Drafted was equal parts exciting, thoughtful, and entertaining. Can't wait to read the full book this month!

I wanted to like it I really did. But I don't !!! The characters just are not interesting at all to me. And it should be labeled more as a Sci-fi story rather then paranormal. When I read about the series before it came out I didn't think it sounded that interesting but I was willing to give it a try. I just could not find anything about it that I liked. I bought the first book and will read it also to give it another try but truthfully I'm only doing so because I bought this one and book one at the same time. Otherwise I wouldn't bother. Just wasn't good !!!

L.