Five stars all the way!!! I got an advanced reader copy from NetGalley and loved it. Dan is a typical 16 year old, and he acts like how a teenager would act, and that made him wonderful. So many books try to take a teenager and make them act like an adult, but Dan was a naive kid and had to figure out how to live in Saxon England. Cannot wait to read more books about Dan.

I will say that this book will probably be great for anyone who doesn't read much historical fiction and wants to get into the genre.

Personally, I was constantly annoyed with the author, writing a stereotype of a teen that is never thoughtful or smart - book smart, sure, but without common sense. Teens are not ALWAYS spiteful and emotional, plus considering the fact his father trained him in all things medieval, not telling Dan why "to protect him" made zero sense. The backstory for the female sidekick was shallow, unimaginative, and yet again told with stereotypical judgmental teenage spite.

The historical side was okay, but not very immersive, lacking in detail and world building. The actual storyline is compelling however. Overall the story has potential, and a more casual reader will probably enjoy it. I might continue reading.

Dan is just your regular homeschooled 16-year-old who knows more about medieval history than most. He comes home one day and finds someone attacking his father, and in his attempt to save him, he accidentally time-travels to England in 1066. While struggling to stay alive, he meets someone else like him who explains the only way they can find their way back home is to save history from those who are trying to alter its course. Can Dan find the glitches that will keep history intact and allow him to find his way home?

I loved the concept of this read, but it didn’t quite live up to my expectations. This reads as much more Middle Grade than Teens/YA – the writing was very simple and repetitive, and the plot felt quite linear and bland. There were some more adult themes discussed (e.g., child abuse, murder, etc.) that wouldn’t necessarily be suitable for young readers, which makes this book a weird mix that’s difficult to enjoy. Also, there were many instances where the book felt repetitive, which took away some from my interest in it.

The characters weren’t that interesting overall. While they were developed enough to not feel completely flat, they didn’t have enough real personality or agency to be compelling. Dan is also supposed to be 16, but instead it reads as if he’s 11 or 12. He’s constantly getting into trouble, but there’s no tension or real fear that anything is going to happen until a bit near the end. The setting wasn’t immersive as there were minimal descriptions included – for a time-travel novel, there should be more interesting cultural details included than some brief mentions of swords and spears. There was no real explanation of the time travel mechanism, and there were several other plot points that just happened without explanation, which was unsatisfying.

I didn’t enjoy this read, though it might still be enjoyable for young readers. My thanks to NetGalley and Imbrifex Audio for allowing me to read this work, which will be published in March 2023. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

It’s so refreshing to read an exciting, age appropriate YA fiction. This book had me hooked from the start and was a quick and easy read. Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with an audio version of this book. I look forward to book number 2.

The audiobook of this one is super enticing!
The story is enjoyable and the journey unforgettable!
It was very intriguing to me as a time travel story lover, and it's really YA, so if that's not to your liking, you may not enjoy it as much.. The history in this one is as accurate as cam be to my knowledge, which is humble.
I loved the theme of this book, the unique concept and the pace of this story!
I’m intrigued to read the next book in the series, I found the writing moderate but the action of the two battles interesting!
I had the chance to listen to the audiobook, so I won't be typing any names because they're quite a mouthfull and I suspect I will butcher them completely, lol.
I recommend the audiobook for sure!
Thanks to NetGalley, Imbrifex Books, and Andrew Varga for an ARC-audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

Daniel Renfrew thinks that his life is boring. He’s homeschooled and spends most days learning random in depth history facts his dad is teaching him as well as combat training and medieval weapon training. . All useless to Daniel or so he thinks. But one day a man shows up at his house and confronts his dad about some sort of device that his dad has and joining him. It’s a strange rod, a rod Daniel is instructed to hold and say a bedtime rhyme hid dad taught him. As his dad lies there Daniel obeys and is transported. He opens his eyes and is in a forest seemingly far from home not just in distance but in time. Daniel realizes with the help of a new friend named Sam, that his device is a jump device that gives the user the ability to travel through time. His family, his dad, is part of a long line of time travelers that right wrongs throughout the timeline of history. The only way for Dan to get home is to figure out what is wrong in medieval Europe. Unfortunately for Dan, there is a ban of time travelers who are tired of saving the world and have banned together to take over the world. Dan and Sam and the friends they make along their journey are determined to right history and this restore themselves to their rightful time in history. Battles are raging, few people can be trusted but all the training Dan’s father instructed him in comes in handy in navigating this new medieval world he finds himself in. The story moves quickly there are some key medieval battles mentioned which is a nice springboard into other topics to cover through this time period.

