Will is my fiancé. The shy man I met years ago in college. The person I’m supposed to spend the rest of my life with.This is the life I’ve always wanted until finding a picture of four men changes everything… done the impossible and have become trapped in time and I know Étienne is my key to going home.
The more time I spend with Étienne, the further I fall for him until I’m questioning which time I belong in and if the life I left behind is the one I truly desire.
All I know for certain is I need to survive time.
I need to survive love.
And I need to make it out on the other side alive.
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This is my first romance with a storyline that revolves around time travelling. I’ve watched the OUTLANDER series and of course, I’ve seen the movie, “The Time Traveler’s Wife”, but I still didn’t know what to expect from this book. It was highly recommended to me. I was practically forced to read it by my book bestie and I don’t know if I’ll thank her or slap her because I LOVED IT and now I NEED book 2, THE REIGNING AND THE RULE.
If you love to read and enjoy to have your ways of thinking challenged, then you will enjoy this book. I had this map in my head and all these theories that kept popping up in my mind, even when I wasn’t reading the book. This book has all the ingredients to make it so addictive that you won’t want it to end even though it’s quite long (I’m definitely not complaining about the length of the book). There is mystery, angst, deceit, uncertainty, hate and, of course LOVE!!!!
This is a lovely story that took my breath away with all the twists and turns and this emotional ride between present and past, and the main characters stole my heart immediately. Etienne and Serene’s love is like no other, it overcomes time and it was epic! Truly timeless! I love Serene, she was so strong and fearless, she’s the reason why they’re in love, she fought for this connection with Etienne. And adapting yourself to the past is not easy, but she did it in order to be with the one she loves, their love was so unique and it was worthy.
This is my first book by Calia Read and I’m so in love with her writing. The finesse she has to take us to a different time and immerse us in this story, her setting description was exceptional and I felt that I was there back in 1912. Absolutely flawless!
Please be warned that this book is very addictive and it ends in a cliffy, I hope book 2 is coming really soon because I need more, my heart is hurt and I need to heal it.
Seriously I’m so blown away right now by what I just finished reading! This was my first book by Calia Read and will certainly not be my last. Actually I’m pretty sure I’m about to devour all of her other books just like how I devoured every word of The Surviving Trace.
I’m a big fan of historical romance and especially time tribal so when I saw a book friend share a teaser for this book I got super excited. When I saw the year that the heroine travels back to is 1912, I became ecstatic! It’s one of my favorite time periods so I was instantly curious to see this authors take on the genre and time period. It’s been a long time since I’ve read a book and felt so completely immersed in a story that it was the only thing I thought about. Regoing over events that is already read and trying to piece the puzzle together. Replaying sciences in my head and trying to imagine every tiny detail to get the movie in my head just right.
The Surviving Trace is such an epic, breathtaking and mind blowing novel that I doubt I’ll read another book in the genre that will even come close to comparing to this truly magical experience. In fact I’m purchasing the paperback right now because I need to have this beautiful story in my hands. Ètienne and Serene will definitely go down as one of my all time favorite book couples.
This is a step out of the genre(s) I usually read, so I went in with absolutely no expectations. I was so glad I took a chance because I absolutely loved this story. I loved the history, the twists and turns, the mystery, the characters, and yes, even the ending. I have a few working theories on the ending, and I can’t wait until the rest of the story unfolds. Serene and Etienne consumed my thoughts for days. I couldn’t wait to get back to their story when life oh so rudely interrupted, as it so often does. I couldn’t wait to see if she was going to return to her time, or stay with Etienne to try to unravel the mystery of just exactly why she was there in the first place. I loved her sass contrasted with Etienne’s brooding demeanor. It fit their time periods perfectly.
The ending gave me so many more questions. I am not sure if you would call it a cliff hanger per say, but it definitely leaves a lot open ended, so please keep that in mind going in to this book. Not everything will be revealed.
Being a first time Calia Read reader, I have to say, this book made me a fan
This book! This book has consumed my life!
