Life Out of Order (Standard Edition)
A Novel
Will be published approx. on 6. October 2026
Book
Hardback
544 pages
978-1-335-00322-5 (ISBN)
Description
Two great loves. A world in chaos. And a life that never lands in order.
Discover the highly anticipated new novel from Audrey Niffenegger, which can be read on its own or as a companion to her multi-million copy bestseller The Time Traveler's Wife.
Alba DeTamble has never lived a life in order. Born with the same rare Chrono-Displacement Disorder as her father, Henry DeTamble, Alba is an involuntary time traveler: she slips unpredictably through decades, carrying the weight of a future she can witness but cannot change. Yet she strives to maintain a normal life: as a gifted violinist, Alba finds refuge in her music, as well as her tight-knit community of artists and activists who fight to take care of each other in an increasingly unstable world.¿
As she dips in and out of time, Alba is haunted by secrets she must keep from those she loves most, including Zach, her safe, supportive anchor in the chaos. Her journey takes her from the riot-torn Chicago streets, to the eerie, timeless “Yellow House” – where she meets Oliver, a handsome fellow time traveler – to the digital corridors of the Museum of Lost Souls, a virtual sanctuary of forgotten memories and lost artifacts. Curating the museum is Isadora, Alba’s mysterious stepsister and an increasingly unsettling presence in their family – whose fate may be intertwined with Alba’s in more dangerous ways than she knows.
At once intimate and sweeping, Life Out of Order is a kaleidoscopic tale of love, resilience, and hope amid our fractured world where time itself is the greatest adversary. With every leap through the years, Alba is forced to reckon with the choices that define her, the people she cannot bear to lose, and the question that haunts every time traveler: can you ever truly belong to the present?
Discover the highly anticipated new novel from Audrey Niffenegger, which can be read on its own or as a companion to her multi-million copy bestseller The Time Traveler's Wife.
Alba DeTamble has never lived a life in order. Born with the same rare Chrono-Displacement Disorder as her father, Henry DeTamble, Alba is an involuntary time traveler: she slips unpredictably through decades, carrying the weight of a future she can witness but cannot change. Yet she strives to maintain a normal life: as a gifted violinist, Alba finds refuge in her music, as well as her tight-knit community of artists and activists who fight to take care of each other in an increasingly unstable world.¿
As she dips in and out of time, Alba is haunted by secrets she must keep from those she loves most, including Zach, her safe, supportive anchor in the chaos. Her journey takes her from the riot-torn Chicago streets, to the eerie, timeless “Yellow House” – where she meets Oliver, a handsome fellow time traveler – to the digital corridors of the Museum of Lost Souls, a virtual sanctuary of forgotten memories and lost artifacts. Curating the museum is Isadora, Alba’s mysterious stepsister and an increasingly unsettling presence in their family – whose fate may be intertwined with Alba’s in more dangerous ways than she knows.
At once intimate and sweeping, Life Out of Order is a kaleidoscopic tale of love, resilience, and hope amid our fractured world where time itself is the greatest adversary. With every leap through the years, Alba is forced to reckon with the choices that define her, the people she cannot bear to lose, and the question that haunts every time traveler: can you ever truly belong to the present?
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Other editions
Additional editions
Audrey Niffenegger
Life Out of Order
E-Book
approx. 10/2026
Hanover Square Press
€8.60
Not yet available
Person
Audrey Niffenegger is a visual artist and writer who lives in Chicago and London. Her book art, prints, and paintings are included in the collections of the National Museum of Women in the Arts, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Newberry Library, and the Library of Congress, among others. In 2019, she founded Artists Book House, a non-profit center for the literary and book arts. Ms. Niffenegger was also one of the founders of the Columbia College Chicago Center for Book and Paper Arts. She was a Professor at Columbia College until 2015. She has published eight books, including the novels The Time Traveler's Wife and Her Fearful Symmetry, as well as the graphic novels Raven Girl, The Night Bookmobile, and Bizarre Romance (with Eddie Campbell). The Time Traveler's Wife has been adapted into a film, an HBO television series, and a West End stage musical. Other adaptations include a ballet of Raven Girl, which was created by the choreographer Wayne McGregor in 2013 for the Royal Opera House Ballet.