Rick Riordan presents a brilliant sci-fi romp with Cuban influence that poses this question: What would you do if you had the power to reach through time and space and retrieve anything you want, including your mother, who is no longer living (in this universe, anyway)?

In order to heal after his mother's death, Sal learned how to meditate. But no one expected him to be able to take it further and "relax" things into existence. Turns out he can reach into time and space to retrieve things from other universes - even his mom! He has promised his dad and stepmom that he won't bring back his mother anymore (it causes a lot of marital tension), but sometimes, he can't help himself. Why can't they all just get along?

Sal doesn't talk about his ability with anyone. At Culeco, his performing arts middle school, he just chalks it up to being a magician. But when he meets Gabi, the student council president and editor of the school paper, he realizes she is someone with whom he can work. She could use his help, too, because she has a newborn brother on life support.

But just because Sal and Gabi can do some interesting things to improve lives, does that mean they should? When things get out of hand, it's going to require some truly out-of-the-box thinking to set things right.