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adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I had complicated feelings about this book. The first 2/3 of the book felt like a total slog, and I couldn't bring myself to care about any of the characters during that time. But it picked up in the final third and managed to tie together all of the pieces that it had spent the first part setting up, even if the ending was a bit confusing.
I also found the sexualization of and obsession with a real person from history (especially one who seemed like just a normal guy, rather than a public figure) to be a bit icky, along with the power imbalance in the relationship in the book. However, I think the book actually grapples with this in some ways.
For a while, I couldn't decide if I liked this book or not, but ultimately it's a fun time travel romance that also explores identity and somehow makes all of that work together. I do feel like it could be polished a little bit more though.
I also found the sexualization of and obsession with a real person from history (especially one who seemed like just a normal guy, rather than a public figure) to be a bit icky, along with the power imbalance in the relationship in the book. However, I think the book actually grapples with this in some ways.
For a while, I couldn't decide if I liked this book or not, but ultimately it's a fun time travel romance that also explores identity and somehow makes all of that work together. I do feel like it could be polished a little bit more though.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Sexual content
Moderate: Violence, Murder
Minor: Animal cruelty, Slavery, Cannibalism, War
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It was a very charming read, which sort of punches you in the gut at the end.
I predicted one of the plot twists. Which is always annoying. I felt that the follow-through after that plot twist was slightly weak. Not bad, but just didn’t feel like it hit as hard as it ought to have done.
My god this author is great at writing steamy sex scenes. It was HOT as hell. Kaliane is a person who knows how to have a good time, and I am 100% here for it. Get it girl.
The book pacing was quick at the start, and deeply slow in the middle. Then at the end it was very fast paced. The middle of the book, while delightful, was a tad too slow fpr me. Could probably have used a bit more editing there as I felt at some points the writing was acting as filler. And didnt really add anything to the characters or story or didnt enhance my understanding i to the world.
The characters themselves are beautifully realised. They were all very unique and even their most intricate quirks made them feel so real. We love a LGBTQ moment. Arthur and Margaret are such loveable characters and oh how they PAINEDDD ME.
I really enjoyed the historic Gore excerpts in the book too.
It wasnt as much of a page turner as I hd hoped itd be. For me it was neither much of a romance nor a thriller nor a sci-fi.
Some of the diaglogue was so gorgeous and cinematic, and well placed. At other times, it felt rather floral. For example: Describing the arrival of autumn like a late man into a crowded room was sort of lost on me. But the image of a workday Wednesday is definitely cold flavourless porridge. So it was rather hit and miss.
Yes I think this book could very easily be a TV series, as it lends itself very visually. But I think there would have to be quite a bit of editing to get there. 6 or 8 episodes tops at 45 mins each I think.
I also think the boom tries to demand the reader’s attention to politics and climate emergency. And that seems to be a background motive for a good handful of the modern characters. But with so much going on in the book, it doesn’t have the opportunity to explore that in much depth. The overall message is bleak in that sense, the future is changeable but it will also be terrible.
Slightly confused because there was an anti-establishment thing, but at the end of the book no one actually … deals with that? The institution just continues to exist without much (seeming) impact. Like the institution gets away with it almost?
So overall, I’d recommend it as a fun wee book that plays with historic figures in a really charming way. Some intriguing flavours of sci-fi and thriller, and too see the grey ol modern world through the eyes of a victorian naval lieutenant - how silly and whimsical! A fresh perspective on the mundane. I think, the main reason to read this book is the character building. And - of course - some delicious sex scenes (although you have to get to the last two fifths of the book for that).
3 stars for me, I also don’t think the blurb quite describes the book well enough.
I predicted one of the plot twists. Which is always annoying. I felt that the follow-through after that plot twist was slightly weak. Not bad, but just didn’t feel like it hit as hard as it ought to have done.
My god this author is great at writing steamy sex scenes. It was HOT as hell. Kaliane is a person who knows how to have a good time, and I am 100% here for it. Get it girl.
The book pacing was quick at the start, and deeply slow in the middle. Then at the end it was very fast paced. The middle of the book, while delightful, was a tad too slow fpr me. Could probably have used a bit more editing there as I felt at some points the writing was acting as filler. And didnt really add anything to the characters or story or didnt enhance my understanding i to the world.
The characters themselves are beautifully realised. They were all very unique and even their most intricate quirks made them feel so real. We love a LGBTQ moment. Arthur and Margaret are such loveable characters and oh how they PAINEDDD ME.
I really enjoyed the historic Gore excerpts in the book too.
