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erinastin's review against another edition
2.0
Ok, so basically like every other review has said, this book is not at all what the blurb says it is. Ian McDonald had the opportunity to write a fantastic, gay love story set in WWII and, instead, we get the perspective of a bland bookseller in the present day. I'm giving it an extra star because I really enjoyed Ian McDonald's writing and would be interested in reading more of his work, but the plot/story construction didn't do it for me.
fionamclary's review against another edition
hopeful
relaxing
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
3.75
I have to say I'm a little disappointed by this book given how high my expectations were. I disliked the use of first person for both perspectives; even though the tense change differentiated them, I was confused for the first third of the book. There were also sooo many typos including mixing up Tom and Ben's names. It also took me a bit to get into the story, which is a particularly unfortunate quality for a novella.
As for what I liked, the scifi aspect gets my physicist's stamp of approval for adapting real physics into a fictional framework. And the twist?? I probably should have seen it coming more clearly but I still got all wide-eyed.
As for what I liked, the scifi aspect gets my physicist's stamp of approval for adapting real physics into a fictional framework. And the twist?? I probably should have seen it coming more clearly but I still got all wide-eyed.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, War, and Violence
Moderate: Sexual assault, Dementia, and Homophobia
Minor: Sexual content
deebo0183's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
5.0
lilyunterreiner's review against another edition
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I expected this to be a time traveler love story, but that disappointingly turned out to be mostly a sidenote. There were only two time travel dead drop notes in the whole book. It's mostly about the person who uncovers the mystery, and he was boring.
lvoetberg's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
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? No
4.75
hartyharrharr's review against another edition
fast-paced
2.0
I like the concept but could have seen better execution. There were several editing mistakes and points where it seemed like the author lost track of which character was speaking… out of two characters. Overall, a book that I was very excited to read based on the description, but found to be underwhelming in actuality.
novella42's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
This book pissed me off in the first half, but then won me over with sheer poetry.
I was too stubborn to DNF something under 150 pages long, and I'm glad I decided to push through the first forty or fifty pages of my confusion. There are so many excellent one-liners and moments of true lyrical beauty. This author can set an evocative scene like a boy scout can light a fire with wet twine and gumption. I'm not sure how he did it. But damn, he did it, and then some.
Some of my favorite lines will be forthcoming when I have had a chance to sleep and pull them from the photos I took. (Thank you, Google Lens.)
I was too stubborn to DNF something under 150 pages long, and I'm glad I decided to push through the first forty or fifty pages of my confusion. There are so many excellent one-liners and moments of true lyrical beauty. This author can set an evocative scene like a boy scout can light a fire with wet twine and gumption. I'm not sure how he did it. But damn, he did it, and then some.
Some of my favorite lines will be forthcoming when I have had a chance to sleep and pull them from the photos I took. (Thank you, Google Lens.)
zoe_is_tired's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
vintageliliowy's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
reflective
fast-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