The Promise Of The Gateway by Nick Iuppa and John Pesqueira.
Deep in the drop behind Green Mountain High, Emily Perkins finds a gateway to the past where she’s no longer a nerd, and the school’s superstar quarterback is in love with her. He hasn’t yet suffered the crippling injuries that will ruin his future, and Emily thinks she can use the gateway to save him. But there’ll be a price to pay. Dangerous distractions wait on the other side. Visions of social injustice haunt everyone who returns. And then Emily learns that the gateway can’t be trusted.
5 Stars: Coming Of Age Time Travel Spectacular!
Emily Perkins, the brainy class nerd at Green Mountain High, is the loneliest girl in the school. She eats alone, spends her break time alone, and is shunned by most of her classmates. She’s also secretly in love with the school’s former super-star quarterback, Jake Kane… even though his life has degenerated into total failure.
Eight years earlier Jake was clearly destined for a career as a superstar quarterback in the National Football League. He had amazing talent, and real motivation because his family was deep in debt due to his father’s high tech business failures. After rewarding discussions with recruiters from several major universities, everything seems so promising for Jake. He could work it all out, he thought, save his family, and live out his dream. But less than two hours later, his life and dreams were shattered by a tragic career-ending injury.
As the years pass, Jake’s life crumbled even further, from sorrow to uncertainty to bitter withdrawal. His mother convinced him to take a job as the high school janitor. At least he would still be around the school, still remembered and honored by the school’s football players though he felt less and less deserving and more and more bitter the more he saw them.
And then that nerdy girl, Emily Perkins, dared to come into his life. Somehow, she said, she stumbled on a green shimmery phenomenon in the ravine behind the school, and she learned that it was vortex… and a gateway to the past. She’d already traveled through it and thought that it may just allow Jake to go back to the day of his injury, relive it, and undo the tragic event. Jake was skeptical, of course, but Emily insisted that they go exploring… together.
From that moment on, the novel deals with both the past and the future, as Jake makes repeated attempts to return to his former life and undo his fate. He soon finds he can’t do it alone. He needs help… and not just help from Emil who is more than eager. He also needs the participation of players on the school’s current team and help from an amazing teacher whose lectures are so powerful that they too are a gateway to the past.
The story’s characters are tied together by Jake’s tragedy, by family bonds, friendship, the teacher’s amazing lectures on social injustice, and their own psychological needs. With them, we face the age-old question of ‘what If?’
What if the Vortex is all Jake needed to go back in time, replay one botched football down, sidestep his injury, and go on to the career that was promised to him?
What if he needs more… to find someone to be injured in his place, perhaps? Would Jake be willing to sacrifice one of his friends to achieve his dream?
And, what sacrifices would you make if you were Jake, or—just as importantly—if you were Emily and suddenly realizing the dangerous consequences of trying to save someone you love.
I invite you to read The Promise of the Gateway… a Coming-of-Age Fantasy that raises important ethical questions for teens and grown-ups alike, and… It’s one heck of a good story.
Editorial Review (Book Marketing Global Network).
Review by Celia: 5.0 out of 5 Stars. The Bonds of Friendship Are Tested Like Never Before. Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on October 5, 2020. Verified Purchase. The destiny of a high school football star collides with that of a shy class nerd in this enthralling tale of time travel and atonement.
Emily Perkins is no stranger to being alone; she eats by herself practically every day in the school cafeteria, and all her classmates think she’s too smart to want company. But little do they know that the truth is entirely different about shy Emily Perkins. So, when Emily discovers a magical gateway into the past where she’s no longer alone, it seems like her life isn’t so bad after all. Even more astounding, the school’s famous quarterback Jake Cane is head over heels in love with her, something that would never happen back in her own time. Emily is happy to keep the gateway a secret until she realizes the dark and miserable future that awaits Cane, and she quickly shares her secret with him in the hopes that it will prevent a terrible event from occurring. But what she doesn’t realize is that Jake Cane has been waiting for a second chance for years, and he’s not about to give it up now…not for anyone. With the two teens at odds over how to best handle the gateway’s potential, there are other more sinister forces at work that neither one of them could have foreseen. Visitors to the past are susceptible to other kinds of time tripping, including dangerous visits to historic moments inspired by a brilliant teacher. With the lives of their friends hanging in the balance, Emily and Jake must race to uncover the secret of the gateway before they overstay their welcome. The authors have debuted many successful books that revolve around friendship, and this one is no different. Indeed, one of the book’s greatest strengths lies in the portrayal of the unshakable bonds between a group of high school teens and their devotion to one another. At the first sign of distress, one of them is always at the other’s side ready to help or defend their friend. It is this emotional connection within the group that makes the plot so arresting and so intriguing. Of course, the elements of time travel and fantasy don’t hurt either, especially when it involves the idea of redemption and second chances. The authors skillfully combine the best of several different topics into one fascinating story – sports, romance, lessons from history, coming of age, regret, jealousy, and friendship are all important parts of the plot that are weaved seamlessly into the narrative without seeming baffling or disjointed. And while there is a certain darkness to the storyline, it is actually a rich and seductive twilight that brings to the forefront all the complexities and contradictions of being a human being forced to choose between the past and the future. If you’re looking for a unique work of fiction that touches the heart while also exhilarating the spirit, then you can’t go wrong with The Promise of the Gateway.
