A review by coleanne
This is How You Lose the Time War by Max Gladstone, Amal El-Mohtar

adventurous hopeful mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

I really liked this book. It was a quick read and very lovely. I would give it 3.5 stars if allowed. You might wonder why I rounded down to three instead of up to four here if I liked it so much and thought it was lovely. I just found that there was something quite ‘nothing’ about it. While it is a lovely story and an enjoyable read, I don’t know that I would call it a good book. It certainly strings together, a beginning, middle, and end that is discernible and sensible. However, there’s just something empty about it where I wish there was more. I think it is limited by its context and its style and I don’t think this tracks entirely. Maybe the point is for it to feel empty in some kind of way because the war brings them to nothing, in the end, but each other. I just can’t bring myself to love it. Maybe I was poisoned by all the rave reviews I saw and I formed high expectations going in, leaving reality to inevitably fall short of fantasy. Regardless, I think it was an enjoyable read and I would recommend it to others, but I don’t think it is on par with other good books I’ve rated four and five stars.
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