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heini's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Vastavalmistunut Kalifornialainen Tristan saa puhelun lakimieheltä, joka suosittelee häntä etsimään todisteita sukulaissuhteestaan ruotsalais-englantilaiseen naiseen, sillä Tristan mahdollisesti on erään epämääräisen perinnön saaja. Mutta testamentilla on aikaraja - joten siitä syntyy tarina humanistista etsimässä merkitystään.
Juoni on tuo todisteiden etsiminen 1900-luvun alun ihmisistä, mutta teos on enemmänkin kuvaus suuresta rakkaudesta, impulsiivisuudesta sekä ajasta. Menneisyydestä ja nykyhetkestä, sillä tulevaisuudesta ei juuri kirjassa puhuta.
Idealismia! Kirjassa oli paljon mistä pidän kirjoissa, joten yksinkertaisinta ja kuvaavaa lienee niiden listaaminen: Eurooppa - niin erilainen ja niin yhtenäinen, maat ja ihmiset. Junia, arkistoja, postitoimistokin. Hostelleja, kolikkopuhelimia, satunnaisia kohtaamisia ja yhteyksiä tuntemattomien kanssa. Ystävyyttä, kuolemista, elämistä. Vuorikiipeilyä, rakkautta, kylmyyttä! Ääriolosuhteita, mutaiseen juoksuhautaan uponneet ruumiit, Islannin laavakentät. Itsensä etsimistä, löytämättä jättämistä, selityksiä vai tekosyitä. Mikä meitä ajaa tekemään (muille) hulluiltakin tuntuvia asioita? Hyvän ja pahan, menneisyyden ja nykyisyyden vuorottelu, tasapaino. Muisti, kirjeitä, historiaa, taidetta, kirjastot. Tutkiminen, uppoutuminen, ei vastauksia, mutta se on silti ihan ok. Sään tutkimista, jäätä, lumimyrskyjä. Löytöretkiä, retkikuntia, luonnon valta ja ihmisen pienuus. Pakkomielteitä. Tietämättömyys, uskominen, haluaminen. 1920-luku, sota, kaipuu. Raha, englannin eliitti. Persoonallisuus. Aika, katoava.
Ja sivuhuomioina: Heart eyes @ Ashley.
Kirjeestä, 1916:
"Kirjoitan Selsey Beachin kiviltä. Ilman sinua Lontoo on pelkkä tyhjä kuori - vain Sussex Downs ja merenranta auttavat minua taas tuntemaan itseni kokonaiseksi. Täällä kuuluu ääni, joka ei ole meren pauhinaa eikä minkään jumalallisen toiminnan merkki - sen sanotaan olevan tykkien jyskettä Ranskasta, sadanviidenkymmenen kilometrin päästä - mutta etäisyys tekee siitä rauhoittavaa."
Kirjeestä, 1924:
"Koska jopa höyryävissä viidakoissa ajattelen edessä olevaa tuulenpyyhkimää ylänköä ja korkealla lumipeitteisten vuorijonojen ylle kohoavaa ainokaista huippua, joka on kaikista raain ja majesteettisin. Imogen, en ole valmis näkemään vuorta. Se ei ikinä voi olla kaikkea sitä, mitä olen kuvitellut, ja jos se on, niin sitten meillä ei ole mitään mahdollisuuksia. Ja kuitenkin haluan niin ankarasti nähdä sen, haen horisontista lumihuippuja joka kerran, kun nousemme solasta, vaikka tiedän, että matkaa on vielä monta viikkoa."
Juoni on tuo todisteiden etsiminen 1900-luvun alun ihmisistä, mutta teos on enemmänkin kuvaus suuresta rakkaudesta, impulsiivisuudesta sekä ajasta. Menneisyydestä ja nykyhetkestä, sillä tulevaisuudesta ei juuri kirjassa puhuta.
Idealismia! Kirjassa oli paljon mistä pidän kirjoissa, joten yksinkertaisinta ja kuvaavaa lienee niiden listaaminen: Eurooppa - niin erilainen ja niin yhtenäinen, maat ja ihmiset. Junia, arkistoja, postitoimistokin. Hostelleja, kolikkopuhelimia, satunnaisia kohtaamisia ja yhteyksiä tuntemattomien kanssa. Ystävyyttä, kuolemista, elämistä. Vuorikiipeilyä, rakkautta, kylmyyttä! Ääriolosuhteita, mutaiseen juoksuhautaan uponneet ruumiit, Islannin laavakentät. Itsensä etsimistä, löytämättä jättämistä, selityksiä vai tekosyitä. Mikä meitä ajaa tekemään (muille) hulluiltakin tuntuvia asioita? Hyvän ja pahan, menneisyyden ja nykyisyyden vuorottelu, tasapaino. Muisti, kirjeitä, historiaa, taidetta, kirjastot. Tutkiminen, uppoutuminen, ei vastauksia, mutta se on silti ihan ok. Sään tutkimista, jäätä, lumimyrskyjä. Löytöretkiä, retkikuntia, luonnon valta ja ihmisen pienuus. Pakkomielteitä. Tietämättömyys, uskominen, haluaminen. 1920-luku, sota, kaipuu. Raha, englannin eliitti. Persoonallisuus. Aika, katoava.
