A review by life_full_ofbooks
The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley

adventurous emotional funny informative inspiring mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I love how this book doesn’t fit into any one genre. It’s a little bit romance, a little bit scifi, a little bit thriller, and a whole lot of fun! 

Taking place sometime in the near future in London a civil servant gets a job working for the newly established Ministry of Time. The MoT is gathering “expats” from different time periods to try to find out if time travel is possible and to see what it does to the body and also the fabric of space-time. Our protagonist is a bridge, someone who is assigned to an expat to help them navigate this futuristic world and to monitor their health and wellbeing. She is assigned 1847 aka Commander Graham Gore. According to history Commander Gore died in 1847 on Sir John Franklin’s 1845 expedition to the arctic. Over the course of a year, as Gore slowly adjusts to life in the 21st century he and our protagonist go from strangers and housemates to something much deeper- that neither the millennial nor the Victorian era explorer ever saw coming. 

This book was so entertaining. The story Kaliane Bradley has created is one of the most inventive and creative stories I’ve read in a long time. I was a little incredulous when I read the synopsis and it said this was a combination of 4 different genres but it works so well! The writing style is engaging, the characters are sweet and quirky and the twists had me gasping out loud. This is Ms. Bradley’s debut novel and what a debut it is! I cannot wait to see what else this talented author has in store for us.