Book Review/ /Ruby Red, Kerstin Gier

Summary: Gwenyeth Shepherd, has an uncanny ability that allows her to see things other people normally don't see. People can communicate with her into the future, which she talks to in the present, but little does she know that she is able to visit the past. 
Her family all shares a mansion in the country of the United Kingdom. Gwen has a typically normal life. Her best friend, Cynthia is bubbly and clever. Her school is an average high school. Gwen's cousin, Charlotte, has been raised her whole life to be prepared for the moment time takes her away. But when Gwen goes missing, the family realizes their mistake, or rather a mystery. The bloodline that they share is a very unique one. Another family, by marriage, also shares this special ability of time traveling. The rule to it though; not every descendant is able to teleport back in time. 
There's a secret that involves the whole family, this secret is known by only one, and it is the first in the bloodline to discover time travel. Each generation has attempted to discover this great secret, but some believe that the knowledge should not be shared. Therefore, the ones that are destined to know the secret are attacked by the ones who wish that it remain unknown.
Gwen has uncovered another secret that has been kept from her ever since she was born. She was meant to be the last descendant to find the founder of the Guardians, the one who holds the ultimate secret, Count Saint-Germain, Gwen's great-great-great-great-grandfather. The Guardians have one mission. And the mission involves the last Ruby of gem in the circle of the twelve time travelers to gather the parts of the mystery and get the great secret. 
The Montrose family clan and the de Villiers are the only families that contain this power to travel back in time. But will the race to the past be achieved with the final truth? Will Gwen be prepared to travel back in time alongside someone whom she doesn't know?

Thoughts: This book captivated me from the start. I read it a very short period of time, not because it was rather short, but because it was fascinating. I wanted to uncover the secret as bad as Gwen wanted to. The characters were authentic and witty. It was a fun read and I am going to enjoy the following books in the series, hopefully, as much as this one. It was very interesting to see how it all was going to play out. The whole Isaac Newton theory and scientific knowledge on time travel was smart. Kerstin chose to unravel the time travel plot with arithmitic theories, rather than the typical magical aspect. 

Genre: Young Adult, mystery, sci-fi, romance

Appropriate Age: 14+

As far as language goes there were several 'd' words such as: da*n and da*m*t
Some innuendos involving the family's tree and flirtation between main characters throughout the book, but nothing too inappropriate. Gwen has a previous boyfriend, who was too affectionate". He was rather forward in affection, trying to "keep Miles's hands [the boyfriend] out of my shirt. She has also kissed another guy in a game of Truth or Kiss. By the time the book began, these relationships were all in the past. 
The time capsule that transports certain characters back in time is powered by blood. Specifically, blood from the descendants. There's talk of taking blood and giving blood with medical tools, but still, if you have a vein phobia, like me, I would've appreciated the heads up.
There are several action scenes and battles, a little gory, but nothing too descriptive. A man gets sliced in half and another gets shot, one of the main characters suffers a bad cut on the arm. 
Another thing I would like to mention was that Gwen's parents decided to birth their daughter in secret, so they hired a midwife to deliver the baby at home. The excuse the parents gave the midwife was because they were apart of a satanic cult and believed in pathological horoscopes. The reason they did this involves the book plot, and I'm afraid I can't tell you that information.