A review by sarahholliday
The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

I think there are several things to like about this book—the heartwarming relationships between the "expats," the often humorous results of walking, talking anachronisms in the modern era, the honest depiction of what it's like to become infatuated with someone.

But overall I think this needed a lot more editing. The story can't quite figure out what it wants to be—I'm all for blending genres, but I think it needs to be done with a bit more intention and finesse than happens here. Similarly, the writing feels inconsistent. Some passages, particularly the dialogue between the protagonist and Graham and the other expats, feel natural, but there are significant portions that feel very overwritten. I think the story could've been a solid 10-15 pages shorter if someone had gone after all the metaphors with a red pen. 

Ultimately I'm just not sure The Ministry of Time really succeeds at any of the things it's trying to do, so it felt quite unsatisfying in the end.
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