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The Chronicles of St Mary's #3
A Second Chance
The third book in the bestselling British madcap time-travelling series, served with a dash of wit that seems to be everyone’s cup of tea.
Behind the seemingly innocuous facade of St. Mary’s Institute of Historical Research, a different kind of academic work is taking place. Just don’t call it “time travel”—these historians “investigate major historical events in contemporary time.” And they aren’t your harmless eccentrics either; a more accurate description, as they ricochet around history, might be unintentional disaster-magnets.
The Chronicles of St. Mary’s tells the chaotic adventures of Madeleine Maxwell and her compatriots—Director Bairstow, Leon “Chief” Farrell, Mr. Markham, and many more—as they travel through time, saving St. Mary’s (too often by the very seat of their pants) and thwarting time-travelling terrorists, all the while leaving plenty of time for tea.
In A Second Chance, it seems nothing can go right for Max and her fellow historians. The team confronts a mirror-stealing Isaac Newton and later witnesses how the ancient and bizarre cheese-rolling ceremony in Gloucester can result in CBC: Concussion By Cheese.
Finally, Max makes her long-awaited jump to Bronze Age Troy, only for it to end in personal catastrophe. And just when it seems things couldn’t get any worse, it’s back to the Cretaceous Period to confront an old enemy who has nothing to lose.
Behind the seemingly innocuous facade of St. Mary’s Institute of Historical Research, a different kind of academic work is taking place. Just don’t call it “time travel”—these historians “investigate major historical events in contemporary time.” And they aren’t your harmless eccentrics either; a more accurate description, as they ricochet around history, might be unintentional disaster-magnets.
The Chronicles of St. Mary’s tells the chaotic adventures of Madeleine Maxwell and her compatriots—Director Bairstow, Leon “Chief” Farrell, Mr. Markham, and many more—as they travel through time, saving St. Mary’s (too often by the very seat of their pants) and thwarting time-travelling terrorists, all the while leaving plenty of time for tea.
In A Second Chance, it seems nothing can go right for Max and her fellow historians. The team confronts a mirror-stealing Isaac Newton and later witnesses how the ancient and bizarre cheese-rolling ceremony in Gloucester can result in CBC: Concussion By Cheese.
Finally, Max makes her long-awaited jump to Bronze Age Troy, only for it to end in personal catastrophe. And just when it seems things couldn’t get any worse, it’s back to the Cretaceous Period to confront an old enemy who has nothing to lose.
348 pages, Paperback
First published February 11, 2014
About the author
Jodi Taylor
76 books4,984 followersJodi Taylor is the internationally bestselling author of the Chronicles of St Mary's series, the story of a bunch of disaster prone individuals who investigate major historical events in contemporary time. Do NOT call it time travel! She is also the author of the Time Police series - a St Mary's spinoff and gateway into the world of an all-powerful, international organisation who are NOTHING like St Mary's. Except, when they are.
Alongside these, Jodi is known for her gripping supernatural thrillers featuring Elizabeth Cage together with the enchanting Frogmorton Farm series - a fairy story for adults.
Born in Bristol and now living in Gloucester (facts both cities vigorously deny), she spent many years with her head somewhere else, much to the dismay of family, teachers and employers, before finally deciding to put all that daydreaming to good use and write a novel. Over twenty books later, she still has no idea what she wants to do when she grows up.
Alongside these, Jodi is known for her gripping supernatural thrillers featuring Elizabeth Cage together with the enchanting Frogmorton Farm series - a fairy story for adults.
Born in Bristol and now living in Gloucester (facts both cities vigorously deny), she spent many years with her head somewhere else, much to the dismay of family, teachers and employers, before finally deciding to put all that daydreaming to good use and write a novel. Over twenty books later, she still has no idea what she wants to do when she grows up.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,244 reviews
February 9, 2017
Oh my lord, this series is kicking my ass.
I mean, sure, there's tons of truly hilarious events going on, just one after another, and I love it. Plus the time-travel simply plays second fiddle to the historical accuracy displayed, but here's the real kicker: the emotional impact.
It's always bad enough to see people die that you didn't know very well, and then this series keeps on throwing people we're beginning to love under the bus. And then. I mean, shit!
Fine, Troy burns. Women and children suffer. All amounts of grotesque horrors occur... but this? This?
And if that wasn't enough, the fact of time travel throws us for a loop, literally, and then we get an almost Whovian twist, but alas, it's a very St. Mary twist.
Do I make sense? Well, if not, then it's only because the novel has gotten under my skin and again I'm not quite certain whether I like that or not. It's one thing to shut down emotionally and it's quite another thing to open up again in the right situation, but the fact that it's all happening so naturally has it killing me. ; ; Good stuff. Right in the feels.
And if that wasn't enough, the books still makes me laugh. What a ride!
I mean, sure, there's tons of truly hilarious events going on, just one after another, and I love it. Plus the time-travel simply plays second fiddle to the historical accuracy displayed, but here's the real kicker: the emotional impact.
It's always bad enough to see people die that you didn't know very well, and then this series keeps on throwing people we're beginning to love under the bus. And then. I mean, shit!
Fine, Troy burns. Women and children suffer. All amounts of grotesque horrors occur... but this? This?
And if that wasn't enough, the fact of time travel throws us for a loop, literally, and then we get an almost Whovian twist, but alas, it's a very St. Mary twist.
Do I make sense? Well, if not, then it's only because the novel has gotten under my skin and again I'm not quite certain whether I like that or not. It's one thing to shut down emotionally and it's quite another thing to open up again in the right situation, but the fact that it's all happening so naturally has it killing me. ; ; Good stuff. Right in the feels.
And if that wasn't enough, the books still makes me laugh. What a ride!
June 15, 2022
*** 4 ***
A buddy read with the MacHalos, because we love to travel in time...
Liked it even better the second time around:) So addictive!!! 👍😃
This author has decided to first bamboozle us with humor, attract us with the interpersonal relationships of the characters, intrigue us with the time travel for historical research to different important events in time, in this case The Fall of of Troy and The battle of Agincourt, as well as a very vigorous cheese rolling festival in the 19th century, and then destroy us with devastating happenings which may or may not somehow work themselves out by the end of the book, but never in the manner of "all is well when ends well", more like "i am glad that something was salvaged at least..." way.... This has been the formula for the main books in the series up to here and I have no faith that she will change it, since it does seem to be bringing us back for more... There is something addictive about the writing, despite it not feeling very organic or homogeneous...
"...“Helen, in a white coat and stethoscope, effortlessly achieving the sort of discipline for which lesser women would require black leather and a hunting crop, indicated we should form a line. Being St Mary’s, we formed several clumps and a rhomboid.”...
I have fallen in love with Max. She is a hot mess, but this is exactly why I love her. She is passionate, willful, stubborn, suffers from mostly self-inflicted wounds and throws herself head first in every situation as long as she believes it is right. Needless to say, she is not always a good judge of what is right or not and makes a mess of her relationships and life on regular basis. She is the un-hero, the regular, intelligent, starved for affection working woman whose career has been her life... The three men in her life - her boss, her off-again-on-again lover and her best friend, are the ones who ground her and raise her up, depending on what she needs at the time. I have grown found of them as well and would hate to loose any one of them... I would... Don't hurt me, Jodi!!!
"...“I tried – and failed – to imagine Dr Bairstow chuckling. Sometimes when he was pleased, he did display the satisfaction of an elderly vulture unexpectedly encountering a dead donkey. But chuckling …” ...
All the historical jumps were fascinating, but the Troy experience broke my heart... It was brutal, and the end of the book did not make it any easier... Jodi not only takes us down, but kicks us while we are there for good measure!!! Sadist, I would think, and not in the fun, playful way...
"...“Whether Henry was a royal trendsetter or it was practical under their helmets, I didn’t know. I certainly couldn’t think of any other reason for having the most hideous hairstyle in a History that includes Donald Trump.” ...
I did think after reading this that Jodi must have had a premonition of who will be the "king" of the world in 2017, despite writing this in 2015... Hopefully she did not hex us with him, because I would not forgive her for that transgression...
Despite the pain, I would still recommend this series to history buffs, time-travel aficionados, and just fans of quirky writing. It is a bumpy ride, but at least does not leave you bored and is quite unforgettable...
Now I wish you all Happy Reading and many more wonderful books to come!!!!
A buddy read with the MacHalos, because we love to travel in time...
Liked it even better the second time around:) So addictive!!! 👍😃
This author has decided to first bamboozle us with humor, attract us with the interpersonal relationships of the characters, intrigue us with the time travel for historical research to different important events in time, in this case The Fall of of Troy and The battle of Agincourt, as well as a very vigorous cheese rolling festival in the 19th century, and then destroy us with devastating happenings which may or may not somehow work themselves out by the end of the book, but never in the manner of "all is well when ends well", more like "i am glad that something was salvaged at least..." way.... This has been the formula for the main books in the series up to here and I have no faith that she will change it, since it does seem to be bringing us back for more... There is something addictive about the writing, despite it not feeling very organic or homogeneous...
"...“Helen, in a white coat and stethoscope, effortlessly achieving the sort of discipline for which lesser women would require black leather and a hunting crop, indicated we should form a line. Being St Mary’s, we formed several clumps and a rhomboid.”...
I have fallen in love with Max. She is a hot mess, but this is exactly why I love her. She is passionate, willful, stubborn, suffers from mostly self-inflicted wounds and throws herself head first in every situation as long as she believes it is right. Needless to say, she is not always a good judge of what is right or not and makes a mess of her relationships and life on regular basis. She is the un-hero, the regular, intelligent, starved for affection working woman whose career has been her life... The three men in her life - her boss, her off-again-on-again lover and her best friend, are the ones who ground her and raise her up, depending on what she needs at the time. I have grown found of them as well and would hate to loose any one of them... I would... Don't hurt me, Jodi!!!
