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nell1120's review against another edition
2.0
This book has been on my to read list probably since 2012. I finally got an ebook copy of it on my Kindle.
The premise is actually really interesting, but the execution missed the mark for me. It meandered quite a bit and I felt there was too much in it. The excerpts from the main character's books really sidetracked, and I do see some connection between them and the "real" story, but I did find them distracting. I also didnt really find it that funny. (maybe that's just me?)
Spoiler alert: why did he automatically do what his various future selves suggested, especially the later ones? (The first couple I could kind of understand why he would take up their suggestion, since they shared more details and explained things). Why not do what he wanted to do? Though I suppose he'd continue to get harassed by them. Also, seeing how expensive it was to time travel, how did each of them have enough money for it??
From a Kindle perspective, there were a few formatting issues, nothing terrible, but noticeable (like some sentences being spaced weird on the "page").
Lastly, the title is misleading as neither Q nor a love story even feature for much of the book.
Overall, it was okay. I don't think I would recommend it, though.
The premise is actually really interesting, but the execution missed the mark for me. It meandered quite a bit and I felt there was too much in it. The excerpts from the main character's books really sidetracked, and I do see some connection between them and the "real" story, but I did find them distracting. I also didnt really find it that funny. (maybe that's just me?)
Spoiler alert: why did he automatically do what his various future selves suggested, especially the later ones? (The first couple I could kind of understand why he would take up their suggestion, since they shared more details and explained things). Why not do what he wanted to do? Though I suppose he'd continue to get harassed by them. Also, seeing how expensive it was to time travel, how did each of them have enough money for it??
From a Kindle perspective, there were a few formatting issues, nothing terrible, but noticeable (like some sentences being spaced weird on the "page").
Lastly, the title is misleading as neither Q nor a love story even feature for much of the book.
Overall, it was okay. I don't think I would recommend it, though.
maddie_09's review against another edition
2.0
Indulgent and self-serving best sums up that book to me. I loved the concept, the idea of being visited by your future self, the chance to change the course of your life. It could have been such an amazing book but it really fell short for me. I didn't feel like it went anywhere, it felt repetitive and just flat. I liked the ending though but that's about it. Read it if you wish but I won't be recommending it.
samlav92's review
1.0
At first I found it witty and fun but then all of a sudden time travel was thrown in with no real explanation and from then I found it very hard to relate and engage. unfortunately I did not manage to finish.
uberklutz's review
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
sophiekaelin's review
5.0
So relieved I read this book through. The ending was absolutely gorgeous. Only now I've realised, I don't even know the main characters name? DEFINATELY a worth while read.
avidlyreading's review
2.0
Quirky: An adjective that Evan Mandery seems to want his readers to use to describe this story.
A more accurate summary for [b:Q|11373932|Q|Evan Mandery|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348413629s/11373932.jpg|16304998] is that you will wish you were able to time travel back to the point you picked up this novel and chose a more worthwhile one to read.
The story had massive potential but this book is not the epic romance and tragedy that it could have been if correctly executed. The time travel aspect to the romance piqued my curiosity as instead of a what-if scenario and a life already lived here was a reverse of that situation as the narrator's future self, I-60, visits his past self. Time travel only happens from the future to past so the knowledge he receives from I-60 of how the early death of Q's and his's son will destroy them as a couple is such devastating news that it demands a life's course change is considered. I wanted to see the conflict which resulted from I-60 visiting his past self and how the present narrator would act in light of his future's knowledge.
However, the narrator may be the protagonist of this novel but a romantic hero he is not. From Mandery's portrayal of him I have never met a more self-satisfied, smug and off-putting lover as this one who values his intellectual credentials as a mark of superiority. Though he does consider Quentina's feelings, the Q of the title, and how badly the death of their son would affect them his considerations give way to his own inherent selfishness as he only acts for and thinks of himself. This is most evident during Thanksgiving dinner at Q's house. He has resolved to break up with Q and has assured I-60 the deed will be done. Yet before the break up occurs there is a jarring scene where the narrator and the dinner guests discuss science and the progress of society. Why is this scene in the novel at all? Is it the novelist's attempt to shoehorn his own views into the story?
My biggest complaint is this is a time travel story where the narrator's actions occur without consequence. Comparison to [a:Audrey Niffenegger|498072|Audrey Niffenegger|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1254501840p2/498072.jpg] [b:The Time Traveler's Wife|14050|The Time Traveler's Wife|Audrey Niffenegger|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1274656075s/14050.jpg|2153746] are incorrect as time travel is the only aspect the two novels share. The narrator is a self-confident individual but he is also paradoxically and illogically a spineless, thoughtless individual who is more dislikable as the story continues. The narrator is further visited by future incarnations of himself who all have advice of the life path he should take. Q: A Love Story descends into farce due to these additional visits; without any form of self-assertion the narrator follows unthinkingly follows all the orders given to him as according to his logic since his future selves are him then he can trust what they have to say about their somewhat shared experiences. The removal of consequence from this book only serves to weaken this story further as the narrator does not develop as a character. He is more tolerant than you'd expect to his future selves and his dissatisfaction reaches the level of mild irritation with and inconvenience by them.
