Reviews with content warning for Grief - This Is How You Lose the Time War

I loved it and I'm recommending it. It's short but a masterpiece. Every minute of this is used to create this beautiful love story. I love it.

The end is my favourite. It's crafted so beautifully and with such dedication.

The idea of a love that you take into your being so literally, unconsciously and consciously. The type of love that consumes you and remakes you into something new for you and your partner. Beautiful.

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monstrouscosmos's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Characters: 10/10
Relationships: 10/10
Atmosphere/Setting: 9.5/10
Writing Style: 9/10
Plot/Intrigue: 9.5/10
Internal Logic: 10/10
Entertainment: 10/10
Overall: 68/70, 5*

I love epistolary novels, quantum time travel plots, and messy star crossed sapphic romances, so I figured from the get that I'd be really into this. and I was! I especially loved the ways the characters spoke with one another across timelines, and gave context for themselves as individuals, within their respective collective experiences, and within their shared relationship over time(s). the writing about writing was also really fun! there are definitely moments that delve into disturbing themes and events, but for the most part I found the tone stayed hopeful in belief for better circumstances.

it's definitely something I need to relisten to (I feel like I missed a lot in my first run thru due to the narrative bouncing around quite a lot), but I'm so excited to revisit it!

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nimeneth's review

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adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This is a second attempt with this one. I picked this up the first time about a year ago, but it was the wrong time for it and I didn't make it far. This time was apparently just right, so thank you book club for dropping this back on my radar.

This little book was WEIRD, and I enjoyed it a lot. It was sometimes a little hard to keep track of what was going on, but I think in a way that makes the book better? It definitely didn't take anything away from the experience of reading it. Trying to track some of the terminology in the context was challenging at first but considering the book is a multi-verse time-travel long-con of a heist, it also adds a bit to the charm. It was also very melancholy in the second half, until that twist at the very end where it turns around and winds up reframing some of the bits woven throughout. Very skillful planning and execution for the tale, and I think the twist is my favorite part.

Part of me would love to see a sequel, but another part of me wants this to stand alone with the ending open to possibility and interpretation, because it's just that interesting.

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