Reviews

Tady, teď a tehdy by Mike Chen

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emilybeck_13's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

A great time-travel centric sci-fi novel that doesn’t get too complex and hurt your brain, enjoyed all of the characters and how the story comes together throughout and in the end, didn’t love that it sometimes read like the author was putting his personal interests at the forefront (ex: so much soccer)

hellocookie's review against another edition

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5.0

If you're a fan of Marvel's Loki series that aired in 2021, this will for sure be up your alley. The story basically revolves around a time-traveling secret agent who gets trapped in the past for over a decade. Thinking he'll never be retrieved, he starts a new life for himself including a family and his memories of his past life start to fade with his brain unable to process living in two timelines. And then one day he is rescued and brought back home where only a couple of weeks have passed. He has to reconcile his two lives and save the family in the past from being erased from time.

It's a fantastic sci-fi adventure with heart.

g_knowlsie's review against another edition

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adventurous funny medium-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? It's complicated

4.25

cbrewere9's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

infinite_tbr's review against another edition

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4.0

I enjoyed this book, though it took me a while to get into it. I couldn’t tell if that was because I just wasn’t feeling like reading or if it was the book. Either way, I didn’t get pulled in until I was about halfway through the story. But I did enjoy it once I got pulled in.

Kin Stewart is a secret time-travel agent working for the Temporal Correction Bureau when he gets stranded in the 90s, unable to return to 2142. After a couple of years, he decided to throw the TCB’s rules out the window and let himself have a life and a family. Years later, his past is mostly forgotten — except for the headaches and fainting spells he suffers when he tries to remember anything — and his family is doing well. Then, an agent from the TCB finds him and forces him to return to the future. Once there, he checks up on his wife and daughter only to learn that he must break the law to meddle with the timeline and save his daughter. Meanwhile, he’s having to adjust to his past/current life again, complete with a fiancée who knows nothing of his job.

The characters were interesting in this book and I liked seeing how the smallest events can send ripples through time. I appreciated the code the TCB operates on of non-interference, protecting the timeline at all costs. It was fascinating to see the conflicts that rose when the characters found their priorities bumping up against that code. Overall, I did like this book and wish I’d been more into it from the beginning.

quossie's review against another edition

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3.0

A great idea and solid plotting let down by inconsistent, occasionally weak writing.

ryner's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional 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? It's complicated

5.0

Years ago, while on a top secret mission time traveling from the year 2142 into the past, Kin became stranded in 1996. Though he waited and waited for rescue, apparently none was forthcoming, so he resigned himself to his situation and attempted to live as normal a life as he could, establishing for himself a career, marrying, and having a child. Now, eighteen years later, someone finally arrives to retrieve him, but his heart breaks as he must leave his family behind against his will.

This story was immediately riveting, and the writing was excellent. There are a lot of things for the reader to ponder — philosophical, moral, existential, and otherwise. Not sure why this book isn't more popular. I really enjoyed it and will be recommending it to my 14yo daughter as well.