Books With Dual Timelines
Two or more timelines double the drama in these books.
The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin
In a world wracked by catastrophic geologic change, three women — one barely more than a girl — born with the power to control their environment face a hostile society that fears them.
I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson
Twins Jude and Noah grow up inseparable, but a few years into young adulthood, they’re not even speaking.
The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan
Why is your mother so impossible? This book flashes between the lives of American daughters and Chinese mothers, answering that question.
Americanah by Chimanada Ngozi Adichie
Ifemelu and Obinze hope to escape from Nigeria together but end up in separate places — Ifemelu in the United States and Obinze, undocumented, in London. Fifteen years later, they reunite in their home country.
Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
The timelines in this book about a postapocalyptic Shakespeare troupe focus on life before and after a devastating epidemic.
Kindred by Octavia Butler
A Black woman travels back and forth between 1970s California and antebellum Maryland in this razor-sharp time travel story.
Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly
When Andi discovers the diary kept by a teen girl during the French Revolution, she also discovers that time doesn’t run in just one direction. (Bonus points for Epic Ride! cab driver Virgil. Get it?)
Tom’s Midnight Garden by Philippa Pearce
When the clock strikes 13, Tom is able to walk into the garden and visit Hattie in the past.
Darkmere by Helen Maslin
In the past, young bride Elinor marries the wealthy Mr. St. Cloud and becomes the mistress of Darkmere, gradually realizing that her marriage might not be the happy ending she’d expected. In the present, Kate and her friends plan to spend the summer partying at Darkmere but find a dark mystery instead.
The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch
Lamora's life story plays out in the past — where he trains with the city's criminal royalty to learn their ways — and the present, when he's attempting to pull off the biggest heist of his life.
Seveneves by Neal Stephenson
In the past, a crew of scientists work to keep humanity alive when an extinction-event asteroid approaches the Earth; thousands of years later, the space colonists return to their home planet to find they're not alone.
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