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colorcrystals's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, Blood, Colonisation, Misogyny, Racism, Homophobia, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Confinement and War
drakoulis's review against another edition
4.0
The universe expanded from the 1st book, and it had its charms, but it also didn't have enough scenes with Danny and Colton interacting, which are the highlight of the series.
The new villains/not-villains were interesting, and Colton's POV is the best part of the book, which sets the pieces in place for the final one!
The new villains/not-villains were interesting, and Colton's POV is the best part of the book, which sets the pieces in place for the final one!
laura_cs's review against another edition
5.0
Read #2, Jan 2019:
Yeah, that cliffhanger is still painful, even with Book 3 literally in my hand.
Read #1, Jan 2018:
Ow, my heart...
So, first of all, a huge warning. This book made me very happy. But it also destroyed my feels. I have not felt this emotional over a cliffhanger since Percabeth fell into Tartarus. But the end of Chainbreaker is a thousand times more emotion-inducing. My feels aren't just hurt, they're currently buried under a pile of formerly-clocktower-shaped rubble. But I did seriously love this book. Danny is broody and sarcastic as always, Colton is still a ray of sunshine, the mythos of this world is further explored as well as the real world during this time period. There’s plenty of action, and adventure, and explosions, as well as cute little romantic parts that make you go ‘Squee!’.
Favorite Part: The developing friendship between Danny and Daphne.
Yeah, that cliffhanger is still painful, even with Book 3 literally in my hand.
Read #1, Jan 2018:
Ow, my heart...
So, first of all, a huge warning. This book made me very happy. But it also destroyed my feels. I have not felt this emotional over a cliffhanger since Percabeth fell into Tartarus. But the end of Chainbreaker is a thousand times more emotion-inducing. My feels aren't just hurt, they're currently buried under a pile of formerly-clocktower-shaped rubble. But I did seriously love this book. Danny is broody and sarcastic as always, Colton is still a ray of sunshine, the mythos of this world is further explored as well as the real world during this time period. There’s plenty of action, and adventure, and explosions, as well as cute little romantic parts that make you go ‘Squee!’.
Favorite Part: The developing friendship between Danny and Daphne.
annie_lulu's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
liliaouros's review against another edition
5.0
Honestly, I couldn't put this book down from the minute I started it and finished it within a day. The story and its characters have sunk their claws into me and I cannot escape. The writing itself definitely isn't extraordinary by any means (I mean this is a YA fantasy and not literary fiction) but Tara Sim definitely has a way of hooking you into her stories so quickly and easily I'm honestly surprised this book doesn't already have a cult following.
If you're looking for a quick and easy read that is still exciting and tense enough with enough emotional points and plot twists to keep you moving forward then this is definitely a must-read.
If you're looking for a quick and easy read that is still exciting and tense enough with enough emotional points and plot twists to keep you moving forward then this is definitely a must-read.
reaganwritesluv's review against another edition
5.0
Heart pounding action and heart wrenching love! I couldn’t wait to listen to the third book, so I downloaded it immediately. Sim has created a fantastic work here.
ajb24's review against another edition
Danny is insufferably stubborn but uhhhhh,,,uuhHHH,,that cliffhanger was UNCALLED FOR !!!
I don’t have other thoughts on the book right now except for that I’m a bit in shock. But I’ll say that 60% of the time Colton/Danny’s relationship is brought up by either of them I’m like....chill...idk man somehow I have a hard time believing their devotion to each other?? Maybe because they’re both teens? (Well. Colton’s age is technically ambiguous but he physically appears like a teenager) I guess their relationship has been going for a year-ish at this point but still...it’s sappy af maybe that’s my issue
I don’t have other thoughts on the book right now except for that I’m a bit in shock. But I’ll say that 60% of the time Colton/Danny’s relationship is brought up by either of them I’m like....chill...idk man somehow I have a hard time believing their devotion to each other?? Maybe because they’re both teens? (Well. Colton’s age is technically ambiguous but he physically appears like a teenager) I guess their relationship has been going for a year-ish at this point but still...it’s sappy af maybe that’s my issue
xnelsen12's review against another edition
5.0
I’ve been sitting on this reader reaction for a couple weeks because I wanted to post it right before its release tomorrow/today (depending on where you are in the world). I requested the ARC from Sky Pony Press and was given an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
I’ll start by giving you a bit of my background with Timekeeper (which was a 5/5 stars for me): I asked for the book for Christmas (2016) because I saw that it was a Steampunk LGBTQ story with a neat cover. That’s basically it. I had low expectations entering because I hadn’t heard much about it other than what I just wrote above. When I was given the book, I devoured it. It was one of those stories that kept me on the edge of my seat until the very end. Chainbreaker was no different.
