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sersi's review
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
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? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Animal death
shay43geek's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
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? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Grief
Moderate: Animal death
cassiealexandra's review
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
4.0
I really enjoyed this science fiction, time loop love story. I say love story as the title does because I would definitely not market this as romance. While there is a central relationship and the characters are slowly falling toward each other in love and in their shared mission to break out of a 4-day Groundhog Day-esque time loop, their romantic feelings are not the primary focus of the book.
This book was quirky and fun. I really enjoyed the setting of San Francisco circa the 2090s. I thought the technology portrayed throughout was just advanced enough while remaining believable for 70 years in the future. The time loops and time travel also were well done. While my head was spinning a little in a few moments with technical language and science, my brain did not hurt trying to figure out the logistics of the time travel; I’m no expert, but the logic seemed solid and lacked the problematic inconsistencies I’ve found with so many books of this type.
I also really liked the slow-burn development of feelings between Carter and Mariana, two people who weren’t really looking for each other at all.
I few items I struggled with:
I wanted more background and emotion felt about Carter’s family and his complicated relationship with them.
I also wanted to feel the emotions of our characters a bit more. They seemed distant at times. The one time I got a little misty-eyed was when Mariana said goodbye to her AI.
There was a moment about half way through the book when I felt like the pace was dragging a lot, only to turn to the next chapter and have the plot move rapidly to the finish line.
Finally, I have mixed feelings about the ending, but I won’t spoil it for anyone. I will say it was slightly ambiguous. I’m undecided on whether I appreciate that, the way I appreciate indie movies, or if I wish there were a longer epilogue.
Overall, I very much enjoyed this book, but wonder if I might have enjoyed it more if I hadn’t been expecting it to deliver more romance. My interest in this author has been piqued though, and I may be looking into his other works in the future.
— NOTES —
Genres: science fiction, time loops & travel, love story
POV: third-person
Content: grief, animal death (natural)
Romance: kisses
— MY RATING CONSIDERATIONS —
(all out of 5)
Pace: 3.5
Enjoyment: 4.5
Craft: 4
My Gut Feeling: 4
Total Stars: 4
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal death and Grief
brea's review
adventurous
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal death
Minor: Death
booksthatburn's review
emotional
reflective
tense
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? Yes
5.0
*I received a free review copy in exchange for an honest review of this book.
I love time loop stories. One of my favorite things is that they’ve been around for long enough that authors can play with the conventions of an established genre. A QUANTUM LOVE STORY does this to fantastic effect, using memory, food, and a plausible but loose edition of quantum mechanics to build a story of two people trying to escape a time loop. It’s about grief, sacrifice, and care for oneself and others. There’s an emphasis on the importance of fully inhabiting moments. Not every single one, necessarily, but learning to regularly take the time to enjoy food as more than fuel, learn new things, and appreciate small interactions.
Because the story starts from Carter’s perspective, and then switches to Mariana, pretty early on, I thought it first that the point of view would switch back-and-forth between them. Instead, most of the book is from Mariana's perspective. With Carter as the more personally spontaneous one, indulging his love of good food as his bank account resets with each loop, staying in Mariana’s perspective means that we see her growing appreciation for the way Carter surprises her, and how he chooses to cultivate moments of calm and enjoyment in stressful circumstances that seem like they’ll never end. I like the way they strategize through the iterations, figuring out how to keep their research progress across the loops, using the only seemingly durable resource they have, Carter’s eidetic memory, and Mariana’s less precise but scientifically enhanced recall.
There’s a turning point where Carter’s memory stops helping them, and Mariana has to make the most of her time with him before, eventually, a loop starts where he has no idea who she is and she must figure out a solution to their problem on her own. I have a particular interest in stories where protagonists risk the possibility of their own non-existence in the course of trying to make things better. I don't just mean death, but the loss of other people's memories of who someone was and what they did. One of the staples of time loop stories as a genre is the frustration and futility of trying to convince those who don’t remember the loops that anything strange is happening at all. It creates this lopsided balance of access to information, where as the loops continue one person knows more and more about the other, but the non-looping person doesn’t get to reciprocate in a fully informed way. You can create an increasing sense of isolation as the closer the looper gets to someone in their life, the more intimate they feel about details that took a very long time for the other person to tell them. Having two people loop solves some of that, but the onset of memory loss means that eventually this imbalance happens anyway. It's made all the more poignant Carter and Mariana spent so long progressing as partners, with fairly symmetrical access to information once a few loops had happened where Mariana was up to speed. Having that intimacy and then losing it piles on grief and heartbreak, especially since Mariana was grieving her missing stepsister and best friend, Shay, who vanished several months ago and is presumed dead. The loop at first gave her time to process that loss in a way she hadn’t been able to before, but then it piles on new loss when Carter’s memory starts fading.
Narratively, I love the ending. It’s perfect for the story, and I wouldn’t change a thing. Emotionally, fuck you Mike Chen (appreciatively) for making me feel this much in this manner. You took one of my favorite sub-genres and added a masterwork to the canon. I look forward to how your next book inevitably shatters me in the best ways.
