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heymarykathryn's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
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
4.0
Reading this during/at the end of a pandemic that's referenced within the text was a bit jarring. However, I think this is an eerily beautiful story about time and how our actions can impact someone else's life in ways that aren't always obvious at first
Content Warnings
Moderate: Pandemic/Epidemic, War, and Death
Minor: Suicide
theverycraftyvegan's review against another edition
adventurous
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
I would give this book 10/5 if I could. It’s so beautifully written that “perfect” is the best way to describe it. This is science fiction that is so deeply based on reality that it is 100% believable. This could be our future. This might *need* to be our future. It was a little confusing at the start, because we spend only a little time with each character, but by the half way point I was enthralled. I loved how all the characters tied in together and the ending was *chef’s kiss*.
I will definitely be reading more of Emily St John Mandel.
I will definitely be reading more of Emily St John Mandel.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pandemic/Epidemic
Moderate: Confinement, Alcohol, Colonisation, and War
Minor: Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Death, Gun violence, and Mental illness
livcashmere's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Mental illness, and Pandemic/Epidemic
stailysh1's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
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
This book, to me, has a quiet and mysterious atmosphere. The feel drew me in and it was a quick read. I think it is a helpful read post-pandemic because although it often feels like the world is ending, this book reminds me that there will always be more life to come. It was reassuring and an interesting read that had me trying to unravel the mystery until the end.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pandemic/Epidemic
Moderate: Colonisation
Minor: War, Death, and Genocide
caryndi's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
3.0
When I picked up this book, I didn't expect it to be so similar to Station Eleven. I thought the multiple-narrators, multiple-times thing was a device Mandel used to tell her pandemic story, specifically. I guess that is just how she writes, though, because this book was done the same way. It's not a bad style, but I was expecting a different approach given the uniqueness of that approach and the fact that this was a very different story.
The construction of the novel wasn't my main gripe, though. I cannot figure out the internal logic to this book.We're introduced to an "anomaly" that takes place under a tree in Northwest Canada and an airship terminal in Kansas City (?) simultaneously, but also hundreds of years apart. We find out some time travelers from the future are investigating this anomaly, and the main investigator, Gaspary-Jacques, is warned not to change anything while traveling through time. However, he accidentally causes the glitch by being in the same place twice (sent back as a time traveler, he encounters and speaks to a version of himself who was stranded in time after interfering with the timeline).
However, this glitch existed prior to his decision to become a time traveler -- in other words, the changes he made were always going to be made before he decided to make them. But, in other instances of time travel, that is not true! The Time Institute (I think that's the name used) tracks its agents by looking at historical records before and then after their visits to other times to see if anything changed in the timeline. So, in my mind, this glitch should not have existed for them to investigate because it was a change made by Gaspary-Jacques. Maybe the idea is that since it was a "glitch" it could exist in that paradoxical way that time-travel actions do. I don't know. But my brain kept bouncing off the way things played out and because of that, I don't think the entire story holds together.
That doesn't take away from the fact that the book was very atmospheric and technically well-written. I thought it was interesting that one of the main characters was the writer of a book about a pandemic, and at least one noted plot point matched the way things happened in Station Eleven. Like a little Easter egg. And it's fun to put together the pieces you pick up from the different time settings as you read. But the way the story falls apart if I try to think about it too hard outweighs the technical proficiency, in my mind, which is why this book only gets 3 stars from me.
The construction of the novel wasn't my main gripe, though. I cannot figure out the internal logic to this book.
However, this glitch existed prior to his decision to become a time traveler -- in other words, the changes he made were always going to be made before he decided to make them. But, in other instances of time travel, that is not true! The Time Institute (I think that's the name used) tracks its agents by looking at historical records before and then after their visits to other times to see if anything changed in the timeline. So, in my mind, this glitch should not have existed for them to investigate because it was a change made by Gaspary-Jacques. Maybe the idea is that since it was a "glitch" it could exist in that paradoxical way that time-travel actions do. I don't know. But my brain kept bouncing off the way things played out and because of that, I don't think the entire story holds together.
That doesn't take away from the fact that the book was very atmospheric and technically well-written. I thought it was interesting that one of the main characters was the writer of a book about a pandemic, and at least one noted plot point matched the way things happened in Station Eleven. Like a little Easter egg. And it's fun to put together the pieces you pick up from the different time settings as you read. But the way the story falls apart if I try to think about it too hard outweighs the technical proficiency, in my mind, which is why this book only gets 3 stars from me.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Grief, Pandemic/Epidemic, Violence, and Abandonment
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Murder, Gun violence, and War
pm_corbett's review against another edition
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Pandemic/Epidemic and Death
Minor: War and Violence
galexy_brain's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
medium-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
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Pandemic/Epidemic
Minor: Death, Murder, Misogyny, Death of parent, Colonisation, and Grief
lucystolethesky's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pandemic/Epidemic
Moderate: Death
Minor: Mental illness, Alcohol, Gun violence, Colonisation, and Suicide
ashylibrarian's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
I think this book is okay. And from other people’s responses, maybe I shouldn’t have listened to it on audiobook, or maybe I’m just not smart enough to fully appreciate it *shrug*? This was a rather interesting speculative fiction/sci-fi read, however, the first 3/4-ish of the book was a bit difficult (for me) to follow because it jumps time periods rather quickly. It also reads literary (in the sense that I feel like I should have read this for my English Lit degree). That being said, I think the writing is really smart and the plot packs a punch. I appreciate that it is a shorter read and that apparently two of Emily St. John Mandel’s other books are interconnected with this title.
Explores themes of time travel, pandemics, reality versus simulations, loneliness, and consequences for actions.
Explores themes of time travel, pandemics, reality versus simulations, loneliness, and consequences for actions.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
sxndaze's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
It takes a little bit to get into, but it’s such an entrancing and gorgeous read. The way everything ties in together is mesmerising, and it kept me hooked. It speaks about life so beautifully as well, and it’s really a lovely read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pandemic/Epidemic
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Death, and Grief