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4.06 AVERAGE
4.06 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
funny
reflective
fast-paced
Kinda funny that the main guy is constantly dumb and wrong. Could be annoying, but I had a fun time.
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Fascinating concept, and really well-done.
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Despite being a huge Asimov fan, I wasn’t entirely sure about this book for the first third. The main character is kind of a huge jerk and while I love time-travel as a trope, it can often get a bit unstuck if you examine it too much, what with causality and so on. On top of this, it has to be said and said loud: this is a science fiction written by a bloke in the 1950s, and therefore the characterisation of the one female character is... non-existent. When she is finally given a voice, it is simply Asimov’s voice. She is not so much a female character as she is leverage for the story who eventually acts as a sort of tannoy system into the novel from Asimov. So, while that’s disappointing, it’s hardly surprising given the context of writing. Blish, Asimov, Clarke... they were all fairly crap at female characters.
The other thing I’d say is that this is Asimov all over in that it’s a story told in info-dumps. So if that’s not your thing, well... Asimov isn’t your thing and you’ve probably walked away already.
SO, caveats out of the way, this book gets so awesome, literally awesome in the second half. It’s a fascinating concept, well explored with a mixture of lucidity and mystique along with Asimov’s unassailable (and right now, refreshing) endless optimism for the future of the species. The concept of the particular form of time travel and its consequences are explored to their conclusion, and the amount packed into this short novel is dizzying and inspiring.
Asimov’s effectively an essayist who uses characters to demonstrate and simulate his ideas, and knowing and appreciating this from experience, I ended up loving this book, particularly the final quarter which felt like a philosophical rollercoaster ride.
The other thing I’d say is that this is Asimov all over in that it’s a story told in info-dumps. So if that’s not your thing, well... Asimov isn’t your thing and you’ve probably walked away already.
SO, caveats out of the way, this book gets so awesome, literally awesome in the second half. It’s a fascinating concept, well explored with a mixture of lucidity and mystique along with Asimov’s unassailable (and right now, refreshing) endless optimism for the future of the species. The concept of the particular form of time travel and its consequences are explored to their conclusion, and the amount packed into this short novel is dizzying and inspiring.
Asimov’s effectively an essayist who uses characters to demonstrate and simulate his ideas, and knowing and appreciating this from experience, I ended up loving this book, particularly the final quarter which felt like a philosophical rollercoaster ride.
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
adventurous
mysterious
tense
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
Gosh, I'm really starting to appreciate Asimov's work. It would be easy to how I can see how this book has influenced other literature and film (I'm thinking of How to Lose the Time War, and Loki). 👍🏼
My husband saw this laying on the bed as he brought me my bedtime glass of water and vitamin pill (I know, I'm a spoiled princess) and complimented me on my good taste! Actually, he went "ooOOOooo", which he doesn't often do with my reading material!
One of the few standalone Asimov books, I felt like this was a good place to dip my toes into sci-fi. I was right! Brain-bending paradoxes and crazy plot twists that I KNEW were coming, but somehow never quite exactly what I expected.
Mid-century science fiction often has a weird taste to it, but I quite liked this one.
Pros: classic sci-fi, original, nifty plotting, I like how women are treated by the author.
Cons: Godless. Sci-fi routinely ignores the idea of God, or else future Christians are cast as cult members with psuedo-Roman-Catholic traditions. I should try to find some novels that buck the trend... Science need not be atheistic. Atheism is not the default of the future.
One of the few standalone Asimov books, I felt like this was a good place to dip my toes into sci-fi. I was right! Brain-bending paradoxes and crazy plot twists that I KNEW were coming, but somehow never quite exactly what I expected.
Mid-century science fiction often has a weird taste to it, but I quite liked this one.
Pros: classic sci-fi, original, nifty plotting, I like how women are treated by the author.
Cons: Godless. Sci-fi routinely ignores the idea of God, or else future Christians are cast as cult members with psuedo-Roman-Catholic traditions. I should try to find some novels that buck the trend... Science need not be atheistic. Atheism is not the default of the future.