Locked in Time

Written by Lois Duncan

Narrated by Jaselyn Blanchard

Nore Roberts didn't ask for a new life, but now that her mom is gone and her dad is newly married, she has to settle in at Shadow Grove, the old Civil War mansion her stepfamily calls home. When she meets her stepmother, Lisette, Nore is shocked by her youth and beauty that gives her chills- and a hint of something sinister. There's hope of becoming friends with her stepbrother and sister, until Nore realizes they're hiding something. When she begins to feel like the target of a deadly plan, Nore starts digging into her stepfamily's past. The skeletons in their closet are more real than she ever imagined. Can Nore expose her stepmother's dark secret before an old and evil magic swallows her up?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Hachette Audio
• Release date: Oct 3, 2011
• ISBN: 9781609418113

Lois Duncan

Lois Duncan is an acclaimed suspense author for young adults. She has published nearly 50 books for children, including <I>I Know What You Did Last Summer</I>, which was adapted into a highly-successful horror film, and <I>Who Killed My Daughter?</I>, a non-fiction book about the harrowing experience of her daughter's murder. Lois was the keynote speaker at the 2010 NCTE Convention.

Reviews for Locked in Time

[lynnmpk · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is my favorite Lois Duncan book that I’ve read so far. It was atmospheric and unsettling. I loved the setting of the Louisiana bayou, and the ending actually felt complete and not rushed.

[cahallmxj · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Locked In Time: Revenge can last forever...

The Setup (Overview):

A young woman named Nore is visiting her father for the first time since he remarried. The remarriage was something that took Nore by surprise since her mother had passed away not long before and her father still seemed to be lost in his grief. Though she did not entirely approve, Nore gave her father the benefit of the doubt as the new marriage seemed to pull him out of the depression that had consumed his life. In order to welcome her into the new “family” and introduce her to her stepmother, Lissette, her father invites her to Louisiana to spend her summer vacation getting to know everyone at Lissette's family estate which is known as Shadow Grove. While the initial meeting is a bit tense, Nore soon finds that Lissette and her two children are not really that bad. Everything seems to be going well until Nore starts to notice that the family seems to be a little too out of touch with the modern world...

The Story(Some Story Details):

Nore first notices the time frame difference in conversations with the family. Lissette's children speak of events that happened twenty years before as if they saw what happened first hand. Yet one child is only twelve and the other is seventeen. There are other occurrences where people in town swear that they have seen Lisette before, somewhere. As Nore continues to investigate it seems that she is dealing with something that is not possible. What Nore doesn't realize is that some people make terrible mistakes and will do anything to keep those mistakes secret. Even if it means making sure that those that go snooping into the past will soon become part of it.


Conclusion(My Overall Opinion on the Story):

This was a short, interesting read. The story flows well and for the most part makes sense. The characters are well written and even though the effects of what ails Lissette's family are not really explored in detail there are a few scenes with Lissette's children that do give a glimpse of what being “locked in time” has done to them. Even though Lissette's family has resigned themselves, mostly, to their fate; they do still try to give Nore a way out, even though she can't really take the offers because of her father.

This is where I have a slight problem with the story though. Or maybe it just comes from having read other stories that are like this that have the room to explore that side of the story. I get that Nore, understandably, is not willing to give Lissette's family the benefit of the doubt due to the events of the story. Some of Nore's action's come across as tone deaf towards the end of the story to me though. Even though Lissette's children seem apathetic towards the events, they do *try*. Nore just kind of bats them away instead of trying to listen. In the end, strangely, Nore does do her best to help in a way. It just came across as too little, too late to me.

In the end I do recommend giving this a read. I t does have a couple of twists in it and it does pack a lot in for a shorter story. I recommend this to anyone who likes supernatural mysteries, thrillers, and books where the “bad guys” might be worthy of some sympathy too. m.a.c

[sscarllet-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I read this book when I was a teenager and small bits of it stuck with me. Just a few weeks ago with help from the forums here I found it again and reread it.

I didn't remember much of the story, so it was like reading a new book. It was just as captivating the second time around as it was the first. I know that this is a book that I will revisit every few years.

[sml95 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Locked in Time features the concept of immortality by applying it to an exceedingly interesting plot line full of suspense and secrecy.

Locked In time is about a girl named Nore who has just come home from boarding school and is to spend the summer with her dad and his new wife. Her stepmother and step-siblings seem nice yet have a mysterious air about them. Something is strange about her new family members as suspicious things keep occurring such as that they keep making allusive references to the fact that time doesn’t matter and that they will remain the same. Finally Nore discovers that her stepfamily does not age when she finds journals dating back to the 19th century. They belong to her stepmother, Lisette Berges. She is then at a race with time for she leans the fate that they have in store for her and her father.

Locked in Time is one of my all time favorite books. It is not particularly hard nor does it have overly sophisticated wording but it does make for a great read. There is much suspense in this book and the imagery is amazing. Lois Duncan is great at creating setting/atmosphere and makes it seem as if you are actually there. Additionally the characterization is great; all the characters are well thought out and developed. The main character Nore is smart, witty, and is easily relatable.

[rockstarninja_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is one of those books that I read in Jr. High and for some reason it has always stuck with me.

[christinachiara · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

locked in thime is about a girl who's mother had died and her father just couldn't handle it so he sent her to milatarey school.when she comes back from school,it apear's her father has a new girl friend and step family.she senses something kind of scary about this family.how come they talk about a circus fire that took place 50 years before as if they were there? how come all of the elderly people in the neighbor hood seem to say that they look exactly like a family they used to know way back when?go threw the suspence of the story by reading it.

[librarianlou · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

There's something mysterious about Nore's new stepfamily. Why would they want to kill her?

[oceanbreeze217 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Great suspense story. One of my personal faves.