Outlaws of Time
by N.D. Wilson
Genre: Fantasy
Reason for categorization in this age group: Reading level, violence
Number of Books: 3
Plot Summary
The Legend of Sam Miracle: Twelve-year-old Sam Miracle is in trouble. Big trouble. And it's not just because he lives at St. Anthony of the Desert Destitute Youth Ranch (SADDYR). It's not because his arms were shattered once and healed all wrong so that they're essentially paralyzed (he can't quite recall how that happened...). He's in trouble because he's a time-traveling cowboy and he doesn't even know it. Sam has been yanked through time so often that sometimes, he can't separate his daydreams from reality. It actually turns out that those daydreams aren't daydreams at all, but memories. All throughout time, Sam has died at multiple points at the hands of El Buitre, the Vulture, his enemy. Time-traveling priest Father Tiempo has saved the last Sam Miracle for a purpose: to vanquish the Vulture, once and for all. It's not that easy. Sam can't move his arms, as a result of them being shot up by the Vulture and his henchmen. His mind wanders and he forgets easily because he's been moved back and forth through time so often. What chance does a kid like that have against an enemy like the Vulture? But he knows he's got to try--El Buitre has his older sister, Millie. Along with his friend Glory and with the help of two snakes, Sam reenters his gun-slinging past (or is it future?). With Father Tiempo's wisdom, Glory's determination and Sam's courage, they might just stand a chance at saving Sam's sister and stopping El Buitre.
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The Song of Glory and Ghost: As Sam prepares to face the Vulture once again, a future Seattle is violently ripped into a different time stream. The land is razed by lava and Peter Tiempo is taken. The Vulture has employed the help of two harpy-like, dark creatures who have gone back in time to when Peter was given his powers and are determined to kill the priest. It's up to Sam with his snake arms and Glory with her hourglass to stop the creatures before Peter is lost forever. Glory's powers have grown; she has accepted her role as Mother Time and it seems nothing can stop her, now. With the help of Ghost, the Reaper, the two escape pirates, battle leviathans and come face-to-face with an old enemy.
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The Last of the Lost Boys: El Buitre's creator, Ms. Dervish, has returned to raise up the Vulture's heir. It's fitting that she chooses to chain her watches to the heart of young Alexander Miracle. After a series of strange events, Millie and Jude feel compelled to finally tell Alex that they aren't his parents--that his real parents are, in fact, those very heroes in Jude's books: Sam Miracle and Gloria Spalding. The next morning, Alex has chains and watched dangling from his chest. He and his neighbor Rhonda are scooped up by Ms. Dervish and Alex is thrust into the role of the villain El Terremento. In another time, a young Sam and Glory receive word that the Vulture's heir is on the move. Adventure cascades into nightmare as an older Sam and Glory realize they will have to confront and fight the son they were forced to abandon.