"...“I tried – and failed – to imagine Dr Bairstow chuckling. Sometimes when he was pleased, he did display the satisfaction of an elderly vulture unexpectedly encountering a dead donkey. But chuckling …” ...
All the historical jumps were fascinating, but the Troy experience broke my heart... It was brutal, and the end of the book did not make it any easier... Jodi not only takes us down, but kicks us while we are there for good measure!!! Sadist, I would think, and not in the fun, playful way...
"...“Whether Henry was a royal trendsetter or it was practical under their helmets, I didn’t know. I certainly couldn’t think of any other reason for having the most hideous hairstyle in a History that includes Donald Trump.” ...
I did think after reading this that Jodi must have had a premonition of who will be the "king" of the world in 2017, despite writing this in 2015... Hopefully she did not hex us with him, because I would not forgive her for that transgression...
Despite the pain, I would still recommend this series to history buffs, time-travel aficionados, and just fans of quirky writing. It is a bumpy ride, but at least does not leave you bored and is quite unforgettable...
Now I wish you all Happy Reading and many more wonderful books to come!!!!
September 30, 2017
It's nearly 1 o'clock at night and I have been a sobbing mess for hours. I'm gonna find the author's address, drive up there and kill her!
Review to come (if prison has internet I'll be allowed to use).
-----------------------------------------------
Since I wanted to sleep in a little, I only got up at 9:20 this morning. To calm my still raw nerves, I tried to read the (in comparison) rather dull Mr. Bulfinch, which didn't work at all. So I then proceeded to take care of kittie's litter box, watered all the plants, dusted every bookshelf I could find (trust me, there are a lot), re-organized my desk (first sorting the stationary according to colour but then decided to go by theme), vacuumed the entire house, took a long and supposedly soothing shower and am now sitting in front of my laptop trying to compose a review.
Why am I telling you this? Am I trying to punish you all for doing whatever it is you're doing right now instead of having to clean the house on a Sunday morning? No. Definitely not. I'm telling you this in order to show you what this author did to me.
Book 1 was an extreme rollercoaster of emotions as you can see from my review then. I was devastated when Max was unknowingly pregnant but lost the child because Bitchface Barclay had thrown her out without a penny and she had almost no food and no heating. I was furious about how Leon reacted and treated Max when he didn't know the entire story (there is only so much I can forgive him due to his past). But all those events were made up for by the very satisfying ending.
In this book the events were made much much more horrible than the above mentioned ones by the sheer triviality of them. I mean and what is worse is that ! I wouldn't have reacted like Max did, but people are different and therefore react differently and I can see her attempt at self-preservation. What was aggravating (just the cherry on top, really) was that so much of it could have been far less bad had certain people just talked to each other. Maybe it's just me but if you find your other half, you shouldn't waste so much bloody time with this drama! Sure, a person can drive you mad and you shouldn't just take shit from anyone or everyone. So even in the best of relationships there might be a day when doors get slammed. But this was different. To make matters even worse (I know, but it's true), we didn't get a satisfying conclusion! And this is precisely why I originally deducted one star even. Since we don't yet know the great masterplan (thanks Clio), it might actually NOT be a lazy way the author can and but it just felt wrong to me. Like how Rose and 10 parted in the end.
So what to say of this book? Well, for once I had absolutely no reason whatsoever to cheer for Clio. Rather, I wanted to strangle her and still do. She better present one hell of a masterplan! Moreover, we had a new character, Prof. Teddy Penrose, who was just a blast. Seriously, the old man was at least in the top three of my favourite characters in these books so far and he made the whole Newton assignment worth it. Other than that, I'd like to say (because I saw people criticizing it) that I think the author deliberately didn't let Kal have a big role in order to show that She was there and that needs to count for something.
Moreover, another very emotional moment was Holy mothballs! It was definitely what the characters deserved but it was very tough. Just like the tiny moment, that many might have overlooked, when Major Guthrie's background story was told! It might have never been revealed if it hadn't been for the bloody honey poisoning but it was a very strong moment and shows how the author can effortlessly weave such impactful information into light moments.
Make no mistake: this author is good. I'm raging and I'm hurting and I want to hurt her in revenge, but not many authors can make you care so much. Apart from that (for all ye of less emotions than me) her other, almost incredible strength is her historical accuracy and talent to bring ancient civilizations and places to life.
The main event in this book certainly was Troy of course. Troy has always fascinated me (I find that I have a similar taste than Max when it comes to historical moments) and I have spent hours, maybe even days in total, debating with different people (who now avoid me like the plague) what might have actually happened, what led to the whole mess, what happened afterwards, the implications, ... Here we get a version of events that although not entirely how I can believe it (the timing would be too convenient), is actually possible. It was fascinating to walk through the streets of the city together with the historians and take everything in and entertain a more realistic version of events than Homer's.
The fact that despite the time travel equipment she shows St. Mary's personnel being "on site" for months, taking shifts, recording like any scientists would, actually working, just makes it all so much more real.
Still, I will get the car ready and anyone having read this book and feeling the same way is invited to join me in finding Mrs. Taylor and beating her with a dustpan. I even bought a blue one.
Review to come (if prison has internet I'll be allowed to use).
-----------------------------------------------
Since I wanted to sleep in a little, I only got up at 9:20 this morning. To calm my still raw nerves, I tried to read the (in comparison) rather dull Mr. Bulfinch, which didn't work at all. So I then proceeded to take care of kittie's litter box, watered all the plants, dusted every bookshelf I could find (trust me, there are a lot), re-organized my desk (first sorting the stationary according to colour but then decided to go by theme), vacuumed the entire house, took a long and supposedly soothing shower and am now sitting in front of my laptop trying to compose a review.
Why am I telling you this? Am I trying to punish you all for doing whatever it is you're doing right now instead of having to clean the house on a Sunday morning? No. Definitely not. I'm telling you this in order to show you what this author did to me.
Book 1 was an extreme rollercoaster of emotions as you can see from my review then. I was devastated when Max was unknowingly pregnant but lost the child because Bitchface Barclay had thrown her out without a penny and she had almost no food and no heating. I was furious about how Leon reacted and treated Max when he didn't know the entire story (there is only so much I can forgive him due to his past). But all those events were made up for by the very satisfying ending.
In this book the events were made much much more horrible than the above mentioned ones by the sheer triviality of them. I mean and what is worse is that ! I wouldn't have reacted like Max did, but people are different and therefore react differently and I can see her attempt at self-preservation. What was aggravating (just the cherry on top, really) was that so much of it could have been far less bad had certain people just talked to each other. Maybe it's just me but if you find your other half, you shouldn't waste so much bloody time with this drama! Sure, a person can drive you mad and you shouldn't just take shit from anyone or everyone. So even in the best of relationships there might be a day when doors get slammed. But this was different. To make matters even worse (I know, but it's true), we didn't get a satisfying conclusion! And this is precisely why I originally deducted one star even. Since we don't yet know the great masterplan (thanks Clio), it might actually NOT be a lazy way the author can and but it just felt wrong to me. Like how Rose and 10 parted in the end.
So what to say of this book? Well, for once I had absolutely no reason whatsoever to cheer for Clio. Rather, I wanted to strangle her and still do. She better present one hell of a masterplan! Moreover, we had a new character, Prof. Teddy Penrose, who was just a blast. Seriously, the old man was at least in the top three of my favourite characters in these books so far and he made the whole Newton assignment worth it. Other than that, I'd like to say (because I saw people criticizing it) that I think the author deliberately didn't let Kal have a big role in order to show that She was there and that needs to count for something.
Moreover, another very emotional moment was Holy mothballs! It was definitely what the characters deserved but it was very tough. Just like the tiny moment, that many might have overlooked, when Major Guthrie's background story was told! It might have never been revealed if it hadn't been for the bloody honey poisoning but it was a very strong moment and shows how the author can effortlessly weave such impactful information into light moments.
Make no mistake: this author is good. I'm raging and I'm hurting and I want to hurt her in revenge, but not many authors can make you care so much. Apart from that (for all ye of less emotions than me) her other, almost incredible strength is her historical accuracy and talent to bring ancient civilizations and places to life.
The main event in this book certainly was Troy of course. Troy has always fascinated me (I find that I have a similar taste than Max when it comes to historical moments) and I have spent hours, maybe even days in total, debating with different people (who now avoid me like the plague) what might have actually happened, what led to the whole mess, what happened afterwards, the implications, ... Here we get a version of events that although not entirely how I can believe it (the timing would be too convenient), is actually possible. It was fascinating to walk through the streets of the city together with the historians and take everything in and entertain a more realistic version of events than Homer's.
The fact that despite the time travel equipment she shows St. Mary's personnel being "on site" for months, taking shifts, recording like any scientists would, actually working, just makes it all so much more real.
Still, I will get the car ready and anyone having read this book and feeling the same way is invited to join me in finding Mrs. Taylor and beating her with a dustpan. I even bought a blue one.
February 5, 2018
This was more like two books than one in my mind. There is the first half which pretty fantastic with its wild madcap adventures and a trip to Troy which was as fantastic as it was tragic and then there is the second half of the book which is some relationship angst I didn’t get and a death and a not-death and…..a very interesting ending.
The first half totally gets 4.5 Stars and I was loving it. Max takes an aged professor back in time to see Isaac Newton and everything goes wrong as usual and some fun space time stuff happens. Then there is the trip to Troy pre-war which again was extremely interesting and fascinating and I again was loving the story. We skip ahead to the end of the 10 year war and see some of the key events. I definitely loved the twist on this from the accepted lore and again I was completely loving the story. Not all of it is happy because end of a 10 years war and those Greeks were awful.
