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3.96 AVERAGE
3.96 AVERAGE
adventurous
reflective
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:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
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:
No
adventurous
challenging
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
sad
slow-paced
This was recommend by an author, I can't remember which one, at an event I was attended.
I thought the premise was really interesting and decided to give it a try. Unfortunately, the story was so slow that I lost interest.
It's a story about the have and have nots, choices you make. Maybe if I was in the right mindset, I would've enjoyed it more.
I thought the premise was really interesting and decided to give it a try. Unfortunately, the story was so slow that I lost interest.
It's a story about the have and have nots, choices you make. Maybe if I was in the right mindset, I would've enjoyed it more.
This was a fantastic debut novel, and I can't wait to see what Scott Alexander Howard will bring us next. Our protagonist, Odile, lives in a small town in a rural valley. Just on the other side of the valley's heavily guarded western border lies another valley that's identical except for one thing... it's twenty years in the past. And to the east lies another that's twenty years in the future. Countless copies of the valley in both directions, each twenty years earlier (or later) depending on which directions one goes. And Odile is hoping for a career with the Conseil, the people who consider petitions from those who want to visit those other valleys. This was a great new twist on the time travel genre, and a very interesting read.
I stumbled upon the advanced reader’s edition for free at a local bookstore. The premise of the identical valleys one next to the other, to the west is 20 years in the past, to the east is 20 years in the future, sounds so simple that I was surprised no one has written about it before. It’s a brilliant idea though and I had high hopes going into it.
The first part got me thinking it might be a coming of age romance story and I was afraid I’d be disappointed but it never goes into that direction.
The second part is sad and dark. Just like real life, reality kicks in when you become an adult. The world is so bleak, life is hopeless, people are cruel. I was annoyed in the first part because Odile got bullied, but that was nothing compared to the real dangerous and shitty life in the second half. It stresses me out every time (as it should) when stories contain the scenes of predatory acts towards women. The second part drained me and left me with a headache.
I do like that Odile’s core personality and values stay consistent through space and time. I could totally imagine some of the things she did in part 2 after knowing her in part 1. She feels real and close to me. I got attached.
I think the book delivered what was promised. The moral and practical conundrums that one has to wrestle with when reviewing requests and guiding travels between valleys, how many tragedies could have been prevented, and at what price. We got to see the characters’ different ways of answering these questions.
My favorite part though, is how life in the town is exactly like it is in our world. The prestigious conseil at the top, with all the power and knowledge in their hands, the gendarmes and the brutal system that helps carry out those decisions. The rich people living their beautiful happy life, seemingly unaffected by the chaos. And the normal working class people, living their ordinary life until tragedies caught up to them.
The first part got me thinking it might be a coming of age romance story and I was afraid I’d be disappointed but it never goes into that direction.
The second part is sad and dark. Just like real life, reality kicks in when you become an adult. The world is so bleak, life is hopeless, people are cruel. I was annoyed in the first part because Odile got bullied, but that was nothing compared to the real dangerous and shitty life in the second half. It stresses me out every time (as it should) when stories contain the scenes of predatory acts towards women. The second part drained me and left me with a headache.
I do like that Odile’s core personality and values stay consistent through space and time. I could totally imagine some of the things she did in part 2 after knowing her in part 1. She feels real and close to me. I got attached.
I think the book delivered what was promised. The moral and practical conundrums that one has to wrestle with when reviewing requests and guiding travels between valleys, how many tragedies could have been prevented, and at what price. We got to see the characters’ different ways of answering these questions.
My favorite part though, is how life in the town is exactly like it is in our world. The prestigious conseil at the top, with all the power and knowledge in their hands, the gendarmes and the brutal system that helps carry out those decisions. The rich people living their beautiful happy life, seemingly unaffected by the chaos. And the normal working class people, living their ordinary life until tragedies caught up to them.
On the one hand, this ended up being a much slower and more romantic read than I’d gleamed from the blurb. The pacing is not ideal: just as things start to pick up, we jump through time and have to run through another hundred pages of setup and world-building.
On the other hand, there is a softness to the writing that holds an undeniable charm. I didn’t always empathize with the protagonist and certainly wasn’t gripped by any propulsion of plot, but something kept me going and I think that’s just the writing itself.
“Evening came without sunset. The daylight simply slid back into the earth.”
On the other hand, there is a softness to the writing that holds an undeniable charm. I didn’t always empathize with the protagonist and certainly wasn’t gripped by any propulsion of plot, but something kept me going and I think that’s just the writing itself.
“Evening came without sunset. The daylight simply slid back into the earth.”