I’d never heard of Connie Willis and her time travel series until Keren Form (self-professed mega-nerd) joined me to talk fantasy for all readers on What Should I Read Next. The first book opens on Kivrin, an Oxford University student and the first woman to travel back to the Middle Ages. Her instructors are part of a group of historians who use time travel for the sole purpose of historical preservation and study. Unfortunately, when Kivrin arrives in the past, she contracts a virus that leaves her delirious for weeks, relying on a medieval family to nurse her back to health. At the same time, her advisor is struck down by a virus, making the whole situation ever more precarious. Within this time travel story is a page-turning mystery, witty humor, and a deeply human story about how we care for others over the course of history. Keren also professed love for the next installment, which takes the characters to Victorian England.

Snappy dialogue, a zany cast of characters, and a plot that will warm your heart make this the perfect escape. Francie lands in Roswell, home of the original UFO crash, steeling herself to talk her best friend out of marrying a UFO true believer. But before she can make any progress she's—you guessed it—abducted by a tumbleweed-shaped alien and forced to drive like the blazes across the New Mexico desert. Along the way the duo acquire a merry band of misfits including a charming con man, a little old lady with a secret, a Western-loving retiree, and a UFO-chaser. This was pure delight, but with a backbone.