Stealing Infinity
By Alyson Noël
3.5/5
()
About this ebook
Paste Magazine Pick for Best New YA Books of June 2022
An Amazon Best Book of the Month
“An unputdownable, clever, modern fantasy!” —#1 New York Times bestselling author Tracy Wolff
"Alyson Noel is the queen of the supernatural romance thriller, and her latest is a can’t-miss read—it’s a Da Vinci Code meets Riverdale page-turner!" —#1 New York Times bestselling author Melissa de la Cruz
“Addictive, dangerous, sexy, and magical, I couldn’t turn the page fast enough! Alyson Noël is a mad genius.” —Mary Pearson, New York Times bestselling author of The Remnant Chronicles
“A sizzling story of opulent adventure, forbidden love, and impossible choices, Stealing Infinity is unputdownable.” —New York Times bestselling author Kristin Harmel
“Stealing Infinity is a brilliantly conceived time-travel adventure full of twists and turns, with a romance that had me hooked. A must-read!” —Alexandra Monir, international bestselling author of The Final Six
These days, I’ve been killing it when it comes to letting people down. Now I’ve been kicked out of high school, arrested, and accepted into a remote, off-the-grid school owned and operated by an inscrutable billionaire tech guru.
Gray Wolf Academy is looking for a certain kind of student. Ones that no one will miss. Like me.
Then there’s Braxton. The beautiful, oddly anachronistic guy who showed up right when the trouble started. And he’s a total enigma—which means that I definitely can’t trust him, even if there’s something about him that makes me want to.
They all tell me I have a gift. A very rare gift. And Gray Wolf Academy wants me to learn it. To use it. Because if what they say is true, I have all the time in the world.
And that makes me the most dangerous high school student you’ll never know…
The Stealing Infinity series is best enjoyed in order.
Reading Order:
Book #1 Stealing Infinity
Book #2 Ruling Destiny
Alyson Noël
#1 New York Times bestselling author Alyson Noël has had 9 books on the NYT bestseller list and more than 8 million copies in print. Her books have been translated into 36 languages and have made numerous US and international bestseller lists. Born and raised in Orange County, California, she’s lived in both Mykonos and Manhattan and is now settled back in Southern California. You can learn more about her books at alysonnoel.com.
Read more from Alyson Noël
Infamous Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Blacklist Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Kisses from Hell Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Field Guide to the Supernatural Universe Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related to Stealing Infinity
Related ebooks
Belle Morte Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Garden of Thorns and Light Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Fire and Ice: Faerie Song Saga, #1 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Stricken Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Thousand Years to Wait Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Storm Rises Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsOnce a Witch Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Blind the Eyes: Enter the City of Nightmares Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWar of the Seasons, Book 1: The Human Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Secret Gift: The Queen's Rise Series, #1 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWolves and Daggers: A Red Riding Hood Retelling: The Red Cape Society, #1 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Girl Who Broke the World: Book One - Publishers Weekly Editor's Pick Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCrossbones Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The House of Brides: A Novel Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5What Lay in the Dark Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Last Legacy: A Novel Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Snow So White: Urban Magick & Folklore, #1 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsOn Wings And Ash Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsOf Blood & Roses: Warring Hearts Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Ancient Ones: The Ancient Ones Trilogy, #1 Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Monstrous Heart Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Sing Our Bones Eternal Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBorn to be Magic Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Curse of Ash and Embers Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Scythe and Pen Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Witch of Ellesmere Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsRising Like a Storm Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Hedge Witch: A Threadneedle Novella Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Earth and The Flame Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
YA Science Fiction For You
Uglies Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Monster: A Printz Award Winner Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Do-Over Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Pretties Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Toll Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Thunderhead Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Giver: A Newbery Award Winner Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Cinder: Book One of the Lunar Chronicles Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Gleanings: Stories from the Arc of a Scythe Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Scarlet Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5UnWholly Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Renegades Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Cress Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Program Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Hollow City: The Second Novel of Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Defy Me Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Michael Vey: The Prisoner of Cell 25 Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Supernova Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Restore Me Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Library of Souls: The Third Novel of Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Giver Quartet Omnibus Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Girls with Sharp Sticks Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5We Are the Ants Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5InterWorld Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Reveal Me Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5UnSouled Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Heir Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5UnStrung: An Unwind Story Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Son Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related categories
Reviews for Stealing Infinity
23 ratings8 reviews
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Stealing Infinity by Alyson Noël is such a fun story. Blending a boarding school drama with time travel, a secret organization, and plenty of mystery, it’s a wacky story that I adored. Natasha is a spunky character, the best kind of smart-ass, and what she experiences at Gray Wolf Academy is bonkers. Admittedly, the novel’s beginning is the slowest, as Ms. Noël establishes her characters and educates the readers on numerology and tarot. But once Natasha enters the academy, hold on to your pants! Stealing Infinity is a roller coaster of a book, and I cannot wait to read what happens next!