Following his father’s (probably) dying advice, Dan Renfrew finds himself transported to England in 1066. Dan is a time jumper, a lineage of people who jump back in time to correct glitches and breaks in the time stream to keep the present as it should be. To get home alive, he must restore history and stay one step ahead of another group of time jumpers intent on changing the future.

I absolutely devoured this book! I can’t wait to find out what happens next in the series. Mark Sanderlin did a great job narrating the audiobook. I really liked that they addressed that the language difference that would exist between the year 1066 and today; that is a detail that so many time-travel books overlook. If you like history and/or time travel novels, I highly recommend checking out this YA book!

Many thanks to NetGalley for providing me an audio ARC of this book.

During my early teens there were two TV shows that I remember our local English channel aired for adolescent/teenage viewers: Myth Quest and Spell Binder. These shows were basically about teenagers who somehow find they are able to transport themselves to different events in ancient/early history with the help of an object that assists them in time travelling. They weren't groundbreaking shows but were fun to watch while they lasted and it was the same case with listening to the audiobook version of this book. During their time travelling adventures, the teenagers on these shows show a gradual growth in their maturity levels and survival skills when they are faced with certain situations and hopefully we will get to see the same for Dan Renfrew as the series progresses.

My thanks to NetGalley, the audiobook publisher Imbifrex Audio and the author Andrew Varga for the audio Arc of the book. The book has been narrated by Mark Sanderlin.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐💫

A great first book for a promising new series.

The Last Saxon King delivered all the time travel series bells and whistles for me. Even more exciting, it just may be a new YA that boys can get into. And with a strong set up for multiple layers of ongoing intrigue, it will keep YA readers coming back for more.

The set up is that Dan is a teen who’s been home schooled in old-school things, like history and sword wielding mastery. Then his Dad is attacked before his eyes, and with a few whispered words and a hot stick (my name for it), Dan finds himself whisked back to another time and place. And he finds, as he goes, that his Dad is a time-traveler who’s possibly involved int both setting time right and a time war. Regardless, Dan’s task, if he wants to go home, is to reset the Saxon disaster on 1066, and keep it coming.

Dan’s voice is pitch-perfect, and the world is easy to get involved in, as are the friends and enemies he makes along the way. A very promising Book 1, and definitely on my short 2023 highly anticipated list. Narration is quite good, too, if occasionally stilted.

Thank you for a copy of the audio in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed the book. Although a time travel novel, the authors main focus is on the two plots instead of going into all of the technical knowledge of time travel. We still learn a bit about it, but instead of in-your-face here’s everything about time travel, we learn the simple mechanics along with the main character.

Along with this, the author does a good job balancing the two plots, the glitch that Dan has to fix in 1066 and the rogue time jumpers. We move though the book without being over come by both plots but also, both plots are not lost to one another and work off of each other.

I am looking forward to the next book to see where and when the story takes us.

I LOVE time travel books, and this series will now be at the top of my "search for the next one" list. I cannot wait to see what is in store for Dan!

Dan, the main character, returns home to find his father is being attacked. Little does he know when he chants the words to the bedtime ritual verse he has been saying since he was a small child do when he grabs a mysterious object from the floor near his father's attacker.

The history followed in this novel is wonderful. There are so many events (which have been highly researched for accuracy based on the Historical Notes at the end of the book) of which I was unaware. The details of the interaction Dan has with the various individuals is not only interesting but exciting.

Varga has created the start of a wonderful series I look forward to reading.

deff not my favorite. I was hoping for a bit more suspense. I did finish it but I am not sure I would recommend it to anyone. it fell a little flat for me.

Many thanks to Netgalley, Imbrifex Audio and the author, for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
The last Saxon king is the first in the A jump in time series. The book follows the story of Dan who is homeschooled by his dad and lives a secluded life away from his peers. He spends his free time wandering around the mall and one da when he comes back home from one such trip, he finds his dad injured and attacked by a man who he did not recognize. While trying to do what his dad asks him to do, he end up time jumping to the anglo-saxon age. As he struggles to fit in and find a way back home, he realises the only way that can be done is by finding out the break in history and fix it.

