Reviews with content warning for War - The Ministry of Time

Reviews tagging 'War'

The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley

144 reviews

oxfordcommas91's review against another edition

4.0

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective 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 struggled with the first 50% of this book. It really took me a while to wrap my mind around the plot and where the author was leading the reader.
Additionally, the writing was a challenge in more place than one - there were some forced metaphors and the writing isn't super accessible, even to those who are used to reading fantasy and sci-fi. The aggressive use of SAT style words led to overcomplicated and flowery prose that convoluted the meaning. The author was trying so hard to write a beautiful book that sometimes it was an incomprehensible book.
Now that we got the bad out of the way with - the back half of the book was what really had me stopping in awe more than once. There's a lot of set up, but if you can deal with the writing, the pay off is certainly worth it. I was impressed by the unique spin on the time travel trope - its done with a lot of precision and expertise, and the twists that you're treated to in the last 50 pages are really stunning and well done.
Our narrator and protagonist, the daughter of Cambodian immigrants, inadvertently finds herself working for a British spy agency that has embarked on a secret project to bring a collection of individuals from the past into modern-day Britain. She is assigned as a "bridge" - essentially a companion and cultural encyclopedia - to one of the time travelers. She must quickly confront a whole host of cultural complexities (gender, race, colonialism, romance, technology...) alongside the man she is tasked with protecting and defending. It made for a fascinating and sometimes complicated read, but when I think back over this book one thing that stands out to me is that I've never read anything like it and I doubt I ever will again!

Content Warnings

figsofpeach's review against another edition

3.75

adventurous funny mysterious 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

clairebartholomew549's review against another edition

4.0

emotional funny inspiring 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: Yes

I've been hearing about this book forever, and I'm so glad I finally got to it. It's hard to describe it - it's a combination workplace comedy, love story, time travel adventure, and spy thriller - but it's great fun all the way through. The narrator tells us early on not to get too wrapped up in trying to figure out the logistics of the time travel situation, and that's helpful so you just go along for the ride. The characters are hilarious and full of pathos, and our main character is deeply flawed and yet deeply lovable. This book takes on colonialism, state-sponsored violence, believing you are part of the solution when instead you are integral to the problem itself, forcing your ideas of how people should be on them, what history really means, and if it's possible to actually make a difference. It does all things while being very funny, endearing, and compulsively readable. I loved this book!

Content Warnings

dpekus's review against another edition

3.25

adventurous emotional mysterious 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

Pamačiau, kad šita knyga laimėjo goodreadsų metų sci-fi knygos apdovanojimą. Galvoju, ok, išbandom. Ir nebuvo ji bloga, idėja tikrai įdomi ir išpildyta visai tinkamai, knygoje netrūksta twistų, priverčiančių vis palaikyti mano dėmesį. Visas persikėlimo laiku konceptas ir jo padariniai buvo įdomiausia knygos dalis, puikiai išnaudota komedija bei atrasta vietos tinkamai įterpti socialinius komentarus.

Obettačiau, knyga nereikalingai per daug užsižaidžia romantinėse temose (neturiu nieko prieš, bet ar tai buvo itin reikalinga? turbūt ne), o ir šiaip kartais sunku suprasti, kuria kryptimi ji eina - ar čia sci-fi, ar čia romantinė knyga, ar čia detektyinis trileris, ar čia socialinių komentarų rinkinys. Kartais šie bandymai maišyti viską į vieną krūvą visai pavykdavo, bet daug dažniau buvo kiek nuobodoka skaityti. Bet, vis tiek, susiskaitė greitai ir visai smagiai, tai stiprūs trys iš penkių.

Content Warnings

lailybibliography's review against another edition

3.5

adventurous dark funny reflective fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

He’d always lived inside me, years before I’d known him. I’d been trained to love him.

Okay so I don’t get all the fuss.

For months now, I’ve heard endless explanations of how The Ministry of Time was a self-insert, plagiarized fanfic level mess; others fiercely rebutting by raving about its romantic, humorous blend of commentary, self-reflection, and deep-state subterfuge. I fall on neither extreme. While I went through the book quite fast, it didn’t blow me away - positively or negatively.

I’ll stick to positives. Kaliane Bradley is a good writer. Her narration maintains an engaging, witty tone throughout pretty much the entire page count, something I appreciate a lot since a not insignificant amount of the story was basically our MC and Graham Gore screwing around their safe-house (quite literally in the second half). There’s discourse to be had about the merits of the POV character being a deliberate blank slate beyond the scantest possible details, but I cannot deny that even during bits I wanted to throw my hands in frustration with her actions or political viewpoints, I was entertained. Particularly impressive was the sharpness with which Bradley deftly critiques Empire and the ever-present dynamic between colonizer and colonized. The MC’s (and Bradley’s) mixed British-Cambodian heritage informs much of her cynical, assimilationist approach to life and passive reaction to the outer world. Intergenerational trauma and paranoia that comes with being a daughter of a survivor of the Cambodian Genocide runs throughout the story and it is both heartbreaking and tragic the ways our MC’s cautious apathy completely unravels everything in the end. I won’t spoil it, but let’s just say Ms. Bradley made some interesting capital-C choices. A stunning presentation for a debut author. She will definitely be someone whose works I will look out for.