Also Mandery continually insists on showing us the intellectual credentials of his narrator. Even during his courtship of Q the narrator talks about what it is to be a novelist and his promotional trail of the book - despite it not being very good. After his break up with Q drafts of the narrator's novel and short stories appear as chapters in this book. I am not too sure of what purpose this is meant to have as it does not fit with the themes of the novel; perhaps to satisfy Mandery's own desires to write a better novel than he could have done with the one he is supposed to be writing. Another annoying feature is this book's obsessive attention to detail in regards to food. The narrator and his I-futures visit exclusive and expensive restaurants where the narrator wonders at when his future self developed a linking for a particular dish. Pointless filler material in a novel that should be shorter than it already is.
The title of this book is a misleading one; Q is supposed to be the love of the narrator's life and have a central place in the story. Yet as a love interest Q is hardly characterised at all. It is not that she is badly described as a character but she is marginalised at the expense of the narrator's massive ego trip in his insistence to describe his own experiences and thoughts. Q floats about in the background as a kooky figure who is close to her dad - that's it. When Q is there at the close of the novel with the narrator as a time traveller her unwavering loyalty and faith in the narrator's love for her somehow hits a false note and fails to achieve a poignant ending. My own feelings upon conclusion of this novel is that Q really could do much better than the spineless narrator as a love interest.
A more accurate summary for [b:Q|11373932|Q|Evan Mandery|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348413629s/11373932.jpg|16304998] is that you will wish you were able to time travel back to the point you picked up this novel and chose a more worthwhile one to read.
The story had massive potential but this book is not the epic romance and tragedy that it could have been if correctly executed. The time travel aspect to the romance piqued my curiosity as instead of a what-if scenario and a life already lived here was a reverse of that situation as the narrator's future self, I-60, visits his past self. Time travel only happens from the future to past so the knowledge he receives from I-60 of how the early death of Q's and his's son will destroy them as a couple is such devastating news that it demands a life's course change is considered. I wanted to see the conflict which resulted from I-60 visiting his past self and how the present narrator would act in light of his future's knowledge.
However, the narrator may be the protagonist of this novel but a romantic hero he is not. From Mandery's portrayal of him I have never met a more self-satisfied, smug and off-putting lover as this one who values his intellectual credentials as a mark of superiority. Though he does consider Quentina's feelings, the Q of the title, and how badly the death of their son would affect them his considerations give way to his own inherent selfishness as he only acts for and thinks of himself. This is most evident during Thanksgiving dinner at Q's house. He has resolved to break up with Q and has assured I-60 the deed will be done. Yet before the break up occurs there is a jarring scene where the narrator and the dinner guests discuss science and the progress of society. Why is this scene in the novel at all? Is it the novelist's attempt to shoehorn his own views into the story?
My biggest complaint is this is a time travel story where the narrator's actions occur without consequence. Comparison to [a:Audrey Niffenegger|498072|Audrey Niffenegger|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1254501840p2/498072.jpg] [b:The Time Traveler's Wife|14050|The Time Traveler's Wife|Audrey Niffenegger|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1274656075s/14050.jpg|2153746] are incorrect as time travel is the only aspect the two novels share. The narrator is a self-confident individual but he is also paradoxically and illogically a spineless, thoughtless individual who is more dislikable as the story continues. The narrator is further visited by future incarnations of himself who all have advice of the life path he should take. Q: A Love Story descends into farce due to these additional visits; without any form of self-assertion the narrator follows unthinkingly follows all the orders given to him as according to his logic since his future selves are him then he can trust what they have to say about their somewhat shared experiences. The removal of consequence from this book only serves to weaken this story further as the narrator does not develop as a character. He is more tolerant than you'd expect to his future selves and his dissatisfaction reaches the level of mild irritation with and inconvenience by them.
Also Mandery continually insists on showing us the intellectual credentials of his narrator. Even during his courtship of Q the narrator talks about what it is to be a novelist and his promotional trail of the book - despite it not being very good. After his break up with Q drafts of the narrator's novel and short stories appear as chapters in this book. I am not too sure of what purpose this is meant to have as it does not fit with the themes of the novel; perhaps to satisfy Mandery's own desires to write a better novel than he could have done with the one he is supposed to be writing. Another annoying feature is this book's obsessive attention to detail in regards to food. The narrator and his I-futures visit exclusive and expensive restaurants where the narrator wonders at when his future self developed a linking for a particular dish. Pointless filler material in a novel that should be shorter than it already is.
The title of this book is a misleading one; Q is supposed to be the love of the narrator's life and have a central place in the story. Yet as a love interest Q is hardly characterised at all. It is not that she is badly described as a character but she is marginalised at the expense of the narrator's massive ego trip in his insistence to describe his own experiences and thoughts. Q floats about in the background as a kooky figure who is close to her dad - that's it. When Q is there at the close of the novel with the narrator as a time traveller her unwavering loyalty and faith in the narrator's love for her somehow hits a false note and fails to achieve a poignant ending. My own feelings upon conclusion of this novel is that Q really could do much better than the spineless narrator as a love interest.
elfenears's review
3.0
I struggled to finish this so I don't think my three stars are an accurate review, I just didn't connect with the characters at all.
bookishsmiles's review
2.0
An interesting read, found myself quite confused at times, but beautifully written, with an amazing ending
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