This review will be less focused on specific points from the novel to avoid spoilers. Instead, the majority will be based on my reactions to the characters, plot, and the ending (which will not give anything away, but it will offer a general mood and my feelings about the ending, so if you would like to skip, stop at the sentence “A bajillion times yes!” halfway through the 4th paragraph).
Although it was the Danny/Colton story that I fell in love with in Timekeeper, it was the solo-Colton and solo-Daphne storylines that kept me hooked to Chainbreaker. To be completely honest, I wasn’t fond of Daphne in Timekeeper. I don’t know if that’s something that Tara Sim had intended before focusing in on her in the sequel or not, but it was a phenomenal shift for me.
When Daphne and Danny are sent to India as two promising clock mechanics to help solve the mystery behind attacks and their consequences, Daphne’s mixed British/Indian identity becomes a focal point of the story. While this wasn’t a huge point in Timekeeper, it becomes a huge part of this novel and probably the part of the novel that I was most intrigued by. Because of Daphne, Tara Sim claims Chainbreaker an #ownvoices story. Recently, a Kirkus reviewer claimed that “mixed-race Daphne’s character does not develop much, despite the fact that her late father had a white English father and an Indian mother and that Daphne’s trip to India plunges her into speculation about her heritage and identity…” Apparently there were a couple details that weren’t entirely in line with the Indian setting, but this in no way affected my reading of it. Granted, I’m not as familiar with Indian culture as I’d like to be, but considering that Daphne is an #ownvoices character, I really think that this is one of the few times I’ll freely write that I do not suggest reading major reviews on this novel before reading it. The critical conversation surrounding race and diverse characters/authors is wildly interesting and vital to all readers, but lately, I think (not that my opinion is worth much) that the overall conversation is steering in a direction that is excluding too many valid characters and writers, especially those that are #ownvoices.
While I loved both the characters and plot in Timekeeper, the plot did fall a bit flat for me in comparison until the very end. The characters, though? They all had me wrapped around their fictional fingers the entirety of the novel. Timekeeper was equally plot and character driven; Chainbreaker felt more driven by characters and opinions. There are definite opinions that serve as foundation for this novel, and while that isn’t for everyone, I loved it. I love that I know what the speaker/writer is passionate about (i.e. equal rights, gun control, etc.). No, maybe not everyone agrees with these opinions, but that doesn’t detract from the power of giving these thoughts to characters in a time when the masses vehemently disagree. That alone gives the story a new level of emotion: we follow characters who may be scared to death of the consequences of following their hearts and who have a much more modern sense of “right” and “wrong.” Of course, these novels are modern, but when I was completely immersed in the story, I didn’t think of it like that. It was just characters fighting for what they believed in decades ahead of their time.
Why did the plot fall flat for me then (until the end)? That’s not something that I like to say without offering an explanation for what may otherwise seem a harsh opinion. It’s not that I didn’t enjoy the plot, but I felt like the plot in this novel was created to advance the characters rather than the actual clock tower story. It did advance the clock tower story! It did but in a way that tied back so closely to the characters that it felt more pre-destined than chance. I guess what I’m saying with this is that it’s entirely up to reader preference on this point. Did I enjoy the plot? Yes. Was it as great as Timekeeper‘s? No, not in my opinion. BUT! Was the end of Chainbreaker wildly more exciting and informative than Timekeeper? A bajillion times yes! [I’ll try to be spoiler free in this next sentence, even though it’s going to be hard…] I don’t know how my opinion on the plot while reading managed to do a complete 180 within a couple chapters, but the realization about why certain things were happening to a certain character (that I had thought were entirely developing that character) transformed into another thick-ass layer of amazing plot that changed EVERYTHING ABOUT THE FREAKIN’ WORLD IN THE SERIES!
And what does Tara Sim do after this life changing and horrific/spectacular realization?
She ends the fucking book.
Pardon my swearing, but I don’t think you’ll understand my emotions until you read Chainbreaker. I’m both incredibly excited about this change (as well as other major changes that occurred but that were not nearly as unsettling) and what it means for the entire world and incredibly shocked. I’m shocked… That’s a great way to put it. I’m shocked that this is what the entire world was like the entire time. Once you read it, there’s no going back. My entire perception of the whole world in the Timekeeper series has shifted to something dark. The series became dark. That added layer of plot is a damn storm cloud that made home over a once mostly-sunny place.
I don’t know what Tara Sim will do in her next novel. I have no clue, but I do know that whatever it is, it’s going to be utterly perfect and devastating.
I’ll start by giving you a bit of my background with Timekeeper (which was a 5/5 stars for me): I asked for the book for Christmas (2016) because I saw that it was a Steampunk LGBTQ story with a neat cover. That’s basically it. I had low expectations entering because I hadn’t heard much about it other than what I just wrote above. When I was given the book, I devoured it. It was one of those stories that kept me on the edge of my seat until the very end. Chainbreaker was no different.
