Costumes for Time Travelers by A.R. Capetta
Published by Penguin Random House on May 27, 2025
ISBN: 1536233714
Genres: Adventure, Fantasy, LGBTQ+, Romance
Format: Young Adult
Source: MSL Book Review
Goodreads

Calisto (they/them) lives in Pocket, the town that all time travelers but one must pass through on their way to any other when. They love their town, their family, and their job at their grandmother’s shop, Costumes for Time Travelers. Despite Pocket being only a stop on the journey for most travelers, Calisto never wants to leave.

Fawkes is the exception to the rule: somehow, and nobody quite knows why, Fawkes can travel to any when without passing through Pocket. In fact, he’s never been there until now. When Fawkes and Calisto meet, it’s the first time for Calisto, but not for Fawkes, who has been dipping in and out of time for his entire life, and therefore already knows at least some of what the future has in store for the two of them.

Unfortunately, Fawkes doesn’t arrive in Pocket alone: he’s being chased by Time Wardens, who see time travel as an aberration that must be stopped, no matter who or what that will erase. Not only Fawkes himself, but all time travelers – and Pocket itself – are at risk.

Fawkes and Calisto must rush through whens and wheres from the modern Stanford campus to ancient Greece on a mad dash to save what they love. Including, it turns out, each other.

Costumes for Time Travelers is an engaging, original story that feels like a tumble thorough childhood – playful, magical, and just the right mix of fantasy, adventure, villainy and a touch of pure love. Calisto and Fawkes are likeable, complex characters and secondary characters are well thought out and three dimensional. The world-building is deftly developed. A beautiful cover makes it an eye-catching addition to the shelf.

Highly recommend for older MG and teen readers who love adventure, fantasy, good/evil storylines, and gentle romance.

5 stars/cream

– Jenny Martinez Nocito, Maine State Library, Augusta