I will be honest I picked up this book, only and only because I am a huge fan of Legends of Tomorrow and the blurb gave off the same vibes. The story was fast paced and happening. However, some parts of it just did not make sense to me. Now I am not an expert in anglo-saxon era or the languages or the way they spoke, but I am pretty sure they would not start a conversation with 'hey, dude'! I am not kidding, when I heard that in a dialogue, I couldn't stop laughing. Such inconsistencies in dialogue did effect my reading experience a tad bit. Other than certain impossibilities in dialogues, like that, the rest of the story was very enjoyable. It was highly dependent on history as our MC's are obviously tring to fix it, so I guess if I was more aware of the said history I would have enjoyed it much more.

The narrator was pretty brilliant in potraying the conflicting feelings of a teenager thrust into an unknown world, set out to complete an impossible task.

Overall, I enjoyed the book and look forward to reading more of Dan's adventures.

TW: Death, war, blood, gore, assault, sexism, misogyny, sexual assualt

Thank you for NetGalley, the publisher Imbrifex Audio and the author Andrew Varga for my advanced copy of the last saxon king audiobook.

The book starts in recent times with Dan our main character wandering the mall. Dan is 16 years old, home schooled and living with his dad. As the story continues, we are left with a cliffhanger for the entire book as to what happened to Dan's father before Dan time jumps to the past at 1066 AD to be specific.

The story is beautifully written and the world build was good. I would have loved to know more history wise but not complaining here. The book does keep you on your toes to what happens next so you're immersed in the story and cannot put this down.

I loved the relationship between Dan and Sam (whom we meet in 1066 AD).

This is a historical fiction with time jump. for all the time jump fantasy books out there, this is for you.

In general, I really liked the book and would definitely read the second one and cannot wait to find out what happens next.

I accepted a free copy of this book and audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

What a fun young adult story! Even as a person far too old for most YA, I enjoyed this very much.

The characters, pacing, arc, and overarching plot were engaging, the writing is plain but good, and familiarity with the historical period in which much of the book is set did not sour the enjoyment.

I’m looking forward to future installments. This is the sort of book series I’d buy for the young people in my life.

The audiobook is well narrated. I split my read between text and audio.

A fast-paced time-slip young adult historical fiction fantasy with a dash of romance sprinkled in. Strong female second lead compliments the male lead well with age-appropriate snark. Fantasy is not usually my wheelhouse, but I've been pulled to time-jumping novels recently. This was a better written one with well-rounded characters and plenty to build on for a blossoming series. Well narrated throughout. Can hardly wait for the next in the series coming September 2023!

4 stars. I enjoyed the story, I thought the dive into a lesser known battle was well done and this would be fantastic for middle schoolers studying history. I even thought it might be good for our homeschooling curriculum next year. The characters are likable and the book ending closed up the story while also setting up the series. My one gripe is the romance. It was unnecessary, it was a little ridiculous, and it didn't add to my enjoyment of the story. It's a whole series, you can take your time with the romance.

Timeline is one of my favorite movies and this definitely gave me the same vibe. I'm very excited this is the first in a series and not a stand alone. Very curious to see where Dan and Sam will go next!!

I was absolutely blown away by this book! Andrew Varga’s writing is truly something special. This is the first book in a new series called A Jump in Time. The sequel can not come soon enough.

Dan has been training his whole life to be a time jumper but he didn’t even know it. Dan comes home to find his dad in danger and by listening to his dad he is brought back in time to England in 1066. At this point he meets Sam another time jumper and he starts to learn about what needs to happen to go home.

Time jumpers are a group of people that need to fix glitches in history so we can stay on track to protect the present and future. When time jumpers are in the past they can not return to the present until they fix the glitch.

I loved watching Dan and Sam get to know each other and how they had each other's back. All the characters that they run into were all great. There was not a poorly written or bad character in the entire book.

This served as an excellent entry point into a series and sets up the next installment perfectly. I can’t recommend this book enough and I can not wait for the sequel.

Looking at this book through the lens of adult fiction it gets 4 stars. Under the YA banner a strong 5 stars, easily. I enjoyed this it was a fun read, after I think the third chapter. Once it opens up and reveals the plot it was a fun read. Fast paced and simple, but not in an insulting way. I thoroughly recommend this for a young adult audience or someone just looking for a quick read that just wants to relax and not think too much. I will be looking for the next books in the series.

Arc provided by netgalley