It wasnt as much of a page turner as I hd hoped itd be. For me it was neither much of a romance nor a thriller nor a sci-fi.
Some of the diaglogue was so gorgeous and cinematic, and well placed. At other times, it felt rather floral. For example: Describing the arrival of autumn like a late man into a crowded room was sort of lost on me. But the image of a workday Wednesday is definitely cold flavourless porridge. So it was rather hit and miss.
Yes I think this book could very easily be a TV series, as it lends itself very visually. But I think there would have to be quite a bit of editing to get there. 6 or 8 episodes tops at 45 mins each I think.
I also think the boom tries to demand the reader’s attention to politics and climate emergency. And that seems to be a background motive for a good handful of the modern characters. But with so much going on in the book, it doesn’t have the opportunity to explore that in much depth. The overall message is bleak in that sense, the future is changeable but it will also be terrible.
Slightly confused because there was an anti-establishment thing, but at the end of the book no one actually … deals with that? The institution just continues to exist without much (seeming) impact. Like the institution gets away with it almost?
So overall, I’d recommend it as a fun wee book that plays with historic figures in a really charming way. Some intriguing flavours of sci-fi and thriller, and too see the grey ol modern world through the eyes of a victorian naval lieutenant - how silly and whimsical! A fresh perspective on the mundane. I think, the main reason to read this book is the character building. And - of course - some delicious sex scenes (although you have to get to the last two fifths of the book for that).
3 stars for me, I also don’t think the blurb quite describes the book well enough.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Mental illness, Sexual content, Violence, Cannibalism, War
Minor: Gore, Misogyny, Racism, Alcohol, Colonisation
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Racism, Antisemitism, Cannibalism, Colonisation, War
emotional
hopeful
sad
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:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, War
Minor: Slavery, Islamophobia
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
The time travel gets a bit wonky at the end. I really enjoyed the first half.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Sexual content, Violence, Murder, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Cursing, Drug use, Gore, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Xenophobia, Blood, War
Minor: Torture, Vomit
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
One of the best books I’ve read in a while. I learned so many new words, the concept was completely original, the characters were so memorable I felt I knew them by the end, and the plot was well-written and well designed.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Vomit, Cannibalism, Murder, Toxic friendship, War
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Grief, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Colonisation, Deportation
Cannot recommend it enough!
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
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:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Murder
Moderate: Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Homophobia, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Grief, Suicide attempt, Colonisation, War
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Absolutely loved this. It felt fun, sad, complicated, devastating and even a little bit hopeful. A great read!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Violence, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Vomit, Murder, War
medium-paced
A novel weak in science fiction and flawed in romance, which depends on unrewarding tropes and fails to fully develop an intriguing concept.
In an interview, Kaliane Bradley says that an obsession with the historical Graham Gore is the Franklin expedition inspired her debut novel, The Ministry of Time. This starting point helps to make sense of a somewhat thin time travel mechanism and the lack of concrete detail around the ministry that utilizes it to experiment with bringing people from previous centuries into present-day London. The book is framed as a romance, which goes from slow burn (ie. Victorian) to all-at-once in a single scene. Where it was loose and unconvincing up to that point, the protagonists’ development stagnates there.
Bradley uses obvious foreshadowing, with phrases like, “I didn’t know it would be the last time” and “it ended up like this because of my stupidity” (paraphrasing). This doesn’t contribute much to the plot, but does make the narrator annoying. Since Graham Gore is mainly shown from her perspective, as a handsome, charming gentleman, he reads as false and boring.
In contrast, his “expat” friends, Maggie and Arthur, are more dynamic; however, the way queerness is treated through these two characters felt off. I’m not sure whether the author is queer, but their sexuality came across as an experimental quirk to prove a point (of 21st century progress, of Gore’s winning personality) rather than a realistic unfolding identity.
Some of the expats’ learning and emotions around coming to the 21st century interested me—Arthur and Graham’s music performance, a game of finding things from their times, etc. There are hints of good fiction here, but they don’t make up a solid core.
Some of the expats’ learning and emotions around coming to the 21st century interested me—Arthur and Graham’s music performance, a game of finding things from their times, etc. There are hints of good fiction here, but they don’t make up a solid core.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gun violence, Mental illness, Sexual content, Murder
Minor: Genocide, Gore, Homophobia, Misogyny, Racism, Vomit, War
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
The concept of this book was better than the execution. The writing was tedious at times and didn’t really bring the story to life. Much of it felt messy and not fully formed.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Violence, Vomit, War