I have thought about this book every day since I finished it. And my mind is still reeling. It takes a special author with a special gift for writing to make me feel this way.
I have only ever been all consumed by a series two other times. What makes this book so special? Everything!
A unique story.
Foreshadowing that you know is foreshadowing and you still can’t figure out what’s going to happen.
Memorable characters that have worked their way into my heart and will never leave.
New book friends who love this story as much as I do.
I know I haven’t said much about the story, but I will say it is time travel at its finest. Set mostly in 1912 South Carolina, it pushes all of my limits and sets new ones.
Serene and Étienne have found a love that spans decades, but will their time run out?
Note that this is book one in a trilogy. You WILL NOT get all the answers you seek at the end of TST. But I can guarantee you will enjoy the ride!
The Surviving Trace is the beginning of an epic love story. It was an interesting and intriguing tale. I found it enjoyable but felt it moved a bit too slowly and the typos, missing and misused words were a bit distracting. That said I’m looking forward to reading the next part and I definitely recommend it to those who love romance mixed with suspense and time travel.
Let me say that this was my first read from this author and I can’t wait to read more from her.
I love the show Outlander to this was definately up my alley for reading. I love the idea of time travel and don’t know if I have a favorite time I would love to visit for a short time or years.
Serene is a total antiques junkie and loves to know the story around some of the pieces she aquires while running her antiques shop. One day when she gets an old photo album from around 1912 she loves the pictures so much but she is drawn to one in particular that has a few gentleman outside a mansion. Little did she know this would send her on a journey back in time.
Etienne has a marriage of convenience. He doesn’t love his wife and basically doesn’t have anything to do with her. Well when Serene shows up one night not knowing what is going on, he thinks his wife is up to another one of her parties. Little does he know that Serene had just jumped time and was thrust into his world.
I love me some cliffies but damn I wish the next book was available because I need to know what happens!! FRICK!! I can’t wait for the next one to come out because even though Etienne is a moody jerk, he realizes that Serene is different and will do anything to keep her.
I had been hearing good things about this book but it took me a while to actually get to it and I was not dissapointed.
What a beautifully told tale about a love that TRULY knows no bounds; neither time can sever its ties nor have an impact on the love of Etienne & Serene (aren’t those names PERFECTION?!)
This was my first ever time travel romance book (I couldn’t get into Outlander, sorry!) and I’m now obsessed with finding other books in the same genre.
So many people say it ends in a cliffhanger but I beg to differ! I mean, yes, there’s some sort of a cliffhanger but I think the ending is just the start of a new beginning. How decisions made can have a butterfly effect for decades and generations to come, which may sound cliche to most but in this particular story. that statement is extremely relevant.
Etienne & Serene’s story is not done yet thought; I feel and know this is ONLY the beginning….Calia Read has only scratched the surface with this book!
Can’t wait for book #2!!! I’m hooked!!
The Surviving Trace was such a amazing, mysterious, romantic and heart capturing book. I love this book. I will re-read this book. I don’t want to give much away so, if you love romance, if you love mystery, if you love time travel then this book is for you. This is my first read from Calia and I look forward to reading much more from her.
So I’ve been marinating on this book for daaays and I still don’t have adequate words to describe how phenomenal it IS! This is time travel/contemporary romance at its absolute best.
Serene is a happily engaged woman in 2017. She’s a huge history buff and gets to live out her dream every single day in her antique shop that she owns with her bestie. After one of their hunts for goods at a flea market l, Serene stumbles upon an old photograph in one of the boxes. She’s immediately thrown by one of the men in the photo. There’s a connection. She doesn’t know how or why, but she can’t stop trying to find out who this mystery man is.
Étienne is a powerful gentleman in 1912. His wife is home, but somethings not right about her.
Serene figures out she’s somehow traveled back in time and is married to the man in the photo she found in present day. She’s got to figure out how to tell him and make him believe so she can get back home to her family and fiancé. Problem is Éntienne can’t stand the site of her and yet she needs his help to piece it all together.
