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A review by bloomed
This Is How You Lose the Time War by Max Gladstone, Amal El-Mohtar
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
fast-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? It's complicated
4.0
“Books are letters in bottles, cast into the waves of time, from one person trying to save the world to another.”
a really quick, poignant read with pretty, delicate prose. it wasn’t what i was expecting (i’m not 100% sure what i was expecting), but i liked it a lot!
the best part of the book was how clever it felt; there’s a lot of witty wordplay and it’s basically built on the back of watching two characters banter back and forth with one another. if you like dialog-heavy books that focus a lot on one-on-one character interaction, you’ll probably enjoy it a lot! it’s relatively light on the plot and worldbuilding, but in a way that really, really worked for the story that the book was trying to tell. i think any extra time spent on trying to establish the universe it takes place in—or trying to flesh out what’s happening beyond red and blue—would’ve detracted from watching their lives unfold, for lack of a better way of putting it.
the worst part, tbh, was that it had to end. even though the ending itself was really gorgeous in itself, i would’ve happily read another hundred pages of red and blue sending letters back and forth to one another!
a really quick, poignant read with pretty, delicate prose. it wasn’t what i was expecting (i’m not 100% sure what i was expecting), but i liked it a lot!
the best part of the book was how clever it felt; there’s a lot of witty wordplay and it’s basically built on the back of watching two characters banter back and forth with one another. if you like dialog-heavy books that focus a lot on one-on-one character interaction, you’ll probably enjoy it a lot! it’s relatively light on the plot and worldbuilding, but in a way that really, really worked for the story that the book was trying to tell. i think any extra time spent on trying to establish the universe it takes place in—or trying to flesh out what’s happening beyond red and blue—would’ve detracted from watching their lives unfold, for lack of a better way of putting it.
the worst part, tbh, was that it had to end. even though the ending itself was really gorgeous in itself, i would’ve happily read another hundred pages of red and blue sending letters back and forth to one another!