Skipshock
Caroline O’Donoghue
Walker Books
Published June 3, 2025
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About Skipshock
Set in a universe where time is key to power and privilege, this dazzlingly inventive, genre-defying fantasy romance is the first in a duology by best-selling author Caroline O’Donoghue.
Margo is a troubled schoolgirl. After the death of her father, she’s on her way to a new boarding school in a new city.
Moon is a salesman. He makes his living traveling through a series of interconnected worlds on a network of barely used train lines.
They never should have met. But when Margo suddenly appears one day on Moon’s train, their fates become inextricably linked. If Margo wants to survive, she has to pass as a traveling salesman, too—except it’s not that easy.
Move north on the train line and time speeds up, a day passing in mere hours. Move south and time slows down—a day can last several weeks. Slow worlds are the richest you live longer, your youth lasting decades. Fast worlds are sharp, cruel, and don’t have time for pleasantries. Death is frequent. Salesmen die young of skipshock. That is, if they’re not shot down by the Southern Guard first.
As Margo moves between worlds and her attachment to Moon intensifies, she feels her youth start to slip between her fingers. But is Moon everything he seems? Is Margo?
Told through the eyes of both naive Margo and desperate Moon, the unforgettable realm of Skipshock will shake the way you think about love, time, and the fabric of the universe. The first in a planned duology from the best-selling author of the Gifts series, this utterly original epic is a must-read.
My Review
I really like how different this book is than a lot of the other YA fantasy that’s out right now. This is almost sci-fi adjacent. There’s a train that can jump from one world to another, and it’s tightly controlled by a coalition government. There’s another important piece of tech. The story doesn’t deeply explore how the train works; its really something the characters take for granted, and I didn’t mind that. I think if the story had centered that element more, that would have pulled into more of a sci-fi direction, and I’m not sure whether that would have been a good thing.
Moon and Margo visit other worlds with days of different lengths, some as short as 2 hours and others longer. Jumping from world to world too often causes a condition called Skipshock, and once someone starts experiencing the symptoms, it progresses quickly. This created some intense stakes. As Moon got sicker, I worried so much that every jump to a new world would be his last.
I also like how young this story feels. There’s a lot of fantasy marketed as YA that doesn’t feel as anchored in the teen experience as this does. Margo is still in school. She keeps having these moments where she has to take a breath, because here she is faced with saving the world, and she’s still a child. She also confronts Moon about his youth, and especially about his feelings of guilt over something awful he did as a child. I felt like the book stayed aware of itself or its audience more than some of the other books marketed as YA fantasy that I’ve read this year. I really appreciated that.
Margo and Moon have such a sweet relationship, too. It’s a bit obvious from the setup that there will be romance blossoming between them, but I loved the way that played out and how sweet they were with each other.
Skipshock has at least one starred review, and I feel zero surprise about that. It’s a fresh, interesting story with high stakes and an adorable romance. I’m here for wherever this series goes next.
Content Notes
Recommended for Ages 15 up.
Profanity/Crude Language Content
Strong profanity used infrequently.
Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing. Brief nudity. One scene leads up to a sexual encounter, then fades to black.
Spiritual Content
The story world involves lots of different worlds connected through special, highly controlled train lines. Moon is part of a race of people called Lunati, who celebrate faith traditions relative to the full moon.
Violent Content
Situations of peril. A man hits another man with the butt of a gun. References to arson. One instance of arson killed a group of people. Moon begins experiencing symptoms of Skipshock, a progressive medical disorder that is fatal, unless caught early and treated. A battle between soldiers and rebels causes fatalities. A bomb kills several people and injures others. Someone appears to have been beaten by soldiers. Moon endures racist comments and prejudice about his identity as one of the Lunati.
Drug Content
Characters drink alcohol in a couple scenes.
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