Ja sivuhuomioina: Heart eyes @ Ashley.
Kirjeestä, 1916:
"Kirjoitan Selsey Beachin kiviltä. Ilman sinua Lontoo on pelkkä tyhjä kuori - vain Sussex Downs ja merenranta auttavat minua taas tuntemaan itseni kokonaiseksi. Täällä kuuluu ääni, joka ei ole meren pauhinaa eikä minkään jumalallisen toiminnan merkki - sen sanotaan olevan tykkien jyskettä Ranskasta, sadanviidenkymmenen kilometrin päästä - mutta etäisyys tekee siitä rauhoittavaa."
Kirjeestä, 1924:
"Koska jopa höyryävissä viidakoissa ajattelen edessä olevaa tuulenpyyhkimää ylänköä ja korkealla lumipeitteisten vuorijonojen ylle kohoavaa ainokaista huippua, joka on kaikista raain ja majesteettisin. Imogen, en ole valmis näkemään vuorta. Se ei ikinä voi olla kaikkea sitä, mitä olen kuvitellut, ja jos se on, niin sitten meillä ei ole mitään mahdollisuuksia. Ja kuitenkin haluan niin ankarasti nähdä sen, haen horisontista lumihuippuja joka kerran, kun nousemme solasta, vaikka tiedän, että matkaa on vielä monta viikkoa."
Content Warnings
Graphic: War
Minor: Body horror
la_cori's review
4.0
I received a free copy of "The steady running of the hour" from Random House International through a Goodreads Giveaway.
In the present day, Tristan Campbell, recent college graduate in History, receives a letter from the trustees of the Walshingham estate: they think he could be the heir of the immense fortune, but he has to uncover definitive proof of his secret linage in less then 2 months.
Tristan begins his race against time to discover what really happened in 1916, with little money, his backpack and the intention of following every little proof he can find.. The search takes him across all Europe, he finds himself falling in love and many times he has to decide if continuing his search is really worth of his sacrifices..
The part of the book that I really enjoyed is the one set in 1916 and 1924; the romance of Imogen and Ashley is one of the most beautiful and tragic I've read and the meticulous research of the author brought them and the historical period to life.. Especially Ashley, I found the descriptions of the WWI trenches and the Everest expedition really well written (and really challenging for my english!)
“The steady running of the hour” an impressive debut novel that mixes adventure, romance, mistery and Justin Go did a really great job with his characters: I found myself cheering for them while i was reading, hoping for the happy ending even if I already knew how it ended..
In the present day, Tristan Campbell, recent college graduate in History, receives a letter from the trustees of the Walshingham estate: they think he could be the heir of the immense fortune, but he has to uncover definitive proof of his secret linage in less then 2 months.
Tristan begins his race against time to discover what really happened in 1916, with little money, his backpack and the intention of following every little proof he can find.. The search takes him across all Europe, he finds himself falling in love and many times he has to decide if continuing his search is really worth of his sacrifices..
The part of the book that I really enjoyed is the one set in 1916 and 1924; the romance of Imogen and Ashley is one of the most beautiful and tragic I've read and the meticulous research of the author brought them and the historical period to life.. Especially Ashley, I found the descriptions of the WWI trenches and the Everest expedition really well written (and really challenging for my english!)
“The steady running of the hour” an impressive debut novel that mixes adventure, romance, mistery and Justin Go did a really great job with his characters: I found myself cheering for them while i was reading, hoping for the happy ending even if I already knew how it ended..
mariabarroso97's review against another edition
4.0
"Um maldito desperdício não é? Querer-se o que não se pode ter.Não querer o que se tem "
readingpanda's review
2.0
This had everything I should have liked - epigraphs from Wilfred Owen poems, World War I, mountain climbing, Mt. Everest, modern-day travels through European cities - and yet: ugh.
Our main character, Tristan, is a young American with a wanderlust and fascination for history. So it's perfect when he gets a mysterious call from a law firm in the UK telling him he may be the heir to an estate from the 1920s that is going to pass into trust unless he can prove he is a direct descendent. Tristan jets off to London to find out the details, and the basics are that it seems his great-grandmother may not have been the woman he thought it was, but instead her sister, who gave her illegitimate child to this sister to raise. The law firm has been digging, but they are now asking Tristan to try to find any information he can that links him to this woman, so he embarks on a mission that takes him around Europe, researching and asking questions.
Intercut with Tristan's sections are parts telling the story of Imogen (who is theoretically his *real* great-grandmother) and Ashley Walsingham, with whom she had a brief but intense affair. I was unsurprised to read in the author's acknowledgments that one of his influences was Vera Brittain, because I saw direct parallels between her stories in Testament of Youth and Imogen's story. This is where the bits and pieces of 80-year-old information that Tristan finds are fleshed out into a cohesive story. It's a good idea, and pretty well handled for most of the book. Tristan's part is weaker, but I assume that's because there isn't much to Tristan, really. He just follows clues and is something of a spectator in not only Imogen and Ashley's lives, but also his own.