Review by Kindle Customer: 5.0 out of 5 Stars. Very Creative. Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on November 27, 2022. Verified Purchase. The twist on time travel was very creative. How many of us have thought, “What if I could go back and change…”.
Review by Got To Read: 5.0 out of 5 Stars. A Great Love Story With Time Travel To Boot. Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on October 6, 2020. Verified Purchase. I really enjoyed this love story of Emily and Jake in High School, then a career ending injury and how they worked together to restore his promising future. I liked the interplay of the other students surrounding the couple, and the interesting side effect of time travel. Such as, the next day in history class, students who had just been through the GATEWAY were transported to important historical events in their teachers lectures. The scenes of social injustice present is in those time-trips were dramatic and very exciting. The book is a great read with interesting characters and lots of action.
Review by Bridget Ball: 5.0 out of 5 Stars. The writing beautifully bridges the gaps of generations in this time travel novel. Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on June 14, 2022. Emily Perkins is an introverted high school student that prefers taking pictures than making friends. One day she is taking photos in the area behind her school when she stumbles upon a gateway to the past. There, she discovers the janitor at her school was once a handsome prize quarterback and ivy league scholarship hopeful until a tragedy on the field made his dreams come crashing down. Thinking she can help; she brings Jake the Janitor to the gateway not knowing how badly he wants a second chance. Jake makes up his mind that he must go back to fix things, but at what cost?
The writing beautifully bridges the gaps of generations in this time-traveling novel. I had a great sense of history and community reminiscent of Back to the Future. The book made me think in greater detail about my hometown from past, present, and future perspectives. This book also reads differently in the wake of the pandemic. The theme of community, family, friends, and lovers is a timeless and ageless tale that will reach you on many levels. It will remind you of the glory days and make you wonder what-ifs.
I would recommend families read this from varying generations: grandparents, parents, and teens as a family book club that could spark some very interesting discussions. This may very well be my favorite book of the year. This is that rare type of book you keep to revisit generations from now and learn the journey’s lessons all over again.
Read More 5-Star Reviews Here:
https://www.amazon.com/Promise-Gateway-Nick-Iuppa/dp/B08KHGGXTS/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1633809043&sr=8-1#customerReviews
Product Details:
Hardcover: 390 Pages
Publisher: Independently Published (May 19, 2021)
Language: English
Fiction (Time Travel)
Fiction (Coming Of Age)
Fiction (Teen and Young Adult)
Amazon Hardcover Print:
https://www.amazon.com/Promise-Gateway-Nick-Iuppa/dp/B095GRT76S/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1633809043&sr=8-1
Amazon Soft-Cover Print:
https://www.amazon.com/Promise-Gateway-Nick-Iuppa/dp/B08KHGGXTS/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1633809043&sr=8-1
About The Authors:
Nick Iuppa is the former: Creative Director of Paramount Pictures’ Digital Entertainment, Head of Apple Computer’s Learning Technologies Group, Writer for the Wonderful World of Disney and apprentice animator on How The Grinch Stole Christmas. He’s the author of 9 novels, 4 technical books on new media, and a humorous compendium of management tactics called MANAGEMENT BY GUILT. Nick’s an avid international traveler, hiker, and adventurer. He and his wife, Ginny, live in the San Francisco Bay Area.
John Pesqueira studies at the University of Arizona, Columbia, and Stanford prepared him for an impressive career in media design and development. His passion for the visual arts and popular culture continue to inform his creative efforts and still inspire his writing and photography. John grew up in the Sonoran Desert and his love of the history, legends, and people of the American Southwest and Mexico remain a major focus of his work. John lives with his wife in Northern California.
Novels by Nick Iuppa and John Pesqueira:
- Alicia Bewitched
- Alicia’s Sin
- Alicia’s Ghost: The Alicia Trilogy Book 1
- Alien Inquisition (The Peacemaker Book 2)
- Alien Mission (The Peacemaker Book 1)
- Alien Inquisition (The Peacemaker Book 2)
- Avenging Adelita
- Esteban Meets Alicia
- Esteban’s Quest
- The Battle For The Alamo Taqueria
- The Promise Of The Gateway
Novels by Nick Iuppa:
- Bloody Bess And The Doomsday Games
- Taken By Witches
- The Sitcom Murders 1: Sexy Sixties Sitcom by Nicholas Victor (aka Nick Iuppa)
- The Witch Within Her
- Species II by Nick Iuppa
Contact Us: We love hearing from our readers and learning what they like or don’t like about our stories. We’d be very grateful if you would send us a quick e-mail and tell us what you think of Alien Mission. We promise we’ll answer personally and directly. Please contact us at the link below to tell us what you think and let us thank you for reading our books. Contact Nick & John at dosmilagrospress@Gmail.com
Author Nick Iuppa’s Websites:
http://www.nickiuppawrites.com/
https://www.nickiuppa.com
http://aliciasghost.com/Welcome.html
https://www.facebook.com/NickVIuppa
Amazon Author’s Page:
http://www.amazon.com/Nick-Iuppa/e/B0032Z5IEI/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_6?qid=1440776251&sr=1-6
Author Nick Iuppa’s Blog:
http://www.nickiuppawrites.com/nickiuppawrites/Nicks_Blogs/Nicks_Blogs.html
Author’s Page At Book Marketing Global Network:
http://bookmarketingglobalnetwork.com/book-marketing-global-network/nick-iuppas-books/