Then at practically the midpoint of the book this abrupt thing happens and it was really strange. Again Leon who professes to love Max so much does something completely erratic *sigh* and things just go all wonky from there. I’m not of fan of how things went down between the characters or what happened to them later in the book. I still enjoyed a few of the side jaunts through history to key moments but I was a little mad at Max and super annoyed with Leon and really the only person I always like in these books is Peterson. So the second half is only about a 2 star read for me.
So again just like in the first book the Muse of History jumps in and we have what happened at the end. I’m not sure how I feel about the entire thing. On one hand I’m happy about because Also, it just seemed like Max never really opened up in the most important ways to even have a relationship that was much deeper than just sex. I mean sure she might have loved Leon but I always felt like the fact
Overall I really like all the time jumps but it is sorta everything else that isn’t really my favorite and I think I want a little more from the relationships in the story to make them feel deeper.
I’m super interested in the new dynamic that could be in play to the story so I’m sure I’m about to continue even though I don’t love the switcharoo the author pulled.
The first half totally gets 4.5 Stars and I was loving it. Max takes an aged professor back in time to see Isaac Newton and everything goes wrong as usual and some fun space time stuff happens. Then there is the trip to Troy pre-war which again was extremely interesting and fascinating and I again was loving the story. We skip ahead to the end of the 10 year war and see some of the key events. I definitely loved the twist on this from the accepted lore and again I was completely loving the story. Not all of it is happy because end of a 10 years war and those Greeks were awful.
Then at practically the midpoint of the book this abrupt thing happens and it was really strange. Again Leon who professes to love Max so much does something completely erratic *sigh* and things just go all wonky from there. I’m not of fan of how things went down between the characters or what happened to them later in the book. I still enjoyed a few of the side jaunts through history to key moments but I was a little mad at Max and super annoyed with Leon and really the only person I always like in these books is Peterson. So the second half is only about a 2 star read for me.
So again just like in the first book the Muse of History jumps in and we have what happened at the end. I’m not sure how I feel about the entire thing. On one hand I’m happy about because Also, it just seemed like Max never really opened up in the most important ways to even have a relationship that was much deeper than just sex. I mean sure she might have loved Leon but I always felt like the fact
Overall I really like all the time jumps but it is sorta everything else that isn’t really my favorite and I think I want a little more from the relationships in the story to make them feel deeper.
I’m super interested in the new dynamic that could be in play to the story so I’m sure I’m about to continue even though I don’t love the switcharoo the author pulled.
January 13, 2021
These books really are just getting better and better - the blend of humour, history, and absolutely terrifyingly horrible historical events is still keeping me so glued to each page, the book goes by in a flash.
There's human tragedy on a scale writ absolutely massive here, but also as personal as between two people. The way Jodi Taylor plays them off each other shows off how much her writing is growing with the series; she's also brought history to life through humanity in a way that makes it immediately relatable. The humour in these books is still very British and very dry, and pairs absolutely perfectly with just how frigging sad she's willing to make her readers. But there's always light in the darkness, and family waiting at St Mary's.
On with the series!
There's human tragedy on a scale writ absolutely massive here, but also as personal as between two people. The way Jodi Taylor plays them off each other shows off how much her writing is growing with the series; she's also brought history to life through humanity in a way that makes it immediately relatable. The humour in these books is still very British and very dry, and pairs absolutely perfectly with just how frigging sad she's willing to make her readers. But there's always light in the darkness, and family waiting at St Mary's.
On with the series!
March 14, 2017
Outstanding!! Oh my! Ms Taylor has outdone herself.. This story wrung me out and messed with my head... I LOVED it! ALL THE STARS! All the feels! All the hilarity! All the weeping!
Carefully crafted and plotted, rich in historical detail. One of my favourite series, I've just decided. Can't wait to read the next. Definitely going to need some rationing as I don't want to run out of her books.
This series is SO recommended. But start with the first one. These are definitely not stand alones.
Carefully crafted and plotted, rich in historical detail. One of my favourite series, I've just decided. Can't wait to read the next. Definitely going to need some rationing as I don't want to run out of her books.
This series is SO recommended. But start with the first one. These are definitely not stand alones.
April 11, 2014
Rating: 4* of five
The Publisher Says: St Mary’s is back and nothing is going right for Max. Once again, it’s just one damned thing after another.
The action jumps from an encounter with a mirror-stealing Isaac Newton to the bloody battlefield at Agincourt. Discover how a simple fact-finding assignment to witness the ancient and murderous cheese-rolling fertility ceremony in Gloucester can result in CBC – concussion by cheese. The long awaited jump to Bronze Age Troy ends in personal catastrophe for Max and just when it seems things couldn’t get any worse – it’s back to the Cretaceous Period again to confront an old enemy who has nothing to lose.
So, make the tea, grab the chocolate biscuits, settle back and discover exactly why the entire history department has painted itself blue …
My Review: History slaps Max and St Mary's around a good bit. Kleio seems to favor the rough love school of affection. She really rides Max and the entire Institute hard this time out.
This is not the final installment of the series, at least it's not if La Taylor has any idea of what's good for her career, and yet this book is about aging, about slowing down, and not least...not at all least...about closure and releasing all that has come before as a means of surviving and also living fully, finally living fully, after carrying and shouldering and dragging the past everywhere one goes.
Max, our PoV character, isn't as young as her paper age suggests. All those months-long missions in the past have racked up the miles and the relative years. This mission, the main one of the book, is the dream of her lifetime: Return to Troy, scope it out, and watch it fall. Now, as we're accustomed to in the previous entries in the series, Max and team are not going to go by the book. We know they're on a major and incalculably valuable mission, but we also know that this is St Mary's and there will be surprises.
Yes indeed there are. Throughout the previous books, we've seen the team break the supposedly inviolable rule about interfering in the course of history, and not get squashed flat by History's revenge. Permaybehaps, then, Kleio is aiming them at certain moments to make alterations? It's a thought...but Max, who discovered a HUGE loophole in the theory of history's inviolability in book one, isn't a trusting soul and prefers her trips not to end in death where avoidable. She will not countenance terrifyingly major infractions of the rules. She pays her worst possible price for this uncharacteristic obedience.
But there is always a compensation for caution, aging people's most frequent urging on the young. Her compensation takes the series in a very surprising and new direction.
Now as book four isn't out yet (sob), let me pause here to bitch about a few things. Kalinda Black is first on my list. She's built up as Max's best friend and we see so little of her as to make her invisible. The least she could do is have a few lines here and there! She's only referred to in books two and three. I think that's very mingy.
The redoubtable Mrs Partridge, deployed strategically throughout the series, has a sister in the first book, Mrs De Winter. She vanishes. Given the sisters' ummm ancestry, there isn't *anything* the author could imagine for her to do in other contexts?
The theme I'm developing is one I suspect has led many an author down the path to Book Bloat. These novels are concise. They are lean. Nothing, and I do mean nothing, is overworded in here. Permaybehaps a wee tidge too much conciseness...there is room, while staying on story-line, to give more time to the second-billed cast. The world Taylor is creating is deliciously dotty, so let's see more of it. The serious points Taylor is making aren't going to suffer. I'm not suggesting she Robert-Jordanize the books! Just give us more side views. After all, Max is head of a department, and can reasonably be expected to need to read reports and interview returning staff...can't we eavesdrop?
The technology issues...recording devices that seem way too bulky and cumbersome not least of them...are actually, I think, handwaved away by the ending of this book. But I'll state a bit of it here: In a time-travel-verse that suggests machines simply won't travel if there is an anomaly present in the device, how do high-tech recorders make it back and forth? There have never been lost recorders? They're hand-held! Since all of this travel is to pre-computer eras, why not have something like Google Glass (only without the frames) emitting microwave signals to the pod's hard drive? No worries about competing signals...a wearable hard drive in case they're unable to make contact (though why that would be is unclear to me)...but hand-held recorders in the kind of violent worlds they're visiting seem to me to be very clunky.
These are all cavils. In the main, by the end of this book, I was so sad to see St Mary's in my rear-view mirror (which reminds me, MORE EDDIE!!) that I shed a few more tears than were actually required. The ending will wring tears from you. As hopeful as beginnings always are, they require endings, and those aren't always easy.
And as a side note, does anyone know someone in the development department of the BBC? Or ITV? This is a *perfect* TV show. Like Sliders only smart.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
The Publisher Says: St Mary’s is back and nothing is going right for Max. Once again, it’s just one damned thing after another.
The action jumps from an encounter with a mirror-stealing Isaac Newton to the bloody battlefield at Agincourt. Discover how a simple fact-finding assignment to witness the ancient and murderous cheese-rolling fertility ceremony in Gloucester can result in CBC – concussion by cheese. The long awaited jump to Bronze Age Troy ends in personal catastrophe for Max and just when it seems things couldn’t get any worse – it’s back to the Cretaceous Period again to confront an old enemy who has nothing to lose.
So, make the tea, grab the chocolate biscuits, settle back and discover exactly why the entire history department has painted itself blue …
My Review: History slaps Max and St Mary's around a good bit. Kleio seems to favor the rough love school of affection. She really rides Max and the entire Institute hard this time out.
This is not the final installment of the series, at least it's not if La Taylor has any idea of what's good for her career, and yet this book is about aging, about slowing down, and not least...not at all least...about closure and releasing all that has come before as a means of surviving and also living fully, finally living fully, after carrying and shouldering and dragging the past everywhere one goes.