This was such a thrilling and emotional ride with so many twists and turns! I was so wrapped up in this story of how everyone came to be and I didn’t want it to end!!! The juxtaposition of her two worlds was an incredible thing to see. Witnessing this story play out was an outstanding journey and one of my most favorites to go on!
This author has so much talent dripping from her finger tips and I HIGHLY recommend her work!!!
This book has been on my radar for years. YEARS, I tell you. And after getting it, I devoured it. Little did I know, this book would be game changer. Well really, life changer. From the first word, til the very last, I was completely and utterly enchanted. Not only did I fall madly in love with Serene, but I fell harder for Ètienne. So hard. Their love is spellbinding and just real. I felt everything. I can’t say too much more, but know, you will not be disappointed. This book was everything I didn’t know I needed and I know that it’s a book that will most definitely stay with me for the rest of my life. Take a chance on this story. Be brave and one click it. And once you’re done eating this book up, share the love with a friend or seventeen!!
The Surviving Trace is utterly fantastic. Calia Read once again grabbed me by the heart and soul with each turn of the page and I was left in a complete state of disbelief as the last words were read. She is a master of the unpredictable and I’m continually amazed how I can repeatedly get lost in a tragic love story that only she can create and at the same time completely forget that she started off the book with a haunting prologue. A scene that is hard to put aside since I know it will come back to throw me for a loop all over again. And of course, it did just that.
This story is extremely well-written and so fresh and vibrant. Serene never expected to find the love of her life in another time and place and be so desperate to leave everything she knows in the present to stay in a past she never knew existed. I loved how the author so meticulously combines two worlds that are so remarkably different but yet are equally familiar to Serene. This is time travel at its very best! I wished for Serene to stay with her Etienne, the gruff man she is married to in 1912, despite her early desire to find her way back to her fiance, Will in 2017. And with only two months together, the feisty Serene seems to be just what Etienne has always wanted in a wife and their passionate discovery of one another is nothing short of delicious.
As she travels, albeit reluctantly, back and forth between the past and present, it was insane just how Serene’s life intersected with Etienne’s and the secrets revealed as she desperately tries to find her way back to him. Messing with the past can be a dangerous notion, with the chance of permanently altering the future. I had to applaud Serene’s sincere reasons for wanting to go back to 1912 and I waited with bated breath for that proverbial shoe to drop at any moment as she finds out about events that could ruin her life.
Let’s just say I’m still sitting here a bit gobsmacked (as per usual with one of Read’s books) at how it all turned out. I know I’ll have to reread certain chapters just to let it all sink in. I will say I am in awe of the author’s mind and how she manages to distract me with the prospect of a wonderful love story while setting the stage for another glorious mindf&%k. But I will happily concede that The Surviving Trace does indeed show that love truly is a powerful thing and just what lengths someone will go to for even a little bit of its magic.
Hold on tight. This is a book not to miss and one you’ll be revisiting in your head over and over again like I am now. But I love the fact that Calia Read continues to allow me to take a moment or two to ponder that things aren’t always as they seem. And to keep an open mind just in case.
The Surviving Trace is worthy of a huge 5 stars all the way!
“A story that proves love knows no bounds and will last the tests of time.” ~ Misty, White Hot Reads
Wow. Just wow. This story is not only fascinating with its history but spell bounding with its plot and characters. I will be honest that the first part of this book was a bit slow for me and I wasn’t sure how I would like it or where things were going. Then something happened. I can’t even tell you the specific moment, but something clicked and I became immersed in Serene and Etienne’s story like I was living it right along with them.
Calia has a way with words that when reading you lose sight of your surroundings and find yourself right there in the story. It’s like she picks you up and puts you in the story itself. The descriptions of everything from the setting down to the clothes the characters wear are magnificent. The feelings she brings out with just the click of her keyboard is magical. This story was no different.
“In a sea of coiffed hair and uptight personalities, she’s a feral child. Free and unrestrained.”
Serene is at the top of my list of heroines written. Not only is she strong, witty, full of life and love, but she knows when to show vulnerability and a softer side to balance it all out. She carried this story which is rare to see in a world full of alpha males and dominance. If there ever was a perfect woman written, Calia may have written the book with Serene on everything to do right.