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Loved it! Fantastic 5 star read. Alyson Noel has been one of my favorite authors for quite a while since I read her Immortal series with Ever and Damon. This is the first I've read by her in a while and she's still one of my faves and writes masterpieces.
Here's the synopsis from Goodreads:
These days, I’ve been killing it when it comes to letting people down. Now I’ve been kicked out of high school, arrested, and accepted into a remote, off-the-grid school owned and operated by an inscrutable billionaire tech guru.
Gray Wolf Academy is looking for a certain kind of student. Ones that no one will miss. Like me.
Then there’s Braxton. The beautiful, oddly anachronistic guy who showed up right when the trouble started. And he’s a total enigma—which means that I definitely can’t trust him, even if there’s something about him that makes me want to.
They all tell me I have a gift. A very rare gift. And Gray Wolf Academy wants me to learn it. To use it. Because if what they say is true, I have all the time in the world.
And that makes me the most dangerous high school student you’ll never know…
This is for sure a lot like Riverdale meets The Da Vinci Code. Natasha and the students at Graywolf Academy are time travelers who are stealing historical artifacts for their headmaster. Nothing and no one are as they seem. It's hard to know who to trust, what to believe, and what to think about everything after Natasha is caught for a crime she didn't commit and taken away to the Graywolf Academy. There is a lot of mystery, intrigue, sci-fi, and fantasy elements along with the lush historical settings. The romance or romance(s) between Natasha and Braxton and maybe between Killian and Natasha. There are definitely swoon-worthy romances with lots of adventure and action.
The ending was a cliffhanger and I can't wait for the next installment of the series. I need it and I can't wait to read more of this amazing story and find out more about everything. The only thing with content/trigger warnings is that the MC experiences an attempted rape/sexual assault. I would highly recommend this if you love Alyson Noel. Time-traveling, found family trope, swoon-worthy romance, YA, lush settings, art, history, and such. Thanks so much to NetGalley and Entangled Publishing/Entangled Teen for letting me read and review this fabulous story. All thoughts and opinions are my own. - Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Oh, this was fun! I am a fan of stories involving time travel so I was really eager to give this book a try. I was hooked by this one right away and liked Natasha a lot. I was never quite sure who could be trusted and I just couldn’t seem to put the book down because I had to know what would happen next. This turned out to be an incredibly entertaining and exciting story.Natasha is a high school student just doing the minimum amount necessary to get through her day. Ever since her father left, her mother doesn’t seem to care and has become an empty shell. When Natasha meets a new girl at school, she is drawn to her and eager to go along with any of her ideas. When she gets in trouble, she is whisked away to Gray Wolf Academy which is a totally different learning environment. She grows close to Braxton and a couple of other students as she works to try to fit in. Things ramp up as she learns about the real mission of the academy.This book was so hard to put down. There were quite a few surprises worked into the story and I loved the fact anything could really happen at any time. I loved the way that time travel was worked into the story and I enjoyed the fact that there were a few puzzles to solve along the way. This book really had a little bit of all of the things that I hoped for and I am looking forward to reading more of this series just as soon as I can get my hands on it.I received an advanced review copy of this book from Entangled Teen.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Stealing Infinity by Alyson NoelStolen Beauty series book 1. YA/NA fantasy. Time travel. Cliffhanger. Natasha’s home and school life has taken a turn for the worst. She follows a friend, cutting school and ends up on a remote island boarding school training for the unimaginable. Nat must travel back in history and steal a specific item and make it back to the door before is closes and she’s stuck.School type cliques and isolation. A friendly boy you fear has an ulterior agenda. A strict father figure that cares only about the end results. Stealing priceless items from history. Threats and manipulative behaviors. The story starts slowly and becomes interesting after 25% and more intense as it progresses. But bottom line I do not like the premise of approved stealing. Even when its cloaked in subterfuge and possibly altruistic sharing. The writing does flow and keeps the reader immersed in the second half with twists and turns. I received a copy of this from NetGalley.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A fun adventure with time travel (think 1700s), thievery, a secret island academy, the Antikythera Mechanism, magic, and futuristic technology. This is very much a young adult read with both sci-fi and fantasy elements.
