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3.68 AVERAGE
3.68 AVERAGE
medium-paced
adventurous
emotional
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:
Complicated
ust One Damned Thing After Another: The Chronicles of St. Mary's is a book I had heard about from a few places. All I needed to hear was "eccentric, time-traveling historians" and I was intrigued.
The book tells the story of Madeleine Maxwell (Max) as she becomes a new historian with St. Mary's. We get the impression that she's had a tough past and that academia has been her way out of it. She joins St. Mary's with little clue that she's joining a time-traveling band of historians who investigate (but don't interfere with) disputed moments throughout history. Not interfering is an important rule because History has been known to fight back. But History isn't the only one the historians have to be concerned about...
So... I really wanted to love this book. I love quirky characters (of which there were aplenty) and I'm a bit of a nerd so I figured this would be right up my alley. Even when I realized we were talking more ancient than modern history (think middle ages and earlier) I was still willing to push forward but some of the plotlines were just a bit much. There were several scenes that would require trigger warnings and I'm not quite sure why they were included. It's not just that it happened once but the inclusion multiple times felt odd, especially since it didn't seem necessary to push the plot along. I'm honestly surprised I kept reading but the plot was engaging enough and the mysteries interesting enough to carry me to the end. This book could probably be for another reader whose sensibilities might be less sensitive than mine.
I rate this one a 2.5 stars mainly because it kept me reading even though I would have typically set it down. It's the first in a series and I really want to give the others a chance but I'm torn so...we'll see!
The book tells the story of Madeleine Maxwell (Max) as she becomes a new historian with St. Mary's. We get the impression that she's had a tough past and that academia has been her way out of it. She joins St. Mary's with little clue that she's joining a time-traveling band of historians who investigate (but don't interfere with) disputed moments throughout history. Not interfering is an important rule because History has been known to fight back. But History isn't the only one the historians have to be concerned about...
So... I really wanted to love this book. I love quirky characters (of which there were aplenty) and I'm a bit of a nerd so I figured this would be right up my alley. Even when I realized we were talking more ancient than modern history (think middle ages and earlier) I was still willing to push forward but some of the plotlines were just a bit much. There were several scenes that would require trigger warnings and I'm not quite sure why they were included. It's not just that it happened once but the inclusion multiple times felt odd, especially since it didn't seem necessary to push the plot along. I'm honestly surprised I kept reading but the plot was engaging enough and the mysteries interesting enough to carry me to the end. This book could probably be for another reader whose sensibilities might be less sensitive than mine.
I rate this one a 2.5 stars mainly because it kept me reading even though I would have typically set it down. It's the first in a series and I really want to give the others a chance but I'm torn so...we'll see!
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
funny
informative
inspiring
fast-paced
I really enjoyed this book, but there is one part that's bugging me. There was no narrative reason for the attempted rape. I really don't understand why the author included it, then proceeded to tell the reader that it wasn't the reason Max was pushed nor why Sussman died. It's a terrible trope so to include it for no reason is baffling.
adventurous
funny
informative
lighthearted
mysterious
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:
No
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Gun violence, Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Violence, Excrement, Vomit, Grief
Minor: Infidelity, Suicidal thoughts, Pregnancy
How did I not know about this book series?! I absolutely could not put it down. Time travel plus historical events all in a British accent. Could you need anything more?! But there is! Romance, adventure, humor. This was such a fun read.
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
its okay, it was just all over the place and the story was not very engaging to me