Max, our PoV character, isn't as young as her paper age suggests. All those months-long missions in the past have racked up the miles and the relative years. This mission, the main one of the book, is the dream of her lifetime: Return to Troy, scope it out, and watch it fall. Now, as we're accustomed to in the previous entries in the series, Max and team are not going to go by the book. We know they're on a major and incalculably valuable mission, but we also know that this is St Mary's and there will be surprises.
Yes indeed there are. Throughout the previous books, we've seen the team break the supposedly inviolable rule about interfering in the course of history, and not get squashed flat by History's revenge. Permaybehaps, then, Kleio is aiming them at certain moments to make alterations? It's a thought...but Max, who discovered a HUGE loophole in the theory of history's inviolability in book one, isn't a trusting soul and prefers her trips not to end in death where avoidable. She will not countenance terrifyingly major infractions of the rules. She pays her worst possible price for this uncharacteristic obedience.
But there is always a compensation for caution, aging people's most frequent urging on the young. Her compensation takes the series in a very surprising and new direction.
Now as book four isn't out yet (sob), let me pause here to bitch about a few things. Kalinda Black is first on my list. She's built up as Max's best friend and we see so little of her as to make her invisible. The least she could do is have a few lines here and there! She's only referred to in books two and three. I think that's very mingy.
The redoubtable Mrs Partridge, deployed strategically throughout the series, has a sister in the first book, Mrs De Winter. She vanishes. Given the sisters' ummm ancestry, there isn't *anything* the author could imagine for her to do in other contexts?
The theme I'm developing is one I suspect has led many an author down the path to Book Bloat. These novels are concise. They are lean. Nothing, and I do mean nothing, is overworded in here. Permaybehaps a wee tidge too much conciseness...there is room, while staying on story-line, to give more time to the second-billed cast. The world Taylor is creating is deliciously dotty, so let's see more of it. The serious points Taylor is making aren't going to suffer. I'm not suggesting she Robert-Jordanize the books! Just give us more side views. After all, Max is head of a department, and can reasonably be expected to need to read reports and interview returning staff...can't we eavesdrop?
The technology issues...recording devices that seem way too bulky and cumbersome not least of them...are actually, I think, handwaved away by the ending of this book. But I'll state a bit of it here: In a time-travel-verse that suggests machines simply won't travel if there is an anomaly present in the device, how do high-tech recorders make it back and forth? There have never been lost recorders? They're hand-held! Since all of this travel is to pre-computer eras, why not have something like Google Glass (only without the frames) emitting microwave signals to the pod's hard drive? No worries about competing signals...a wearable hard drive in case they're unable to make contact (though why that would be is unclear to me)...but hand-held recorders in the kind of violent worlds they're visiting seem to me to be very clunky.
These are all cavils. In the main, by the end of this book, I was so sad to see St Mary's in my rear-view mirror (which reminds me, MORE EDDIE!!) that I shed a few more tears than were actually required. The ending will wring tears from you. As hopeful as beginnings always are, they require endings, and those aren't always easy.
And as a side note, does anyone know someone in the development department of the BBC? Or ITV? This is a *perfect* TV show. Like Sliders only smart.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
February 2, 2018
Buddy read at BB&B.
This is a weird series for me. I like most of it and am curious enough to keep coming for more and yet I want to tear my hair out when the relationship angst hits. But that'll come later.
The Iliad was one of my favourite mandatory reads back in school. I always loved the Greek Mythology and the story of the Trojan War fascinated me even if my side ended up losing. The depiction of the war in this book is probably a lot closer to what a war in those times would have been and there were a few twists here and there that delighted me.
And then the Chief acted out of character. You see every now and then he would do that and it's one of my main concerns regarding this series. Most of the time he is a reasonable, logical man and then bam! he acts like a lunatic. Usually it leads to him and Max breaking up and not talking to each other for a few months. It's like I'm dealing with kindergarten kids! Oh wait, they make better life decisions! And it's tiring. So when he I felt relief. Yes, he's a tragic character but he made me want to banh my head on a flat surface with his idiotic behaviour.
And then JT pulled off a move, which while ballsy, made the previous two books a bit redundant, not to mention the whole cretaceous period scene. Just like with Cleo, the Muse of History, it felt like a cheap trick and my view is that Ms. Taylor realized that she's screwed up her characters and needed a fresh start. But she also didn't want to start all over again so she found a way to cheat.
So at the end of book 3 I'm still facing the same question as on the end of the first - should I continue? Do I care enough? And are the good parts counterbalancing the bad ones enough to make it worth it? I don't know. But I have a few days to decide before the next books is up on our buddy reading schedule.
This is a weird series for me. I like most of it and am curious enough to keep coming for more and yet I want to tear my hair out when the relationship angst hits. But that'll come later.
The Iliad was one of my favourite mandatory reads back in school. I always loved the Greek Mythology and the story of the Trojan War fascinated me even if my side ended up losing. The depiction of the war in this book is probably a lot closer to what a war in those times would have been and there were a few twists here and there that delighted me.
And then the Chief acted out of character. You see every now and then he would do that and it's one of my main concerns regarding this series. Most of the time he is a reasonable, logical man and then bam! he acts like a lunatic. Usually it leads to him and Max breaking up and not talking to each other for a few months. It's like I'm dealing with kindergarten kids! Oh wait, they make better life decisions! And it's tiring. So when he I felt relief. Yes, he's a tragic character but he made me want to banh my head on a flat surface with his idiotic behaviour.
And then JT pulled off a move, which while ballsy, made the previous two books a bit redundant, not to mention the whole cretaceous period scene. Just like with Cleo, the Muse of History, it felt like a cheap trick and my view is that Ms. Taylor realized that she's screwed up her characters and needed a fresh start. But she also didn't want to start all over again so she found a way to cheat.
So at the end of book 3 I'm still facing the same question as on the end of the first - should I continue? Do I care enough? And are the good parts counterbalancing the bad ones enough to make it worth it? I don't know. But I have a few days to decide before the next books is up on our buddy reading schedule.
March 13, 2018
Diiieeeesssssss
Dear Author,
There are better ways to kill your readers than make them die of sensory overload and emotional upheaval.
BEWARE!
The reader of this series shall be blissfully ensconced in the literary world but soon would be chewed up, swallowed and then spat back, left to flounder. And be helpless to deal with real life.
This instalment was bloody brutal and brilliant.
I am exhausted. But in a good way.
Am already halfway through the next one.
Dear Author,
There are better ways to kill your readers than make them die of sensory overload and emotional upheaval.
BEWARE!
The reader of this series shall be blissfully ensconced in the literary world but soon would be chewed up, swallowed and then spat back, left to flounder. And be helpless to deal with real life.
This instalment was bloody brutal and brilliant.
I am exhausted. But in a good way.
Am already halfway through the next one.
February 28, 2015
Torn torn and torn.
Every time I read this series I am awfully torn. In one regard, I love the writing, the dialog and the scenarios I find this book taking place in. However, I am also certainly annoyed with the emotional development and character depths. As I said, torn:
World: Wonderfully dense and fun. The history is researched in detail, the world is described vividly and feels alive and the world of St. Mary's is a hoot. This is the best part of Taylor's writing, her love of history and the details shows in her book. Good stuff!
Story: This is where I start to get irked. It is at the same time a very entertaining story but also a very poorly paced and jarring story. I kind of feel that this book is actually a television series and that all the episodes and their arcs are mashed together. Rises and falls in tension and pacing are all over the place, some parts are extremely draggy. It has nothing to do with the writing per say, more of the plotting.
Characters: Much like the story, it is both absolutely fabulous when it's done right and so bloody annoying when not done well. Max is still a wonderful character as is the cast at St. Mary's. But to this day, it still feels fairly surface and superficial. When something does happen (I won't spoil it for you) in the middle of the book I felt nothing. That shows the lack of character depth and development and reader/character bond that should be there. The dialog is still super snappy and Max's internal dialog is a hoot, but man I wish I cared more about the characters.
At times this is a 5 star book, at times this is a 2 star book. This seesawing in terms of quality really makes for a tiring read. I love the book, it's still very enjoyable, but after 3 books, I think that this going to be the norm and that things will not change for subsequent book. Read it if you want a fun tale and can get past the pacing issues.
Onward to the next book!
Every time I read this series I am awfully torn. In one regard, I love the writing, the dialog and the scenarios I find this book taking place in. However, I am also certainly annoyed with the emotional development and character depths. As I said, torn:
World: Wonderfully dense and fun. The history is researched in detail, the world is described vividly and feels alive and the world of St. Mary's is a hoot. This is the best part of Taylor's writing, her love of history and the details shows in her book. Good stuff!
Story: This is where I start to get irked. It is at the same time a very entertaining story but also a very poorly paced and jarring story. I kind of feel that this book is actually a television series and that all the episodes and their arcs are mashed together. Rises and falls in tension and pacing are all over the place, some parts are extremely draggy. It has nothing to do with the writing per say, more of the plotting.
Characters: Much like the story, it is both absolutely fabulous when it's done right and so bloody annoying when not done well. Max is still a wonderful character as is the cast at St. Mary's. But to this day, it still feels fairly surface and superficial. When something does happen (I won't spoil it for you) in the middle of the book I felt nothing. That shows the lack of character depth and development and reader/character bond that should be there. The dialog is still super snappy and Max's internal dialog is a hoot, but man I wish I cared more about the characters.
At times this is a 5 star book, at times this is a 2 star book. This seesawing in terms of quality really makes for a tiring read. I love the book, it's still very enjoyable, but after 3 books, I think that this going to be the norm and that things will not change for subsequent book. Read it if you want a fun tale and can get past the pacing issues.
Onward to the next book!