“I more than loved her. She’s a religion, and I’m a believer. For the rest of my life, I’ll worship every single part of her.”
Etienne. What a man. It was nice to see that a even the best of men, you know the strong, protective, brooding type can show a side of them makes you love them even more. This is no easy feat for a man of not only his position but of his time. The parts where he let go and even when he was a bit broken were some of the best parts of this story. Those parts allowed us to see just how much love a man like Etienne had to give.
Put all of that together and you have a romance and story that consumes you. Every character written, every moment lived had a huge part in how this story flowed and Calia kept it all flowing in perfect balance to give you The Surviving Trace. Don’t miss this one.
This was my first time travel read…FABULOUS! A book friend recommended I read this book, no wait. A book friend INSISTED I read this book and wouldn’t take NO for an answer. You know who you are, and it goes without saying that I’m hooked, as well as completely on board with this intriguing series.
I’ll be honest, I didn’t read much of the blurb about Serene and Etienne because I knew this would be something different for me. I like to be surprised about the characters, who they are and where life is taking them. Well, Calia did that and so much more. This was like NOTHING I’ve ever read before. It was engaging, mysterious and trying to figure out what would happen next was virtually impossible. I devour love stories that keep me on my toes. I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough to try and figure out the mystery behind Serene’s world, past and present, and how Etienne was part of it.
This was a fabulous slow burn between Serene and Etienne. I think I covered just about every emotion in their journey together. The premise behind their love affair is original and does not fit into a particular mold, that is what makes this story even more engaging. There is so much more to come with these two, we’re left waiting and wondering what the fate of Serene and Etienne will be. Based on the ending of TST, which left me screaming by the way, I can only imagine what Calia has up her sleeve. Trust me when I say I will be first in line to find out.
OMG THIS BOOK!
Finish it in one sitting, Calia Read blow my mind!
I’ve been searching a time travel romance book for so long and finally! Finally i found The Surviving Trace. This book is so well written with its details. Ok, i have never been to Charleston in 1912, but Ms. Read describe it so well, i fell like walking down that street with Etienne and Serene. I love the intense feelings that keep me hooked from the start. I love the passionate chemistry between Etienne and Serene. I love their slow burn and finally burn so good, i got goose bumps. Oh i can’t wait for the next book in this series cause the end in this book… Oh maaan… This author is evil! I can’t believe she can do that in the end! Gaaaah!
Holy. CRAP. My mind is utterly and completely blown away by this amazing story! It’s times like these I wish we could rate books over 5 stars, because this one absolutely deserves it. It’s definitely in my top reads of 2018!
I was hooked from page 1, and I’m absolutely heartbroken I couldn’t finish it sooner than I did. The writer did an amazing job with the descriptions of everything from the smells of the flowers to the cars. She has this was of making you feel like you’re in the story, rather than reading it.
I laughed, yelled, teared up, and swooned throughout the story. The balance was spectacular.
I cannot recommend this story enough, and am on pins and needles waiting for book 2!!!
This novel! I am so glad I have awesome friends that spoke and pushed this book my way.
What an amazing, unique, beautiful, and tragic story I just read.
Wow! I am left speechless, but at the same time yelling at my tablet for more pages past the end.
Calia’s writing is so artistically beautiful. Her descriptions while Serene first time travelled had me seeing everything through her eyes. I felt there. I picked up every little beautiful detail. It was amazing. Calia has me wishing I could go back in time and hang out in 1912, learning the one-step while having my own 2018 mannerisms.
That truly was fun to watch. A time where women were meant to be more submissive, Serene entered and dominated every room she walked into. I loved it!
Can we talk about Étienne for a minute?? I mean, YUM! Talk about a brooding asshole. I could just eat him all up! I loved his relationship with Serene. I loved seeing the transitions he went through.
The Surviving Trace is going to take you on quite a time traveling ride. There’s a bit of mystery in this book. And, when I really thought I had everything figured out, BAM, I get the rug pulled out from underneath me.