I’ll keep the negatives brief. I definitely get the confusion about the book’s genre marketing choices. For all that the ‘romance’ aspect is played up in reviews and blurbs, it only really comes into play more than halfway through the book and I’d argue, still not an aspect that holds the most interest IMHO. Personally, for me, I felt that the MC and Graham had a better emotionally resonant connection with Margaret and Arthur respectively, but it is what it is. I don’t mind the romance overall and I certainly don’t get all the handwringing over the “ethics” of depicting a fictional romantic/sexual relationship for a historical figure. For the love of god, this was like half of all historical fiction not too long ago. People need to calm down and get off their high horses. This is not the same as Harry Styles RPF fanfiction republished with the serial numbers filed off. I do, however, think Bradley would do better with a more restrained, focused genre approach to any future works. She’s decent with the individual genre traits she writes (soft sci-fi, slice of life, romance, observational), but this scattershot style didn’t quite stick the landing.

So yeah. This was fine

Content Warnings

cfw100's review against another edition

4.0

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense medium-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

Content Warnings

just_one_more_paige's review against another edition

4.0

adventurous emotional mysterious reflective 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: Complicated

This one made a lot of (early) end-of-year lists, and was recommended to me by a coworker, and (above all) just looked really up my alley. Science fiction and romance and spy thriller and workplace comedy all mashed together?! Yes, please. I am always here for a genre-bending read.

In London, in the near future, a government worker gets a top secret job. She'll be working as a "bridge," essentially a guide/caseworker for an "expat" newly arrived from a historical time. Time travel has just been...found...and the Ministry of Time is trying to figure out whether it's actually possible (both physically, for the body, and metaphysically, for the fabric of space-time). Our (unnamed) narrator's assignee is Graham Gore, brought to the future from 1847, one of the members of Sir John Franklin's ill-fated (everyone died, of starvation and exposure, and there was probably cannibalism involved) 1845 Arctic exploration team. As the two spend all their time together, with Graham adjusting to all aspects of modern life (household appliances, streaming music, world wars, etc.), our MC finds herself falling for his self-assured and suave ways. And they both make friends with the cast of (mostly) charming and uniquely-voiced fellow "expats" and their bridges. When the full scope of the Ministry's time travel project/plans start coming to light, our MC, Graham, and the other expats/bridges find their lives in danger, with threats of moles, spies and conspiracies coming at them from (from within the Ministry) across time.

This definitely delivered on the genre mix-match in the blurb. The time travel aspects were some hardcore scifi...to the extent that as a few points, I did my normal "zone out and just go with it" on the details because I was super into the plot but didn't care as much about the specifics of how it was working. Personal preference. But do know that, if you are someone that does care about those details, you may have to pay some very real attention. The romance piece was slowwwwww burn and I was here for it. Such a fantastic build in connection, the heat was hot, and, when the betrayal hit as part of the plot (spoiler-ish, but also the foreshadowing throughout was strong, so it's not really a surprise), it was just right. PLus, an ending of promise and distant, but possible, hope. Yes, yes. The tension build and spy thriller pieces also had a slower build (which I was ready for, when it hit, but glad for the delay on, because it allowed for a great depth of character build prior to its introduction), and came on strong at the end. To be honest, this was perhaps the most uneven part. There were a few hints that were dropped or that the MC figured out, that were so vaguely addressed/explained, that I didn't quite catch them. It all came together in the end, but it was the weakest written part, IMO.

I have a ton of other things I want to say. Because, despite some of the confusing/less clear things, I really liked this book. First of all, I was captivated by the narrative as the MC and Gore’s relationship grows. Even though nothing really happens, for a long time, it was so compelling. And I mean, I have read my fair share of time travel (like Kindred and Outlander), but this is such a theoretical/philosophical perspective of it. Really thoughtful. Relatedly, the insights into humanity, with some moral and scientific musings (reminiscent of Real Americans, a bit), and cultural and social critique added a lot of depth to the story, but all of it is delivered with a dryly humorous edge (like an older Victorian or classic lit vibe, Austen-esque, which also fits the vibes of the expat characters well).

Speaking of the expats, the character development, relationally and internally, was just fantastic. Each expat's voice was so unique. There was such emotional depth across such a range of experiences. And the diversity of takes on the ways people might adjust across time, based on changes in gender and racial and sexuality equality and how it’s different nowadays than in previous eras, plus what jobs/roles they had and how those equate to existences in the present day (what skills/identities are useful/transferable and what makes people feel obsolete) was so fully explored. As far as the bridges, there was an interesting moral dilemma...as part of their job was to track and report on the expats, yet (especially with our narrator) the emotional connections (and hints about more nefarious purposes for the work) were in opposition to the job requirements. So, how do you navigate that? What’s for a person's safety and what is a transgression? Just really, character development was a hugeeee highlight for me.