This review will be less focused on specific points from the novel to avoid spoilers. Instead, the majority will be based on my reactions to the characters, plot, and the ending (which will not give anything away, but it will offer a general mood and my feelings about the ending, so if you would like to skip, stop at the sentence “A bajillion times yes!” halfway through the 4th paragraph).
Although it was the Danny/Colton story that I fell in love with in Timekeeper, it was the solo-Colton and solo-Daphne storylines that kept me hooked to Chainbreaker. To be completely honest, I wasn’t fond of Daphne in Timekeeper. I don’t know if that’s something that Tara Sim had intended before focusing in on her in the sequel or not, but it was a phenomenal shift for me.
When Daphne and Danny are sent to India as two promising clock mechanics to help solve the mystery behind attacks and their consequences, Daphne’s mixed British/Indian identity becomes a focal point of the story. While this wasn’t a huge point in Timekeeper, it becomes a huge part of this novel and probably the part of the novel that I was most intrigued by. Because of Daphne, Tara Sim claims Chainbreaker an #ownvoices story. Recently, a Kirkus reviewer claimed that “mixed-race Daphne’s character does not develop much, despite the fact that her late father had a white English father and an Indian mother and that Daphne’s trip to India plunges her into speculation about her heritage and identity…” Apparently there were a couple details that weren’t entirely in line with the Indian setting, but this in no way affected my reading of it. Granted, I’m not as familiar with Indian culture as I’d like to be, but considering that Daphne is an #ownvoices character, I really think that this is one of the few times I’ll freely write that I do not suggest reading major reviews on this novel before reading it. The critical conversation surrounding race and diverse characters/authors is wildly interesting and vital to all readers, but lately, I think (not that my opinion is worth much) that the overall conversation is steering in a direction that is excluding too many valid characters and writers, especially those that are #ownvoices.
While I loved both the characters and plot in Timekeeper, the plot did fall a bit flat for me in comparison until the very end. The characters, though? They all had me wrapped around their fictional fingers the entirety of the novel. Timekeeper was equally plot and character driven; Chainbreaker felt more driven by characters and opinions. There are definite opinions that serve as foundation for this novel, and while that isn’t for everyone, I loved it. I love that I know what the speaker/writer is passionate about (i.e. equal rights, gun control, etc.). No, maybe not everyone agrees with these opinions, but that doesn’t detract from the power of giving these thoughts to characters in a time when the masses vehemently disagree. That alone gives the story a new level of emotion: we follow characters who may be scared to death of the consequences of following their hearts and who have a much more modern sense of “right” and “wrong.” Of course, these novels are modern, but when I was completely immersed in the story, I didn’t think of it like that. It was just characters fighting for what they believed in decades ahead of their time.
Why did the plot fall flat for me then (until the end)? That’s not something that I like to say without offering an explanation for what may otherwise seem a harsh opinion. It’s not that I didn’t enjoy the plot, but I felt like the plot in this novel was created to advance the characters rather than the actual clock tower story. It did advance the clock tower story! It did but in a way that tied back so closely to the characters that it felt more pre-destined than chance. I guess what I’m saying with this is that it’s entirely up to reader preference on this point. Did I enjoy the plot? Yes. Was it as great as Timekeeper‘s? No, not in my opinion. BUT! Was the end of Chainbreaker wildly more exciting and informative than Timekeeper? A bajillion times yes! [I’ll try to be spoiler free in this next sentence, even though it’s going to be hard…] I don’t know how my opinion on the plot while reading managed to do a complete 180 within a couple chapters, but the realization about why certain things were happening to a certain character (that I had thought were entirely developing that character) transformed into another thick-ass layer of amazing plot that changed EVERYTHING ABOUT THE FREAKIN’ WORLD IN THE SERIES!
And what does Tara Sim do after this life changing and horrific/spectacular realization?
She ends the fucking book.
Pardon my swearing, but I don’t think you’ll understand my emotions until you read Chainbreaker. I’m both incredibly excited about this change (as well as other major changes that occurred but that were not nearly as unsettling) and what it means for the entire world and incredibly shocked. I’m shocked… That’s a great way to put it. I’m shocked that this is what the entire world was like the entire time. Once you read it, there’s no going back. My entire perception of the whole world in the Timekeeper series has shifted to something dark. The series became dark. That added layer of plot is a damn storm cloud that made home over a once mostly-sunny place.