I mean, I don’t know what to say that won’t give away the story. So, I’ll just simply say: This book is amazing! This book lands on my Top 2018 Reads. This book will give you heart palpitations and drive your anxiety through the roof…
It is now my turn to breathe The Surviving Trace down all of my friends that haven’t read it. It is THAT good!
I couldn’t put this down!
Calia Read’s new release, The Surviving Trace, is quite a unique story, partly because of its time travel story line, but mostly because of the timeless love that seems to exist between two people who had never met until the heroine is transported back to 1912, immersed into a life that is completely foreign to her, and forced to make decisions that will not only alter the lives of the hero and the heroine but of everyone else involved in their lives – in both the hero and heroine’s eras.
The Surviving Trace is the idea that despite events that happen that take the hero and the heroine away from each other…that force the past to be rewritten and the future to look unlike anything it once was, what they leave behind is what’s most important, and for Serene and Etienne, that means that despite their lost connection due to time, their feelings, their attraction, and their love seems to remain behind and make them yearn for another chance to stop time and bring them back together.
Serene’s love of old photographs definitely plays into the story line because they literally are ‘portals to the past,’ but for Serene, it’s so much more than that, and it seems like the four males in the photograph she becomes obsessed with all play a part in her mission…a mission that is not completely clear to her or to readers, which means that the journey is slowly unraveling instead of revealed all at the same time, and that is what will keep readers invested until all the facts are laid out and clearly understood.
Even though Serene may not truly understand why she’s been transported to 1912 and may seem quite out of place in the new world she finds herself in, she does find her footing in that era, and it’s almost as if she was meant to be there and meant to be with Etienne, Nat, and Livingston…meant to help them in some way while also helping herself with the realization of what a timeless love looks and feels like. And while there’s still a plethora of questions that have yet to be answered by the end of the book, I’m anxious to continue Serene and Etienne’s story because I was completely captivated with the relationship that developed between them and what that bond means for their two worlds.
I get that some readers may take issue with the time travel aspect of the book; in fact, I’ve read reviews that question the believability of it, but that’s the thing about fictional stories, liberties can be taken, which means that realism doesn’t need to be a factor, so as I headed into The Surviving Trace, I gave myself up to the love story that begins as anything but, but then turns into something truly beautiful and truly timeless, which is a good thing due to the nature of Serene and Etienne’s lives and the years and distance between them.
The Surviving Trace is an exceptionally well written story that transcends eras and provides detailed accounts of what each time period is about, and as Serene learns to live in 1912, readers get to witness her come into her own and realize where she truly belongs. Now, we’ll have to wait and see what time decides because it’s clear that time is the thief – time is the antagonist – time is the culprit that seems to cause everything, both good and bad, and it has to be the one to make things right for both Serene and Etienne.
4.5 Poison Apples
4.5 Stars
Serene Parow had a love affair with the past. As owner of an antique store, she was drawn to anything old and laden with history. She was at a good place and completely in love with her fiancée Will Myles but the discovery of an old photo dated 1912 ripped her from everything she knew and into the world of Étienne Lacroix, the mysterious man on the photo.
I very rarely like book heroine because they’re often lacking certain aspects compared to the hero. That’s not the case in this book. Serene was the hero who carried the story with strength and grace – well her version of grace :p
Étienne was everything a hero should be. He was smart, ambitious and protective. What I love the most about him was his slight uptightness that made him endearing.
I started this book not knowing what to expect. There were some parts earlier that felt slow but it ended up consuming me completely.
I love every moment of the past scenes. As someone who love old objects and architecture, I could easily relate to Serene’s passion. Through the author’s words, I lived the era and walked through the hallways of Belgrave.
The storyline was captivating, I couldn’t put it down. There were quite a number of characters to keep up with but the mystery, suspense and angst (and sexiness) propelled the story from the first page to the last.
The Surviving Trace is an evocative tale of love that transcends time. It would appeal to readers looking to be swept by a time travel romance.