I also appreciated some of the heavier thematic pieces. This look at refugee reality, through a sci-fi out-of-time look, is so original, but still has the familiar, clear and present (but not overhanded) truth of the parallels with the geographical version of refugees as we understand them. Similarly, what a fascinating exploration of the interplay of racial understanding and political correctness now versus in history. I always appreciate when an author can take a step back from something so recognizable, everyday, "normal," as see/describe it as an outsider would. Bradley does so in a spellbinding way (the Austen-esque vibes of the social writing hit well here too). And, the questions: Do we hope/work for change for the future or despair? And what route do we take to achieve whichever end we want? They hit pretty hard at the end.

Finally, I loved the focus on the small people, the relationships that history forgets or doesn’t care about, the way that their stories can be altered, be made better...because the larger story of history will not change even if they get their happier endings, because history is written by those with power, who will continue to not care about those individuals and their loves and lives. Those small people are us and we see ourselves in them. What a message, what feelings for the reader.

Phew, this was some real mind bending conceptualization of time travel, wrapped in a spy thriller, slow burn romance, character development piece. What scope. What an undertaking. I’m so impressed it was all that and a page-turner.

“I’d sat with the term "internally displaced person" until I'd broken it down semantically. I was wrestling with a ghost meaning: a person whose interiority was at odds with their exteriority, who was internally (in themselves) displaced.”

“One of the many hypotheses coagulating in these early days of time-travel was that language informed experience - that we did not simply describe but create our world through language..."

“History is not a series of causes and effects which may be changed like switching trains on a track. It is a narrative agreement about what has happened and what is happening. [...] History is what we need to happen. You talk about changing history, but you're trying to change the future. It's an important semantic differentiation in this field.”

“Ah, love, life’s greatest catastrophe.”

“This was one of my first lessons in how you make the future: moment by moment, you seal the doors of possibility behind you.”

“It was so hard not to treat the expats like blank slates onto which I might write my opinions. […] There was something hauntingly young about all of them, a scarcity of cultural context that felt teenaged, and I didn’t know if my fascination with it was maternal or predatory.”

“Her reasons were bad, half-veiled. Then again, whose upper management am I not describing? Who trusts their workplace? Who thinks their job is on the side of right? They fed us all poison from a bottle marked “prestige,” and we developed a high tolerance for bitterness.”

***“You can’t trauma-proof life, and you can’t hurt-proof your relationships. You have to accept you will cause harm to yourself and others. But you can also fuck up, really badly, and not learn anything from it except that you fucked up. It’s the same with oppression. You don’t gain any special knowledge from being marginalized. But you do gain something from stepping outside your hurt and examining the scaffolding of your oppression.”

“People liked him and so they imagined that he agreed with them - all likable people know how to be a flattering mirror…”

“What was it like growing up with that? […] I don’t know […] What was it like growing up without it?” (so much exploration of the concept of how can we possibly, ever, understand/conceptualize another’s experiences)

“Everything that has ever been could have been prevented, and none of it was. The only thing you can mend is the future.” (I mean, hot damn, this is hitting so hard.)

“…after all, the things that happen between lovers are lost to the work of history anyway.”

“I had always thought of joy as a shouting…know what to do.”

“When something changes you constitutionally, you say: ‘The earth moved.’ But the earth stays the same. It’s your relationship with the ground that shifts.”

“I don’t mean to sound pessimistic. I only do because I can see how wrong my choices were. Don’t do it like this. Don’t enter believing yourself a node in a grand undertaking, that your past and your trauma will define your future, that individuals don’t matter. The most radical thing I ever did was love him, and I wasn’t even the first person in this story to do that. But you can get it right, if you try. You will have hope, and you have been forgiven. Forgiveness, which takes you back to the person you were and lets you reset them. Hope, which exists in a future in which you are new. Forgiveness and hope are miracles. They let you change your life. They are time-travel.”

Content Warnings

meagwhalen's review against another edition

2.0

adventurous reflective fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Great premise, didn’t totally enjoy the execution. The ending was also good. Interesting exploration of the intersections of social issues with this concept.

Content Warnings

oceanwriter's review against another edition

3.0

adventurous emotional 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

I’ve heard a lot of people say that this book is slow to start so I ended up opting for the audiobook even though I purchased it through BOTM. I don’t know if it made much difference aside from not having page numbers to follow along with. I found the concept interesting, but it lost me when things started getting spicy. Definitely wasn’t the content I was anticipating for this type of book, but glad I finished it because there was one passage in particular toward the end that was so beautiful.

Content Warnings

hcmizzle's review against another edition

3.75

mysterious reflective 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: Complicated

Content Warnings

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