I don’t know what Tara Sim will do in her next novel. I have no clue, but I do know that whatever it is, it’s going to be utterly perfect and devastating.
nicolemhewitt's review against another edition
5.0
This review and many more can be found on my blog: Feed Your Fiction Addiction
Chainbreaker brings Sim’s magical steampunk worldbuilding to India, giving us a wider perspective on her imaginative world and sending us on a new and even more complicated adventure!
What Fed My Addiction:
India.
Somehow I started 2018 with two books set in India, a locale I haven’t read much about before. I’ll sadly admit that I knew nothing about India’s history going into this book, so I loved getting some background on the difficult relationship between England and India at that time in history and social norms at the time. (Sim talks in her notes about the historical basis of the book and how she deviates from it for her own alternate steampunk version, which I really appreciated). The book doesn’t delve deeply into this history because that’s not the main thrust of the story, but it’s a great introduction to the subject.
Conflict that isn’t black and white.
Speaking of India, I especially loved how Danny ponders and questions the right and wrong of it all—who are the villains in his life story and who are the heroes? He asks himself this in relation to the rebellion and also in terms of the clock spirits. Danny has had to question his relationship with Colton all along—he knows that they could be putting a town in danger with their love and he has to live with that every day. There are people who are trying to “fix” time (and the situation in India), but are they truly helping? At what cost? Morality is complicated, and Danny has to figure out where he stands.
Colton’s backstory.
We get to learn about Colton’s backstory and origins in this book, and these scenes are fabulous!
Daphne’s cultural voice. In this second book, we get Daphne’s POV (in addition to Colton and Danny’s). Her biggest struggle is the fact that she feels both connected and disconnected to India. She has a deep curiosity about the country because of her Indian heritage, but she doesn’t feel like she belongs there or that she could be accepted there. Knowing that Tara Sim is, herself, half-Indian makes this aspect of the story all the more engaging an realistic.
What Left Me Hungry for More:
Less Colton and Danny (together).
Since Danny and Colton are separated for pretty much this entire book, we miss out on some of the magic of the romance between them. This book wasn’t quite as emotionally compelling for me as the first one was, and I can’t help but think that this might have had something to do with it. (Though it could also be because the “villains” in this story are less personal as well.) I never quite connected to Daphne the way I did Danny and Colton, so her chapters didn’t pull me in as much.
So, while this second installment didn’t quite live up to my adoration of the first, it was still definitely an engaging and exciting story. And Sim set us up for the next book so well that I’m itching to know where it’s all headed! I give this book 4/5 Stars.
***Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. No other compensation was given and all opinions are my own.***
Chainbreaker brings Sim’s magical steampunk worldbuilding to India, giving us a wider perspective on her imaginative world and sending us on a new and even more complicated adventure!
What Fed My Addiction:
India.
Somehow I started 2018 with two books set in India, a locale I haven’t read much about before. I’ll sadly admit that I knew nothing about India’s history going into this book, so I loved getting some background on the difficult relationship between England and India at that time in history and social norms at the time. (Sim talks in her notes about the historical basis of the book and how she deviates from it for her own alternate steampunk version, which I really appreciated). The book doesn’t delve deeply into this history because that’s not the main thrust of the story, but it’s a great introduction to the subject.
Conflict that isn’t black and white.
Speaking of India, I especially loved how Danny ponders and questions the right and wrong of it all—who are the villains in his life story and who are the heroes? He asks himself this in relation to the rebellion and also in terms of the clock spirits. Danny has had to question his relationship with Colton all along—he knows that they could be putting a town in danger with their love and he has to live with that every day. There are people who are trying to “fix” time (and the situation in India), but are they truly helping? At what cost? Morality is complicated, and Danny has to figure out where he stands.
Colton’s backstory.
We get to learn about Colton’s backstory and origins in this book, and these scenes are fabulous!
Daphne’s cultural voice. In this second book, we get Daphne’s POV (in addition to Colton and Danny’s). Her biggest struggle is the fact that she feels both connected and disconnected to India. She has a deep curiosity about the country because of her Indian heritage, but she doesn’t feel like she belongs there or that she could be accepted there. Knowing that Tara Sim is, herself, half-Indian makes this aspect of the story all the more engaging an realistic.
What Left Me Hungry for More:
Less Colton and Danny (together).
Since Danny and Colton are separated for pretty much this entire book, we miss out on some of the magic of the romance between them. This book wasn’t quite as emotionally compelling for me as the first one was, and I can’t help but think that this might have had something to do with it. (Though it could also be because the “villains” in this story are less personal as well.) I never quite connected to Daphne the way I did Danny and Colton, so her chapters didn’t pull me in as much.
So, while this second installment didn’t quite live up to my adoration of the first, it was still definitely an engaging and exciting story. And Sim set us up for the next book so well that I’m itching to know where it’s all headed! I give this book 4/5 Stars.
***Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. No other compensation was given and all opinions are my own.***