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A review by mallorypen
This Is How You Lose the Time War by Max Gladstone, Amal El-Mohtar
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
This was a different sort of book, and I enjoyed it in a different sort of way.
Let me explain.
The epistolary style of storytelling isn't usually my jam, but in this novella - holy shit it works. This is the epitome of Yearning™️ in the more pure fashion, where our protagonists are in love with each other's minds before and above all else. Their physical forms are important - especially in the finale of the plot - but they change. As such, there is no lust in the traditional sense. There's no bodily awareness, no burning glances. There's pretty much only admiration for one another's cunning and hunger, and that turn from admiring rivals to a victorious Romeo and Juliet was incredibly well told.
Speaking of Romeo and Juliet: that detail where Red sees the play in different strands and sometimes it's a tragedy and sometimes it's a comedy - how clever that this novella is an example of the story as a comedy (Shakespeare version, not the Taylor Tomlinson version of comedy).
The strand concept reminded me favorably of Ursula K. LeGuin's "Changing Planes" - we didn't have to learn a lot about each thread, but the level of detail that was shared was enough to ground the reader in each setting. Whereas "Changing Planes" only jumped through time and not also space, this still felt relatively easy to follow as the protagonists moved from location to location.
I initially thought that the Seeker was Red and Blue following up on each other for safety - I didn't guess the twist until towards the end when Red started putting her plan in place.
This was a lovely, lyrical experience. Like one of the letters themselves admitted that the prose had a tendency to turn purple, there were a few times where it got a little syrupy for me. That said, I enjoyed the hell out of the unique turns of phrase throughout. Especially - and I had to stop to record it because it was so good - "Adventure works in any strand. It calls to those who care more about living than their lives.”
Let me explain.
The epistolary style of storytelling isn't usually my jam, but in this novella - holy shit it works. This is the epitome of Yearning™️ in the more pure fashion, where our protagonists are in love with each other's minds before and above all else. Their physical forms are important - especially in the finale of the plot - but they change. As such, there is no lust in the traditional sense. There's no bodily awareness, no burning glances. There's pretty much only admiration for one another's cunning and hunger, and that turn from admiring rivals to a victorious Romeo and Juliet was incredibly well told.
Speaking of Romeo and Juliet: that detail where Red sees the play in different strands and sometimes it's a tragedy and sometimes it's a comedy - how clever that this novella is an example of the story as a comedy (Shakespeare version, not the Taylor Tomlinson version of comedy).
The strand concept reminded me favorably of Ursula K. LeGuin's "Changing Planes" - we didn't have to learn a lot about each thread, but the level of detail that was shared was enough to ground the reader in each setting. Whereas "Changing Planes" only jumped through time and not also space, this still felt relatively easy to follow as the protagonists moved from location to location.
I initially thought that the Seeker was Red and Blue following up on each other for safety - I didn't guess the twist until towards the end when Red started putting her plan in place.
This was a lovely, lyrical experience. Like one of the letters themselves admitted that the prose had a tendency to turn purple, there were a few times where it got a little syrupy for me. That said, I enjoyed the hell out of the unique turns of phrase throughout. Especially - and I had to stop to record it because it was so good - "Adventure works in any strand. It calls to those who care more about living than their lives.”
Good shit!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Body horror and War