March 28, 2017
Holy effing craziness, Jodi Taylor. What did you do? You completely demolished every expectation I had. I didn't see anything coming, other than one tiny little bit of inconsequentialness....
Jeez, if you haven't read this series and you like time travel and snarky, strong female leads, then you need to pick up The Chronicles of St. Mary's.
Jeez, if you haven't read this series and you like time travel and snarky, strong female leads, then you need to pick up The Chronicles of St. Mary's.
April 29, 2019
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
A Second Chance is the third instalment in the St. Mary’s series, which follows a maverick bunch of reprobate historians as they travel through time, studying major (and minor) events in history, while trying not to die in the process.
This book feels like a turning point for the stories to date, and you can see a marked improvement in the writings structure, while maintaining all of the wit, humour and wonderful characters as before. Jodi really comes into her own here, describing the biggest ‘jump’ to date as our historians visit Troy and try to catch a glimpse of the beautiful Helen, and a certain wooden horse. The descriptions are wonderfully vivid, incredibly detailed and well researched. There’s a passion in the writing that you feel through the words, as Jodi wants us to experience everything about Troy, which cumulates in it’s epic destruction. There’s also a hint of the mysticism too, with a certain Greek prophetess warning Max about the awful future that awaits and some difficult decisions she’ll have to make.
As well as Troy, we also visit Isaac Newton, the ancestral gates of grief and the legendary battle of Agincourt. Throughout, there’s a sense that something big is going to happen, something which Max will never be able to come back from. And it does. As usual, Jodi smashes your love for these characters into the dust, taking no prisoners over who she kills off. And this time it’s a big one. One scene in particular, played out in the Cretaceous period (yes, again) is particularly moving, well written and touching. Emotions, grief in particular, are hard for Max to convey given her closed off nature. However, when she finally lets go it’s overwhelming and messy and real.
I know I keep harping on about these characters, but honestly I’ve never felt so at home with a group of people as I have with the St. Mary’s crew. Markham starts to shine here, providing glimmers of light relief (chicken stealing, painting his privates blue) amongst the angst and he’s such a delight to read. He’s the counterbalance to the more stoic Leon and Dr Bairstow, and fits in well around the always lovely Peterson, bossy Max and fearless head of security Guthrie. It was also nice to see the development of these secondary characters like Guthrie, providing a bit of backstory with Elspeth that brings out a more vulnerable side to his personality.
As always, a fun and heartbreaking addition to the St. Mary’s series that will change everything for Max and our fellow historians moving forward. A second chance indeed.
A Second Chance is the third instalment in the St. Mary’s series, which follows a maverick bunch of reprobate historians as they travel through time, studying major (and minor) events in history, while trying not to die in the process.
This book feels like a turning point for the stories to date, and you can see a marked improvement in the writings structure, while maintaining all of the wit, humour and wonderful characters as before. Jodi really comes into her own here, describing the biggest ‘jump’ to date as our historians visit Troy and try to catch a glimpse of the beautiful Helen, and a certain wooden horse. The descriptions are wonderfully vivid, incredibly detailed and well researched. There’s a passion in the writing that you feel through the words, as Jodi wants us to experience everything about Troy, which cumulates in it’s epic destruction. There’s also a hint of the mysticism too, with a certain Greek prophetess warning Max about the awful future that awaits and some difficult decisions she’ll have to make.
As well as Troy, we also visit Isaac Newton, the ancestral gates of grief and the legendary battle of Agincourt. Throughout, there’s a sense that something big is going to happen, something which Max will never be able to come back from. And it does. As usual, Jodi smashes your love for these characters into the dust, taking no prisoners over who she kills off. And this time it’s a big one. One scene in particular, played out in the Cretaceous period (yes, again) is particularly moving, well written and touching. Emotions, grief in particular, are hard for Max to convey given her closed off nature. However, when she finally lets go it’s overwhelming and messy and real.
I know I keep harping on about these characters, but honestly I’ve never felt so at home with a group of people as I have with the St. Mary’s crew. Markham starts to shine here, providing glimmers of light relief (chicken stealing, painting his privates blue) amongst the angst and he’s such a delight to read. He’s the counterbalance to the more stoic Leon and Dr Bairstow, and fits in well around the always lovely Peterson, bossy Max and fearless head of security Guthrie. It was also nice to see the development of these secondary characters like Guthrie, providing a bit of backstory with Elspeth that brings out a more vulnerable side to his personality.
As always, a fun and heartbreaking addition to the St. Mary’s series that will change everything for Max and our fellow historians moving forward. A second chance indeed.
December 6, 2020
Historian Assemble …at your own risk.
This one starts with a starkly somber and gruesome prologue as Max details what happened at the end the siege of Troy. Not for the faint of heart.
This book really drives home that most life changing and exciting history is due to people dying, or more accurately, people in history getting raped and killed in a variety of brutal ways. History’s story belongs to the winner.
From the prologue, it’s a flashback to the research at St. Mary's before they go to Troy, then the crew is in Troy ten years before the war begins to track the changes and again at the end. Interesting stuff and I enjoyed how Jodi Taylor relayed what could have happened in real life in comparison to Homer’s The Iliad as in her description of the real Trojan horse versus Odysseus' construct.
Max considers visiting Julius Caesar’s assassination and takes a jaunt 70,000 years in the past to The Gates of Grief which is the first successful exodus of people out of Africa. I had never heard of this so that was pretty fascinating.
And then the whole St Mary’s crew has a lark at the Gloucester annual Cheese Rolling Race which despite being completely ridiculous is a real thing since the 1800s.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cvukt...
The battle of Agincourt is. up next, and I am leaving out the emotional mess that is just a part of Max’s like.
Taylor does a very effective job weaving actual history as it happens into the plot without making it boring or too much of an info-dump. Again, Zara Ramm’s narration practically sparkles as she nails Max and her idiosyncrasies.
As far as the romance between Max and Chief Farrell, as much as I love romance I wish Jodi Taylor would just make them friends or something. They have an intense relationship, at least I think they do, but they manage to bung it up on an epic scale time and time again. Good thing they are time-traveling historians.
Given Taylor has ten primary books in this series as well as a plethora of shorts, can you say prolific, I will probably stop reviewing at some point, but so far each books stands on its own in terms of plot and history tidbits.
This one starts with a starkly somber and gruesome prologue as Max details what happened at the end the siege of Troy. Not for the faint of heart.
This book really drives home that most life changing and exciting history is due to people dying, or more accurately, people in history getting raped and killed in a variety of brutal ways. History’s story belongs to the winner.
From the prologue, it’s a flashback to the research at St. Mary's before they go to Troy, then the crew is in Troy ten years before the war begins to track the changes and again at the end. Interesting stuff and I enjoyed how Jodi Taylor relayed what could have happened in real life in comparison to Homer’s The Iliad as in her description of the real Trojan horse versus Odysseus' construct.
Max considers visiting Julius Caesar’s assassination and takes a jaunt 70,000 years in the past to The Gates of Grief which is the first successful exodus of people out of Africa. I had never heard of this so that was pretty fascinating.
And then the whole St Mary’s crew has a lark at the Gloucester annual Cheese Rolling Race which despite being completely ridiculous is a real thing since the 1800s.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cvukt...
The battle of Agincourt is. up next, and I am leaving out the emotional mess that is just a part of Max’s like.
Taylor does a very effective job weaving actual history as it happens into the plot without making it boring or too much of an info-dump. Again, Zara Ramm’s narration practically sparkles as she nails Max and her idiosyncrasies.
As far as the romance between Max and Chief Farrell, as much as I love romance I wish Jodi Taylor would just make them friends or something. They have an intense relationship, at least I think they do, but they manage to bung it up on an epic scale time and time again. Good thing they are time-traveling historians.
Given Taylor has ten primary books in this series as well as a plethora of shorts, can you say prolific, I will probably stop reviewing at some point, but so far each books stands on its own in terms of plot and history tidbits.
February 26, 2017
Having loved the St. Mary's #1 more, I still enjoyed this read.
This is one of those series that just fills my every need to hear the historic "real" without interpretation, To see Mary Stuart, or Achilles in real time with visual "eyes". OUTSTANDING.
But I'm so bummed at the character development and general level of the tone of the narrator (Max)- that I also cannot take these in large doses. In fact, maybe a year between the sequences? That's about all I can stand.
Because the concept is outstanding, the jumps so daring and fact filled for those "eyes" I mentioned, like an excellent camera- I cherish the past locations segments. The reactions of Max and the usual funky and trivial St. Mary's sophomoric intervals in between. Absolutely not at all.
The Leon and Max saga? Give me a break. How many times can you die and then come back? Or not remember you for who your identity or name has become? Do you think any of us could not recognize a wife or husband of a decade or more under a disguise? I don't believe many could be fooled in that manner.
A life lived out of order is not particularly interesting to me. If you are the reader who does not feel that way, then this may really float your boat. My supreme interest is into the periods they visit, and the people in them. They are GOOD. Every one is excellent.
So if you could cut out all the Max centered malarkey (her fits, whims, disobeying mouth, love spells of attachment, a complete absence of risk aversion etc. etc.)- this would be 4.5 star for me.
Every second in Troy, I liked. Or in Cambridge. (Why would you bring such a mirror to this gathering is beyond me.) And I loved, loved that we got back to the Cretaceous again.
All of these are fast read but the conversations, for me anyway, are so much slang and grunt that I often can't decipher. I have to be honest. Max seems like a hormonal 19 year old female jar head in most moments to me.
Also, a point I felt from book #1 but never mentioned and it's always a time travel dilemma but times two here. When is dead, dead? Because all that jump time is still "alive". They plan it so that you can't ever meet "yourself". I understand that often stated proposition and the planning. Aging too? She's now actually almost 4 years more than her age when she returns. So can't you hear that internal clock just ticking away?