WARNINGS: Attempted Rape (the main character is almost raped, but fights the attacker off), kidnapping, parental neglect
It’s the first in a series and while it doesn’t quite end on a cliffhanger, many questions are yet to be answered and many plotlines yet to come to a head. Nothing’s really resolved at the end. This book really wouldn’t work as a stand-alone.
The main character, Natasha, is likeable, intelligent, pragmatic, and a little bit morally grey. Between Natasha and some intriguing mysteries yet to be explained, I’m drawn in enough to want to read book 2 despite the lack of resolution at the end of book 1.
THE PREMISE:
Natasha’s just a (mostly) normal 17 year old. After her father left and never came back years ago, her mother basically checked out and gave up, they’ve been barely getting by, and Natasha basically stopped trying and let her grades plummet. Then, things get weird. Natasha gets framed for theft and extorted into attending a reclusive trillionaire’s mysterious Gray Wolf Academy on an island in the middle of nowhere.
Now, Natasha’s terrifying and seemingly random bouts of seeing through time that her father told her to always keep secret are back, she’s already made one enemy among her classmates, and the Grey Wolf Academy clearly teaches students things far more strange and dangerous than a typical high school curriculum, like sword-fighting, thievery, horseback riding, and the fundamentals of general relativity and space-time. The trillionaire running the school says he expects her to help complete his life’s ambition (no pressure or red flags there). Now, Natasha’s trying to rise up ranks at the academy, deal with a crush on the ever-secretive Braxton, and figure out what the academy is for and what the trillionaire head of the academy is really after.
It’s not all bad. In exchange for joining the academy, her mother is being financially taken care of. The part of her that loves fine art and aesthetics is in heaven with all the art, antiques, fancy clothes, and expensive decor at Gray Wolf Academy. One thing’s for sure, Natasha’s got her ambition and sense of adventure back, because apathy is a luxury she can’t afford at Grey Wolf and she’s starting to get the sense that there aren’t many ways to leave the academy and none of them are good. Failing is no longer an option.
THE WORLD:
It’s set in a part fantasy, part sci-fi world. On a reclusive tech trillionaire’s island, there are holograms and tons of technology that’s way ahead of the rest of the world. There’s also enchantments and time travel of a yet to be revealed and seemingly magical origin. Natasha seems to have the unique magical ability to see through time and glimpse things from other time periods. Although, she doesn’t have any control over it. There also seems to be some significance placed on numerology and tarot cards that I can only assume is supposed to be somehow mystically related to time, magic, fate, or Natasha’s abities.
THE CHARACTERS:
The main character, Natasha, can be a bit naive at times, but in a way that’s pretty realistic for her age. It’s not enough to really make her stupid (for her age) and she’s still fairly pragmatic, suspicious, and quick on her feet. She’s empathetic and likeable, but also pragmatic and a little bit morally gray. She’s not overly-forgiving, but she also bides her time for an opportunity for revenge instead of being a shortsighted hothead or tipping her hand prematurely. She lies when it’s smart to and she makes her fair share of mistakes. She’s not above being tempted or distracted. She doesn’t lose all perspective and spill all her secrets to the first guy she crushes on. She also doesn’t trust him completely. Natasha also undergoes growth, getting her ambition and sense of adventure back.
You don’t really get to the other characters very well yet, with the exception of Elodie, a classic antagonist that is impressive, pitiable, dangerous, diabolical, and never boring. Every character seems to be at least a bit morally grey, including Natasha. Most characters have a dark backstory for how they came to Greg Wolf Academy, like Natasha.
This book really keeps you guessing about who’s trustworthy and what hidden agendas and secrets everyone on the island has. Everyone seems to be hiding things.
