I'll say right off the top that I loved this story. Time travel stories are all about the motivation, and in this case it's a gorgeously told tale. Kat is a child actor, performing in a play based on a videogame, that is in turn based on a murder mystery set in 1978. She goes to the scene of the murder to gather background for the character she is performing. Some characters live, and some die--her character is one of the victims.
Kat is a sixteen year old playing a twelve year old, and that makes a lot of difference in the story. Because she gets sucked up in a time machine one of the characters built (by accident, it was supposed to be a space bender) and is deposited back in 1978.
There's a lot of interesting nostalgia about that time--being kind of old I am personally familiar with it. Lots of junk food (that has not changed, though the character stays away from it to maintain low weight), unaccompanied children, no cell phones--it's an odd world for her. Interesting to see the surprise at how that time was, reflecting on the difference between what I remember and how things are now.
The story centers on the relationship between Kat and the IRL version of the character she is playing, Sissy. It is beautiful and complex, and weaves well into the mystery story as Kat tries to solve and prevent the murders, even as she risks changing the future in unknowable ways. We get some time travel paradox and it is central to the resolution but not the story.
This should have gotten more respect. It didn't get on the major (Hugo, Nebula) ballots and finished somewhat low on Locus.
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