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3.77 AVERAGE
3.77 AVERAGE
Thought experiment meets crime mystery
I loved this book and all its characters. Even loving to hate Margaret. It's intersectional af and I love it, the time travel hooked me but the mystery reeled me in.
I loved this book and all its characters. Even loving to hate Margaret. It's intersectional af and I love it, the time travel hooked me but the mystery reeled me in.
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
emotional
mysterious
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
The Psychology of Time Travel has some of the tightest writing I’ve ever read. Given that it’s a book about time travel, that was absolutely vital!
Kate Mascarenhas somehow wrote a book about a mystery that gives you all of the information you would typically get in a trial without the trial. She also writes an incredibly tight time travel system with a closed loop (my favorite kind!) and clear rules for what is and isn’t possible. The passage of information from different versions of the same person is also done very well, and I thoroughly enjoyed all of the time travel aspects of the book!
What I didn’t like as much was the Ruby timeline, specifically toward the end of the book with her romantic relationship with Grace It felt a bit rushed, and I wish there had been even ten more pages of development.
All in all this book was really well written, but I don’t know if I was the target reader. The first half was really hard for me to get through, but once I did I flew through the second half. I think that because there was so much set up, and so many different chronologies to follow, it made it difficult for me to get invested in the book. I think this would make a really interesting miniseries, and that the visual medium would help convey where in time we are more easily than the chapter headings do.
Unrelated to anything that’s actually related to the writing or story, but all of the characters in the book were women and seeing a STEM field full of women made me so happy!
Would I recommend this book? Yes. Will I read it again? Probably not. 3.75 stars.
Kate Mascarenhas somehow wrote a book about a mystery that gives you all of the information you would typically get in a trial without the trial. She also writes an incredibly tight time travel system with a closed loop (my favorite kind!) and clear rules for what is and isn’t possible. The passage of information from different versions of the same person is also done very well, and I thoroughly enjoyed all of the time travel aspects of the book!
What I didn’t like as much was the Ruby timeline, specifically toward the end of the book
All in all this book was really well written, but I don’t know if I was the target reader. The first half was really hard for me to get through, but once I did I flew through the second half. I think that because there was so much set up, and so many different chronologies to follow, it made it difficult for me to get invested in the book. I think this would make a really interesting miniseries, and that the visual medium would help convey where in time we are more easily than the chapter headings do.
Unrelated to anything that’s actually related to the writing or story, but all of the characters in the book were women and seeing a STEM field full of women made me so happy!
Would I recommend this book? Yes. Will I read it again? Probably not. 3.75 stars.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence
Moderate: Eating disorder, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Pregnancy
Minor: Cancer, Car accident
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Strong women, great story, and a new twist on a favorite genre!
It’s been a while since I’ve read a book that made me want to rearrange my day just so that I could read. Kate Mascarenhas’ The Psychology of Time did it. Even with a toddler and prepping for Christmas, I managed to read this book within three days. And, I miss it already. Damn, my luck that it’s not the first in an already finished series. (Give me more, Kate!)
The Good
The story starts in 1967 and time jumps throughout the arc of the book through several decades into the future. It’s an amazing twist on the time travel genre that takes a few of the given concepts we all accept to be foundational in time travel (hello…. paradox?) and turns it on its head. I love the strong female characters that create and drive the story forward. It’s smart, fast-paced, and doesn’t shy away from something we need more of: brilliant women in charge of their own destiny.
The beauty of this work is how deftly the author weaves multiple storylines through different time periods connecting women of several generations. There are enough hooks to keep you from getting lost, but Mascarenhas doesn’t skimp on the twists just to make it easy on the reader.
I honestly haven’t read a novel that held such a siren call on my brain in a good while. I can’t recommend The Psychology of Time enough. It’s truly Agatha Christie meets Doctor Who wrapped in Hidden Figures.
The Bad
I will admit that having a completely different twist on the standardly accepted beliefs in time travel fiction had me wondering how something would work as written, but even that is a very small thing to grapple with especially when the twists are beautifully written and well-thought. All in all, I’m taking a pass on this one and saying that the only truly bad thing about the book is that it ends.
Go. Read it. Now.
Disclaimer:
I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
It’s been a while since I’ve read a book that made me want to rearrange my day just so that I could read. Kate Mascarenhas’ The Psychology of Time did it. Even with a toddler and prepping for Christmas, I managed to read this book within three days. And, I miss it already. Damn, my luck that it’s not the first in an already finished series. (Give me more, Kate!)
The Good
The story starts in 1967 and time jumps throughout the arc of the book through several decades into the future. It’s an amazing twist on the time travel genre that takes a few of the given concepts we all accept to be foundational in time travel (hello…. paradox?) and turns it on its head. I love the strong female characters that create and drive the story forward. It’s smart, fast-paced, and doesn’t shy away from something we need more of: brilliant women in charge of their own destiny.
The beauty of this work is how deftly the author weaves multiple storylines through different time periods connecting women of several generations. There are enough hooks to keep you from getting lost, but Mascarenhas doesn’t skimp on the twists just to make it easy on the reader.
I honestly haven’t read a novel that held such a siren call on my brain in a good while. I can’t recommend The Psychology of Time enough. It’s truly Agatha Christie meets Doctor Who wrapped in Hidden Figures.
The Bad
I will admit that having a completely different twist on the standardly accepted beliefs in time travel fiction had me wondering how something would work as written, but even that is a very small thing to grapple with especially when the twists are beautifully written and well-thought. All in all, I’m taking a pass on this one and saying that the only truly bad thing about the book is that it ends.
Go. Read it. Now.
Disclaimer:
I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
The book is more about psychology and mental health, than about science nitty-gritty. It raises some interesting topics. Though many characters are facing mental health issues, and perception of death being a big theme, the book has a rather warm tone, with loving family members and life partners.
and the conclave conditioning its employees out of compassion, the harm that it's doing, and an individual's role in it all, are scary reflections of reality, and we'll portrayed, I think.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Ableism, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Blood, Toxic friendship
Minor: Animal cruelty, Grief, Sexual harassment