I'm fairly sure we are going to see a real problem pregnancy here along these lines.
Other issues come to mind too. Doesn't that St. Mary's doctor and 6 month check ups ask an awful lot of questions that are purely personal? What does it matter if the life expectancy is so short?
This one had way too many deaths to say I enjoyed it. But her Troy 6 weeks in the period of 10 years before the war was worth the read.
This is one of those series that just fills my every need to hear the historic "real" without interpretation, To see Mary Stuart, or Achilles in real time with visual "eyes". OUTSTANDING.
But I'm so bummed at the character development and general level of the tone of the narrator (Max)- that I also cannot take these in large doses. In fact, maybe a year between the sequences? That's about all I can stand.
Because the concept is outstanding, the jumps so daring and fact filled for those "eyes" I mentioned, like an excellent camera- I cherish the past locations segments. The reactions of Max and the usual funky and trivial St. Mary's sophomoric intervals in between. Absolutely not at all.
The Leon and Max saga? Give me a break. How many times can you die and then come back? Or not remember you for who your identity or name has become? Do you think any of us could not recognize a wife or husband of a decade or more under a disguise? I don't believe many could be fooled in that manner.
A life lived out of order is not particularly interesting to me. If you are the reader who does not feel that way, then this may really float your boat. My supreme interest is into the periods they visit, and the people in them. They are GOOD. Every one is excellent.
So if you could cut out all the Max centered malarkey (her fits, whims, disobeying mouth, love spells of attachment, a complete absence of risk aversion etc. etc.)- this would be 4.5 star for me.
Every second in Troy, I liked. Or in Cambridge. (Why would you bring such a mirror to this gathering is beyond me.) And I loved, loved that we got back to the Cretaceous again.
All of these are fast read but the conversations, for me anyway, are so much slang and grunt that I often can't decipher. I have to be honest. Max seems like a hormonal 19 year old female jar head in most moments to me.
Also, a point I felt from book #1 but never mentioned and it's always a time travel dilemma but times two here. When is dead, dead? Because all that jump time is still "alive". They plan it so that you can't ever meet "yourself". I understand that often stated proposition and the planning. Aging too? She's now actually almost 4 years more than her age when she returns. So can't you hear that internal clock just ticking away?
I'm fairly sure we are going to see a real problem pregnancy here along these lines.
Other issues come to mind too. Doesn't that St. Mary's doctor and 6 month check ups ask an awful lot of questions that are purely personal? What does it matter if the life expectancy is so short?
This one had way too many deaths to say I enjoyed it. But her Troy 6 weeks in the period of 10 years before the war was worth the read.
February 7, 2017
Well this was fabulous :) In fact I think it's my favourite one in the series so far and there were even a few scenes where I was listening along to the audiobook at work, and I got all EMOSH and had to cover up a few teary-eyed moments.
This is the continuation of Max's story where she has joined the St Mary's departments of...well.. time travellers. She's a fantastic lady who has a way with words and is not afraid to call people on any judgements and stereotypes they may have. She's also very good (and bad) at getting out of tricky situations, and she's a highly amusing character to read about and enjoy :)
What I most love about this series is the wit. This book and all the ones before follow a cast of characters who travel to various periods in history. This team end up discovering the truth behind some of History's great secrets, but not without great peril and LOTS of tea. It's amusing, whimsical and yet there are some truly poignant moments where social commentary sneaks in. I love the blend of light-hearted adventure and real, raw honesty. Just fantastic! 4.5*s
(Oh, and this one features them going to discover what really happened to the Trojan Horse and whether it was real or not!! - Awesome!)
This is the continuation of Max's story where she has joined the St Mary's departments of...well.. time travellers. She's a fantastic lady who has a way with words and is not afraid to call people on any judgements and stereotypes they may have. She's also very good (and bad) at getting out of tricky situations, and she's a highly amusing character to read about and enjoy :)
What I most love about this series is the wit. This book and all the ones before follow a cast of characters who travel to various periods in history. This team end up discovering the truth behind some of History's great secrets, but not without great peril and LOTS of tea. It's amusing, whimsical and yet there are some truly poignant moments where social commentary sneaks in. I love the blend of light-hearted adventure and real, raw honesty. Just fantastic! 4.5*s
(Oh, and this one features them going to discover what really happened to the Trojan Horse and whether it was real or not!! - Awesome!)
May 19, 2024
I need to leave longer between episodes of this series because I tend to find they get a bit silly. Or else I'm expected to believe that the historians at St Mary's are phenomenally crap at their jobs. What I mean is, I could forgive one or two lapses of judgement but every single time this crowd step outside their time zone they get into trouble- and not just any trouble, it's always history-altering, life-threatening, sanity-defying trouble.
Added to all this is the end of this novel which completely befuddled me. I get that with the idea of time travel there's got to be a healthy dose of suspending your disbelief but this means I need to leave it a month before I try reading another after Max and co. have mucked up trips to see Newton, then Troy then Agincourt.
Good but a little too ridiculous.
Added to all this is the end of this novel which completely befuddled me. I get that with the idea of time travel there's got to be a healthy dose of suspending your disbelief but this means I need to leave it a month before I try reading another after Max and co. have mucked up trips to see Newton, then Troy then Agincourt.
Good but a little too ridiculous.
June 10, 2016
Guys, there's some gripping parts of this (the opening third builds to a pretty good climatic sequence), per usual, and Max remains a compelling voice. The silly humor and hijinx are here and some pathos when you've given up hope of it. It would make a good episodic show. Flaws, sometimes really upsetting relationships, messy as usual. More detail later.
June 2, 2019
I’m being pretty generous in giving A Second Chance two stars, and the only reason I’m doing that is because there is a slight hope that the next book will be better. In other words, I’m giving this series a second chance. Admittedly the main reason for this is that I’ve been sent the next two books by Netgalley and therefore am obliged to read and review them, but I can’t say that I’m looking forward to it.
The other thing that just pushed this book up to two stars was the starting off short story. Just as with the previous book, A Second Chance begins with an adventure which takes up about a fifth of the book and has absolutely nothing to do with the rest of the story – in other words, what we have here is once again not a novel but a short story plus a novella. Anyway, that story was sheer unadulterated fun and very intriguing. I wish, frankly, we’d had a whole novel exploring it rather than the crap that comes later.
The rest of the book… well, it started off pretty uninteresting. I never believed for a second that Max and Farrell were going to leave St Mary’s and start a new life, so I was irritated by what seemed like a very ineffectual attempt at deceiving me. And again, although the characters were all so thrilled at going to Troy, I have to confess that I wasn’t engaged by that entire episode at all.
And then there was the fact that this book made me loathe Leon Farrell with a fiery passion. First he acted completely out of character and for no good reason. The rest of the reasons I hate him will have to be saved for the end of this review, which I’ll hide behind spoiler warnings.
Not only do I hate Leon himself, but I don’t like the relationship between him and Max. Can it even be described as a relationship? Sure, they sleep together and have some nice times, but as soon as anything goes wrong they just stop talking to each other. This is a terrible way to conduct any type of relationship, romantic or otherwise. They seem unable to cope with any conflict between them at all. This is shit that could be cleared up with – well, maybe not one conversation, but several, and some time, and some work. But neither of them makes the slightest attempt – yet we’re supposed to believe that they’re passionately in love. Ugh.
Another thing I’m having a problem with – and this is something I’d just roll my eyes and overlook if I were enjoying the rest of what was happening, but I’m not, and so it isn’t – is the way the author likes to telegraph that something Exciting is going to happen in a few pages’ time. She does it practically every time. Does she think we’re just going to put down the book if there isn’t any action for a few pages? Come on, we’ve made it to book three and we’re not stupid. We know it’s all going to go wrong. It makes me think she really doesn’t trust her readers very much (and perhaps she suspects we don’t trust her very much? Which at this point I do not, so…). Similarly, she ends the book on a flat out cliffhanger, which is rather lazy and again suggests that she really doesn’t trust her readers.
The rest of my comments on this book are going to be hidden behind a spoiler warning, and I will be spoiling a lot, so click at your own peril!
The other thing that just pushed this book up to two stars was the starting off short story. Just as with the previous book, A Second Chance begins with an adventure which takes up about a fifth of the book and has absolutely nothing to do with the rest of the story – in other words, what we have here is once again not a novel but a short story plus a novella. Anyway, that story was sheer unadulterated fun and very intriguing. I wish, frankly, we’d had a whole novel exploring it rather than the crap that comes later.
The rest of the book… well, it started off pretty uninteresting. I never believed for a second that Max and Farrell were going to leave St Mary’s and start a new life, so I was irritated by what seemed like a very ineffectual attempt at deceiving me. And again, although the characters were all so thrilled at going to Troy, I have to confess that I wasn’t engaged by that entire episode at all.
And then there was the fact that this book made me loathe Leon Farrell with a fiery passion. First he acted completely out of character and for no good reason. The rest of the reasons I hate him will have to be saved for the end of this review, which I’ll hide behind spoiler warnings.
Not only do I hate Leon himself, but I don’t like the relationship between him and Max. Can it even be described as a relationship? Sure, they sleep together and have some nice times, but as soon as anything goes wrong they just stop talking to each other. This is a terrible way to conduct any type of relationship, romantic or otherwise. They seem unable to cope with any conflict between them at all. This is shit that could be cleared up with – well, maybe not one conversation, but several, and some time, and some work. But neither of them makes the slightest attempt – yet we’re supposed to believe that they’re passionately in love. Ugh.