I love time loop stories. One of my favorite things is that they’ve been around for long enough that authors can play with the conventions of an established genre. A QUANTUM LOVE STORY does this to fantastic effect, using memory, food, and a plausible but loose edition of quantum mechanics to build a story of two people trying to escape a time loop. It’s about grief, sacrifice, and care for oneself and others. There’s an emphasis on the importance of fully inhabiting moments. Not every single one, necessarily, but learning to regularly take the time to enjoy food as more than fuel, learn new things, and appreciate small interactions.
Because the story starts from Carter’s perspective, and then switches to Mariana, pretty early on, I thought it first that the point of view would switch back-and-forth between them. Instead, most of the book is from Mariana's perspective. With Carter as the more personally spontaneous one, indulging his love of good food as his bank account resets with each loop, staying in Mariana’s perspective means that we see her growing appreciation for the way Carter surprises her, and how he chooses to cultivate moments of calm and enjoyment in stressful circumstances that seem like they’ll never end. I like the way they strategize through the iterations, figuring out how to keep their research progress across the loops, using the only seemingly durable resource they have, Carter’s eidetic memory, and Mariana’s less precise but scientifically enhanced recall.
There’s a turning point where Carter’s memory stops helping them, and Mariana has to make the most of her time with him before, eventually, a loop starts where he has no idea who she is and she must figure out a solution to their problem on her own. I have a particular interest in stories where protagonists risk the possibility of their own non-existence in the course of trying to make things better. I don't just mean death, but the loss of other people's memories of who someone was and what they did. One of the staples of time loop stories as a genre is the frustration and futility of trying to convince those who don’t remember the loops that anything strange is happening at all. It creates this lopsided balance of access to information, where as the loops continue one person knows more and more about the other, but the non-looping person doesn’t get to reciprocate in a fully informed way. You can create an increasing sense of isolation as the closer the looper gets to someone in their life, the more intimate they feel about details that took a very long time for the other person to tell them. Having two people loop solves some of that, but the onset of memory loss means that eventually this imbalance happens anyway. It's made all the more poignant Carter and Mariana spent so long progressing as partners, with fairly symmetrical access to information once a few loops had happened where Mariana was up to speed. Having that intimacy and then losing it piles on grief and heartbreak, especially since Mariana was grieving her missing stepsister and best friend, Shay, who vanished several months ago and is presumed dead. The loop at first gave her time to process that loss in a way she hadn’t been able to before, but then it piles on new loss when Carter’s memory starts fading.
Narratively, I love the ending. It’s perfect for the story, and I wouldn’t change a thing. Emotionally, fuck you Mike Chen (appreciatively) for making me feel this much in this manner. You took one of my favorite sub-genres and added a masterwork to the canon. I look forward to how your next book inevitably shatters me in the best ways.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Death, Cursing, and Animal death
Minor: Abandonment, Sexual content, and Toxic relationship
vel629vet's review
emotional
informative
mysterious
sad
tense
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? No
4.25
I devoured this book. A story that is equal parts love, sci-fi, mystery, and retrospective. And in being all of those things, it becomes something completely new. A completely unique time loop story that captures you from the first chapter and never lets go.
That ending…can’t wait to discuss with someone else!
That ending…can’t wait to discuss with someone else!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death
jazhandz's review
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
I’m a huge Mike Chen fan, and so was excited to receive an eARC of this book, thanks to NetGalley! Opinions are my own.
I enjoy a crunchy scifi, and this book manages some crunch while still remaining human and character-driven. How do you escape a time loop? It’s not so easy as living life the right way and learning a lesson. I appreciate that this book doesn’t shy away from the science aspects of science fiction. (Not to mention some really lovely subtle worldbuilding.)
The thinnest part of this book is the romance - I completely believed that Carter and Mariana had a connection, but not the way that it played out. I gladly would’ve preferred some of the flashback stuff get trimmed down in exchange for a better-paced romance. And this is just a personal preference, but I tend not to enjoy books where 80% of chapters are from one character’s point of view, because it’s a little jarring to have the other 20%.
Despite that, I thought Mariana and Carter were terrific characters, and I loved the way they got to know each other. (My love language is also food, so I get it.) Overall this is a charming and emotional read. Like a less crunchy Ars Paradoxica.
I enjoy a crunchy scifi, and this book manages some crunch while still remaining human and character-driven. How do you escape a time loop? It’s not so easy as living life the right way and learning a lesson. I appreciate that this book doesn’t shy away from the science aspects of science fiction. (Not to mention some really lovely subtle worldbuilding.)
The thinnest part of this book is the romance - I completely believed that Carter and Mariana had a connection, but not the way that it played out. I gladly would’ve preferred some of the flashback stuff get trimmed down in exchange for a better-paced romance. And this is just a personal preference, but I tend not to enjoy books where 80% of chapters are from one character’s point of view, because it’s a little jarring to have the other 20%.
Despite that, I thought Mariana and Carter were terrific characters, and I loved the way they got to know each other. (My love language is also food, so I get it.) Overall this is a charming and emotional read. Like a less crunchy Ars Paradoxica.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Animal death and Dementia
Confinement/isolation in a metaphysical time loop sense, not a literal jail-cell sense. I wouldn’t call it dementia, but memory loss is a plot point. If you are sensitive to stories about a loved one’s memory fading, this might be difficult.
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