But then it just gradually all goes pear-shaped. Major complaints: Imogen acts in a way that makes no sense at all, for her entire life. Ashley dies needlessly and rather boringly (not a spoiler, of course you go in knowing he's dead and how he died). In the present day, Tristan meets a woman and she also acts in ways that make no sense. Tristan is a cipher, which is sometimes useful but mostly just annoying because he has nothing to add to the story. The ending (by which I mean about the last 30 pages) are absolutely ridiculous. I don't mean the story is unbelievable, although some of it might be. I mean that it's as if a movie director built up to a big confrontation between two characters, then showed them seeing each other from a distance ... approaching ... opening their mouths ... and then cut to a sunny beach 6 months later where one character is talking to someone else and when asked says only: "Oh, that? No big deal." Roll credits.
Our main character, Tristan, is a young American with a wanderlust and fascination for history. So it's perfect when he gets a mysterious call from a law firm in the UK telling him he may be the heir to an estate from the 1920s that is going to pass into trust unless he can prove he is a direct descendent. Tristan jets off to London to find out the details, and the basics are that it seems his great-grandmother may not have been the woman he thought it was, but instead her sister, who gave her illegitimate child to this sister to raise. The law firm has been digging, but they are now asking Tristan to try to find any information he can that links him to this woman, so he embarks on a mission that takes him around Europe, researching and asking questions.
Intercut with Tristan's sections are parts telling the story of Imogen (who is theoretically his *real* great-grandmother) and Ashley Walsingham, with whom she had a brief but intense affair. I was unsurprised to read in the author's acknowledgments that one of his influences was Vera Brittain, because I saw direct parallels between her stories in Testament of Youth and Imogen's story. This is where the bits and pieces of 80-year-old information that Tristan finds are fleshed out into a cohesive story. It's a good idea, and pretty well handled for most of the book. Tristan's part is weaker, but I assume that's because there isn't much to Tristan, really. He just follows clues and is something of a spectator in not only Imogen and Ashley's lives, but also his own.
But then it just gradually all goes pear-shaped. Major complaints: Imogen acts in a way that makes no sense at all, for her entire life. Ashley dies needlessly and rather boringly (not a spoiler, of course you go in knowing he's dead and how he died). In the present day, Tristan meets a woman and she also acts in ways that make no sense. Tristan is a cipher, which is sometimes useful but mostly just annoying because he has nothing to add to the story. The ending (by which I mean about the last 30 pages) are absolutely ridiculous. I don't mean the story is unbelievable, although some of it might be. I mean that it's as if a movie director built up to a big confrontation between two characters, then showed them seeing each other from a distance ... approaching ... opening their mouths ... and then cut to a sunny beach 6 months later where one character is talking to someone else and when asked says only: "Oh, that? No big deal." Roll credits.
lipat's review
Through no fault of it’s own, I didn’t finish the book because I’m tired of the trend of storytelling which jumps back and forth between different people in the present and the past.
bodagirl's review
4.0
So good! If you liked [b:Possession|41219|Possession|A.S. Byatt|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1391124124s/41219.jpg|2246190] by [a:A.S. Byatt|1169504|A.S. Byatt|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1388376297p2/1169504.jpg], you will like this book. The book jumps between a modern day treasure hunt and the early 20th Century / WWI. Moving and frustrating at the same time. I didn't like the ending, but that's because I despise inconclusive endings.
sheila90's review
5.0
*4.5* I very much enjoyed this book. It would have been a five star book for me if it weren't for the fact that one extremely vital, and potentially most interesting, scene was skipped over at the end. I was left wanting more with the conclusion of Tristan's quest.
For me this book was all about Ashley and Imogen. I felt such a connection to their characters. I loved their story. They felt very real and I felt for everything they went through. I ached for them and what they went through.
I liked Tristan's part of the book (I oddly love reading about characters conducting research) and his quest to find out more about the young lovers; but he didn't offer the same depth. He felt very genetic. Honestly that isn't what bothered me though. It was those last 20 pages. I wanted more!!!
For me this book was all about Ashley and Imogen. I felt such a connection to their characters. I loved their story. They felt very real and I felt for everything they went through. I ached for them and what they went through.
I liked Tristan's part of the book (I oddly love reading about characters conducting research) and his quest to find out more about the young lovers; but he didn't offer the same depth. He felt very genetic. Honestly that isn't what bothered me though. It was those last 20 pages. I wanted more!!!
madtraveler's review
3.0
I am not at all regretting having read this. It's a really good book. It didn't leave me with any a-ha moments and while the end sort of fizzled out as I expect it really had to if it wanted to not end corny, it did push me through it nicely. Gets you thinking a bit about choices and chance and missed paths in life/regrets.
lanner's review
4.0
I would have given this book 5 stars, if only it had an ending.
I would have given it 3 stars, if only its beauty had ever faltered.
A gorgeous, exquisite, quite maddening book.
And by the way, this would make a stunning movie.
I would have given it 3 stars, if only its beauty had ever faltered.
A gorgeous, exquisite, quite maddening book.
And by the way, this would make a stunning movie.