A review by withlivjones
Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel

emotional mysterious sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

A mind-blowing and existential read. Books that involve time travel sometimes fall into the trap of trying to be too clever and ending up with loads of plot holes and very little closure. This is not that kind of book. I love the way everything was wrapped up in this book in a way I would never have expected, and how all the tiny details mentioned earlier in the book had their own place. It also asks some really interesting questions about fate - if you knew when and how everyone you know was going to die, what would you do? Would you try and prevent those deaths regardless of the possible consequences? 

I’m not sure if I’ll ever really enjoy a pandemic novel (which this book briefly becomes - I lived through it and I don’t fancy experiencing it again thanks), and I do think that the pacing was a little all over the place (the beginning, for example, is extremely slow and leans more into historical fiction than sci-fi) but the ending is more than worth the wait. 
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