Another thing I’m having a problem with – and this is something I’d just roll my eyes and overlook if I were enjoying the rest of what was happening, but I’m not, and so it isn’t – is the way the author likes to telegraph that something Exciting is going to happen in a few pages’ time. She does it practically every time. Does she think we’re just going to put down the book if there isn’t any action for a few pages? Come on, we’ve made it to book three and we’re not stupid. We know it’s all going to go wrong. It makes me think she really doesn’t trust her readers very much (and perhaps she suspects we don’t trust her very much? Which at this point I do not, so…). Similarly, she ends the book on a flat out cliffhanger, which is rather lazy and again suggests that she really doesn’t trust her readers.
The rest of my comments on this book are going to be hidden behind a spoiler warning, and I will be spoiling a lot, so click at your own peril!
April 25, 2019
This is easily the greatest time travel series I have ever read. I love Taylor's combination of humour and gravitas, the rich historical detail and of course the characters - Max, Leon, Markham, Peterson and many others. In this episode, Max finally gets to fulfil the ambition of a lifetime; document the fall of Troy and the Trojian war. Of course it's a long term trip and impossible not to get somewhat attached to the people whose lives the time travelling historians know will come to a horrific end. This places great strain on Max and Leon's relationship which resulted in one heart breaking moment that had me almost rage quitting! I'm glad I didn't. The lore of the time travels and Cleo's mysterious presence were not to be missed, nor was the way the problems were resolved. While Taylor occasionally includes random plot actions that don't seem to go anywhere - Isabella Barclay here for instance - I've learned to go with it because it's almost always resolved at a later date. These books are fun, exciting and very satisfying. Excellent time travel sci-fi. Can't recommend it highly enough.
May 25, 2019
Jodi Taylor’s wildly entertaining historical time-travelling series continues in her most ambitious story to date.
Max and her team plan an immersive, full court press project on the Trojan War – yes, the bronze age siege of the great city ending in Greeks falling out of a fake wooden horse.
Taylor has here, like she has in other historic scenes, made some artistic license changes to our popular ideas about what really happened and that is part of the charm of this world building. We also visit Agincourt and some other historical events.
This is also much more of a romantic story as Max and Leon’s relationship takes some very time travel unusual turns. I’ve never read The Time Traveler's Wife but I think this may be similar as Taylor uses the time elements of her story line to explore various ways that love can get all tangled up.
Max and her team plan an immersive, full court press project on the Trojan War – yes, the bronze age siege of the great city ending in Greeks falling out of a fake wooden horse.
Taylor has here, like she has in other historic scenes, made some artistic license changes to our popular ideas about what really happened and that is part of the charm of this world building. We also visit Agincourt and some other historical events.
This is also much more of a romantic story as Max and Leon’s relationship takes some very time travel unusual turns. I’ve never read The Time Traveler's Wife but I think this may be similar as Taylor uses the time elements of her story line to explore various ways that love can get all tangled up.
March 14, 2017
I enjoyed this. Max is a great character and well used by the author. The whole concept of St Mary's is fun and well worked. I do understand those who feel this one is a bit disjointed - I'd probably say the same. At times it feels like a number of stories that are eventually linked rather than something planned. Still enjoyed it and will continue with the series from time to time.
Read
June 24, 2014So, I read this just a day or two after it was released, rushed through it as quickly as I had the previous two, finished it, and couldn't make up my mind whether it was the best thing ever or a bit of a mess. That was back in February, and now writing it up is twice as hard, of course. (There's no point making a note to self at this stage, as my brain is covered in virtual, brightly-coloured stickies already!) So, I'm going to make a few rather random notes and maybe hope to reread and then decide.
First, I noticed something odd about this and book #2, which is how structurally similar they are (while being very different books). Might be just me, but both start with a trip to the past which has all the "one damned thing" going wrong happenings of any St Mary's outing and seems to be dropped, unconnected to the rest of the story. Then the story proper gets underway, Max and Farrell have a Big Relationship Problem that looks terminal, and we have tragedy, a properly-connected trip and things are resolved, even if not perfectly happily.
I *think* I see where the first, unconnected trip Max takes delightful professor on relates to the overall series arc - maybe - but it does still seem a bit pointless in terms of the book's plot. The best thing in the book, and also the thing that made me half-crazed with irritation, was the trip to Troy. I'm going to digress for a sentence or two here, and confess that I'd never read Homer, knew nothing about the Greeks or the Trojan War, zip, until I took a module on Homer for my OU degree. Having only the vaguest sense of having heard of Greece as the "cradle of civilization", I was horrified to learn how defeated enemies were treated. If I'd thought about it, I might have expected enslavement of the general population, probably execution of the rulers, but I did not expect: rape, murder, slavery with rape, hideous deaths for those who weren't killed in any of the above, and did I forget the rape? So, if you're a St Mary's historian, you'll know about the Trojan War as it was, right? You plan to go visit and hang around for a while, so you can see life in Troy, drink a lot of tea, talk to the locals, drink more tea, go home for breaks (which I *thought* wasn't allowed), and maybe see Helen. Oh, but you want to see Hector actually being killed and the Fall proper before you head home? Yeah, you EXPECT that it will be brutal and savage and not something you're going to want to WATCH as a bit of spectating. Would you like a few biscuits while you sit in your pod observing those murders and rapes? And yet they plan this *huge* trip, excited as all get-out, and it's only after Hector has been killed that the brilliant Max suddenly has a "Oh, shit, these are real people and they're all about to suffer horribly" moment. I do think there's something to be made of the ability of academics to avoid the real life aspects of their areas of expertise, but this went too far for my liking.
The rest - impossible to say much more without massive spoiling, as this takes turns I never dreamed might be on the way. Turns that leave me very unsure with how much I'm going to like the 4th book (though not unsure I'll be reading it!). It did make me cry, but not in the part that might be expected to have got me. And the ending is - hopeful? I think that's about right. Behind spoiler for when friends have read also - or at least have written up something.
First, I noticed something odd about this and book #2, which is how structurally similar they are (while being very different books). Might be just me, but both start with a trip to the past which has all the "one damned thing" going wrong happenings of any St Mary's outing and seems to be dropped, unconnected to the rest of the story. Then the story proper gets underway, Max and Farrell have a Big Relationship Problem that looks terminal, and we have tragedy, a properly-connected trip and things are resolved, even if not perfectly happily.
I *think* I see where the first, unconnected trip Max takes delightful professor on relates to the overall series arc - maybe - but it does still seem a bit pointless in terms of the book's plot. The best thing in the book, and also the thing that made me half-crazed with irritation, was the trip to Troy. I'm going to digress for a sentence or two here, and confess that I'd never read Homer, knew nothing about the Greeks or the Trojan War, zip, until I took a module on Homer for my OU degree. Having only the vaguest sense of having heard of Greece as the "cradle of civilization", I was horrified to learn how defeated enemies were treated. If I'd thought about it, I might have expected enslavement of the general population, probably execution of the rulers, but I did not expect: rape, murder, slavery with rape, hideous deaths for those who weren't killed in any of the above, and did I forget the rape? So, if you're a St Mary's historian, you'll know about the Trojan War as it was, right? You plan to go visit and hang around for a while, so you can see life in Troy, drink a lot of tea, talk to the locals, drink more tea, go home for breaks (which I *thought* wasn't allowed), and maybe see Helen. Oh, but you want to see Hector actually being killed and the Fall proper before you head home? Yeah, you EXPECT that it will be brutal and savage and not something you're going to want to WATCH as a bit of spectating. Would you like a few biscuits while you sit in your pod observing those murders and rapes? And yet they plan this *huge* trip, excited as all get-out, and it's only after Hector has been killed that the brilliant Max suddenly has a "Oh, shit, these are real people and they're all about to suffer horribly" moment. I do think there's something to be made of the ability of academics to avoid the real life aspects of their areas of expertise, but this went too far for my liking.
The rest - impossible to say much more without massive spoiling, as this takes turns I never dreamed might be on the way. Turns that leave me very unsure with how much I'm going to like the 4th book (though not unsure I'll be reading it!). It did make me cry, but not in the part that might be expected to have got me. And the ending is - hopeful? I think that's about right. Behind spoiler for when friends have read also - or at least have written up something.
July 13, 2022
Another delightful volume in the ongoing series The Chronicles of St. Mary’s,
about a crew of tea drinking British time travellers (er..historians). The usual mix of comedy, tragedy, and learning about history as the St. Mary’s
people gallivant all over history.
These are a few of the events in this book.
Our intrepid heroine and narrator, “Max” Maxwell, now Chief Operations Officer at St. Mary’s, escorts layman Professor Penrose, a retired, elderly physicist who is a charming and intelligent man, to catch a glimpse of his idol, Sir Isaac Newton in 17th century Cambridge. A quick and easy assignment. What could possibly go wrong?
Then, Max heads up the team for a long
assignment that’s the highlight of her career
as an ancient history specialist: The Trojan
War. This a big assignment, involving
nearly all of St. Mary’s. First, they go on
a recon mission to lovely prewar Troy. Then,
they jump right into the thick of the Greeks’
defeat of Troy. This is terrible and tragic,
and they find that not all of the myths about
the fall of Troy are accurate. Max
and her on-again-off-again beau Leon
have a huge falling out over whether to save
a particular person from the Greeks.
Next, there’s a jump to 19th century
Gloucester for cheese-rolling. What is cheese-rolling, you ask? It’s an honest to goodness sporting
event which takes place every spring near
Gloucester, England. A large (7-9) pound
wheel of Double Gloucester cheese is rolled
down a very steep hill. The competitors
take off after it with the aim of catching
the cheese. Only the British are zany and
eccentric enough to have made this into an official sport. This very popular assignment is suggested
by the idiosyncratic St. Mary’s librarian,
Dr. Dowson. It’s all hilarious fun and games.