THE ROMANCE:
There’s a bit of not exactly insta-love, but insta-attraction with the main love interest. However, it doesn’t completely overwhelm the main character’s good sense or, so I’m okay with it. (Although, I’m hoping for another love interest in Killian or a new character in book two cause I’m not liking Braxton and his whole mysterious, secretive, I-protect-people-by-keeping-them-in-dark-and-giving-vague-warnings, guy-with-a-dark-tortured-past-looking-for-redeption-by-getting-the-girl shtick. I thought it was weird and creepy that he liked Natasha and gave her a nickname before he even met her because he read her file and basically stalked her at the behest of his boss.)
THE PLOT & ENDING:
It’s a bit predictable at times, but not enough to spoil the major mysteries too much. There were definitely still surprises. The mysteries were interesting and kept my attention.
At times, I thought the pace was bogged down a bit by descriptions of clothes, picking out clothes, and fancy things. The main character had an interest in fashion/fancy things and sometimes these descriptions were relevant to the plot, so it made sense to include them. I’m not really interested in fashion or general fanciness, so I found those (usually brief) digressions a bit boring.
The only major problem with the plot was that it felt…. unfinished. No major plot arcs are resolved. No short-term plot arcs are resolved to give you closure while a long-term arc remains unfinished. You don’t even know what the main antagonist wants or is planning. Add to that a twist introduced at the end of the book that introduced a new plotline and created a mini cliffhanger.
All in all, this book wouldn’t be a complete story as a standalone.This makes it hard to judge the story on its own. It all depends on Book 2 in this series.
I received a free digital advanced reader copy via NetGalley. I am writing this review completely honestly and voluntarily. - Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5I like the concept of this book. The time travel drew me in, and it was done well. What I was not expecting is the tarot cards, which got me excited. I have read a few books that incorporated tarot decks and each one has made me more interested in learning more about tarot. Readers of YA books will want to check out this book for themselves.While I liked the elements of the story, I felt that it moved at a very slow pace. In fact, after a while, I found myself skipping ahead a few times to jump ahead the storyline. Even than the story still was slow. Additionally, I found myself not connecting to the characters as strongly as I had hoped. Sadly, this book was not for me.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Have you ever gotten so mad at a book that you didn’t know what to do?Well, I have. But not because I didn’t like it, oh it was quite the opposite. I loved Stealing Infinity so much that I was mad that the second book is not out yet.Alyson Noel has really outdone herself. This is the first book I have read by her, and man, I am blown away. The depth of characters, the twists and turns, she really knows how to keep a reader on their toes. He passion burns through the pages, pulling the reader in even deeper. I was fortunate enough to receive this ARC, and let me tell you, it did not disappoint. I had to force myself to put down the book in order to get work done, and craved reading it every second I couldn’t. As a whovian, time travel fascinates me. This pleased my little Dr. Who heart, while still being so unique that it truly stands on its own. This work of art is filled with all kinds of plot twists, so much so that you think you have the pieces fitting together, only to find out that the puzzle has changed. My jaw hit the floor more than once, leaving me stunned and intrigued all at the same time.Now onto the characters. All of the characters are deep and complex, some with stories that are hinted at and yet to be revealed. Natasha has only begun her journey, while Braxton is in the throes of his. Natasha has locked away years of her life, only for those chapters to come flooding back with the same mystery and intrigue to her as to the reader. Braxtons past remains mysterious, leading the reader to wonder if he is truly worthy of redemption. Plus, what is the deal with not only Elodie, but the mystery man that shows up near the end throwing us yet another twist? I have so many questions left that I need to know. Truly Stealing Infinity has built a new world that I have high hopes for the rest of the series.I am so grateful to have received this ARC through NetGalley and Entangled Teen. If you have not pre-ordered your copy (I know I have, I cannot wait to get my hands on the physical book to re-read!), it releases June 28, 2022!
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Stealing Infinity by Alyson Noel is about 18 year old Nat who has been kicked out of high school and is now going to Grey Wolf Academy. Nat has a rare gift and the school says they want to help her use it but their intentions aren't what they seem!
It's a fast paced read with a few twists that leave the reader guessing. There's time traveling and a mysterious school that has plenty of people keeping secrets! Nat I'd a great character and the changes she goes through personally were probably one of my favorite things! The plot is complex with lots of layers. The descriptions are rich and vivid! Overall it is an entertaining and intriguing story!