Max wakes up in St. Mary’s Sick Bay with an injury:
CBC: concussion by cheese.
Then Max is dragged unwillingly back to
the Cretaceous and she figures she’s a goner.
Max and her buddy Tim Peterson go
off on what’s to be Max’s last time jump: the Battle
of Agincourt in 15th century France.
Then there’s the whole ��Second Chance”
business of the title. Too much of a spoiler
to talk about that.
Zara Ramm reads the audio, as usual, and does
an excellent job.
about a crew of tea drinking British time travellers (er..historians). The usual mix of comedy, tragedy, and learning about history as the St. Mary’s
people gallivant all over history.
These are a few of the events in this book.
Our intrepid heroine and narrator, “Max” Maxwell, now Chief Operations Officer at St. Mary’s, escorts layman Professor Penrose, a retired, elderly physicist who is a charming and intelligent man, to catch a glimpse of his idol, Sir Isaac Newton in 17th century Cambridge. A quick and easy assignment. What could possibly go wrong?
Then, Max heads up the team for a long
assignment that’s the highlight of her career
as an ancient history specialist: The Trojan
War. This a big assignment, involving
nearly all of St. Mary’s. First, they go on
a recon mission to lovely prewar Troy. Then,
they jump right into the thick of the Greeks’
defeat of Troy. This is terrible and tragic,
and they find that not all of the myths about
the fall of Troy are accurate. Max
and her on-again-off-again beau Leon
have a huge falling out over whether to save
a particular person from the Greeks.
Next, there’s a jump to 19th century
Gloucester for cheese-rolling. What is cheese-rolling, you ask? It’s an honest to goodness sporting
event which takes place every spring near
Gloucester, England. A large (7-9) pound
wheel of Double Gloucester cheese is rolled
down a very steep hill. The competitors
take off after it with the aim of catching
the cheese. Only the British are zany and
eccentric enough to have made this into an official sport. This very popular assignment is suggested
by the idiosyncratic St. Mary’s librarian,
Dr. Dowson. It’s all hilarious fun and games.
Max wakes up in St. Mary’s Sick Bay with an injury:
CBC: concussion by cheese.
Then Max is dragged unwillingly back to
the Cretaceous and she figures she’s a goner.
Max and her buddy Tim Peterson go
off on what’s to be Max’s last time jump: the Battle
of Agincourt in 15th century France.
Then there’s the whole ��Second Chance”
business of the title. Too much of a spoiler
to talk about that.
Zara Ramm reads the audio, as usual, and does
an excellent job.
February 22, 2021
Wow, this is so good! Absolutely loved it!
April 18, 2018
I started out loving this series, but the more it goes on, the more I'm debating my decision to consider reading. This book has pretty much lost me, but I've still decided to give book four a chance to see if it'll turn around. This book, though, was just ... bad.
The humor is still the same, but it's starting to feel more and more forced. Things happen at St. Mary's for no reason and with no explanation other than just because they're funny, which is not enough for me. Yes, I love the witty banter and the grandiose personalities that inhabit St. Mary's, but I want their crazy escapades to have a meaning and a flow to them, rather than be random scenes tossed in a void with no actual background behind them.
The historic scenes are fantastic, and they really bring history to life. They're actually probably the most interesting part of the book which really carry it. Which is good because it's, you know, a time travel book. The whole Troy episode was thrilling and well done, and I loved the exploration into the culture and the past.
Unfortunately, as great as I thought the previous things were, it was totally offset by too many problems that were deal-breakers. The pacing of the plot is really off. At one point, it's mentioned that nine months have passed, and I had to re-read the previous section, thinking I had missed something because the timing seemed all off and I had no idea. It didn't make any sense.
The characters are just getting more ridiculous and unbelievable. There doesn't seem to be any character arc with them, and their personalities seem to make 180s throughout the book with no reason except to create drama and tension. There just isn't consistency.
Speaking of inconsistency, there are sooo many time paradoxes, and none of them make sense, but yet everyone is still always afraid of time paradoxes. Now, I don't expect time travel to be neat and clean any time I go into a sci-fi book. Obviously. It's time travel. But there should at least be consistency with it, and it should somewhat make sense. The time travel is all over here, there are paradoxes out the wazoo, and History (or the Muse of History) has become a deus ex machine to either be there or not be there, whichever seems fit for the plot at the moment.
AND THAT ENDING. I JUST ... UGH. No spoilers, I know, but it was so sudden and abrupt. Not only is it a pretty major cliffhanger, but it basically totally changes the rules of the entire book. I'm not sure where it's heading anymore or what's going on, and unfortunately, I'm also not sure I can follow where it's going. I thought I knew what to expect of the series genre-wise and such going in, but now, it's going somewhere that doesn't make sense and that I don't think I can follow.
As I said, I'll give the next book a chance and hope things pick up, but as it stands right now, the plot (or what little bit there is) is disjointed and scattered and doesn't completely make sense, the characters are inconsistent, and I just can't stand the ending.
The humor is still the same, but it's starting to feel more and more forced. Things happen at St. Mary's for no reason and with no explanation other than just because they're funny, which is not enough for me. Yes, I love the witty banter and the grandiose personalities that inhabit St. Mary's, but I want their crazy escapades to have a meaning and a flow to them, rather than be random scenes tossed in a void with no actual background behind them.
The historic scenes are fantastic, and they really bring history to life. They're actually probably the most interesting part of the book which really carry it. Which is good because it's, you know, a time travel book. The whole Troy episode was thrilling and well done, and I loved the exploration into the culture and the past.
Unfortunately, as great as I thought the previous things were, it was totally offset by too many problems that were deal-breakers. The pacing of the plot is really off. At one point, it's mentioned that nine months have passed, and I had to re-read the previous section, thinking I had missed something because the timing seemed all off and I had no idea. It didn't make any sense.
The characters are just getting more ridiculous and unbelievable. There doesn't seem to be any character arc with them, and their personalities seem to make 180s throughout the book with no reason except to create drama and tension. There just isn't consistency.
Speaking of inconsistency, there are sooo many time paradoxes, and none of them make sense, but yet everyone is still always afraid of time paradoxes. Now, I don't expect time travel to be neat and clean any time I go into a sci-fi book. Obviously. It's time travel. But there should at least be consistency with it, and it should somewhat make sense. The time travel is all over here, there are paradoxes out the wazoo, and History (or the Muse of History) has become a deus ex machine to either be there or not be there, whichever seems fit for the plot at the moment.
AND THAT ENDING. I JUST ... UGH. No spoilers, I know, but it was so sudden and abrupt. Not only is it a pretty major cliffhanger, but it basically totally changes the rules of the entire book. I'm not sure where it's heading anymore or what's going on, and unfortunately, I'm also not sure I can follow where it's going. I thought I knew what to expect of the series genre-wise and such going in, but now, it's going somewhere that doesn't make sense and that I don't think I can follow.
As I said, I'll give the next book a chance and hope things pick up, but as it stands right now, the plot (or what little bit there is) is disjointed and scattered and doesn't completely make sense, the characters are inconsistent, and I just can't stand the ending.
March 13, 2014
This book. This book broke my soul. I think I cried through the entire thing. It surprised me at every turn. I'm still trying to wrap my head around that ending.
Read
November 28, 2017I enjoyed books 1 and 2, but I'm having a harder and harder timer ignoring the inherent weaknesses of the premise of this series. Honestly, I'm not sure how all the historians aren't dead by now and why there continue to be new candidates to fill their shoes. The whole idea that "historians are wild and crazy" only takes the story so far.
That aside, the habit that Jodi Taylor has of hinting at the eminent catastrophe that's coming in subsequent chapters has me actively fighting the urge to rifle through the book to find out when we're not mired in a huge flashback. I will try to finish this one, but I'm not going to make the same mistake I made with the Kate Daniels series. If I'm not loving it by book 3, there's no way I'm reading all the way to the end of it all.
DNF at p. 126. I️ just can’t do it any more. The time travel, the h’s disappointment that things didn’t actually happen the way history claims, the visiting awful historical events, etc. Plus I️ skimmed and found out that the MCs suffer yet another relationship setback. I️ know this isn’t romance, but come on. This series has had some fun bits, but mostly I’m learning from previous pigheadedness and stopping this before it goes further.
That aside, the habit that Jodi Taylor has of hinting at the eminent catastrophe that's coming in subsequent chapters has me actively fighting the urge to rifle through the book to find out when we're not mired in a huge flashback. I will try to finish this one, but I'm not going to make the same mistake I made with the Kate Daniels series. If I'm not loving it by book 3, there's no way I'm reading all the way to the end of it all.
DNF at p. 126. I️ just can’t do it any more. The time travel, the h’s disappointment that things didn’t actually happen the way history claims, the visiting awful historical events, etc. Plus I️ skimmed and found out that the MCs suffer yet another relationship setback. I️ know this isn’t romance, but come on. This series has had some fun bits, but mostly I’m learning from previous pigheadedness and stopping this before it goes further.
January 10, 2016
This series just keeps getting better.
February 25, 2018
3.5 that I’m rounding up for Taylor’s style and the great narration on the audio book. This one carried a few too many twists and turns for me to really love it, but it does certainly set up for an interesting new plot line!
January 25, 2023
After reading a few of this series I'm still on the fence about the format. Each book seems to be several distinct stories in one book. There seems to always be a short introductory story, the main part and then something else tacked on the end. They feel a little disjointed to me. In this case the final parts appears to end an ongoing thread, but then again, with time travel novels you never can tell.
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