Review: The Invisible Hour by Alice Hoffman

Synopsis: One June day when Mia Jacob can no longer see a way to survive, the power of words saves her. The Scarlet Letter was written almost two hundred years earlier, but it seems to tell the story of Mia’s mother, Ivy, and their life inside the Community—an oppressive cult in western Massachusetts where contact with the outside world is forbidden. But how could this be? How could Nathaniel Hawthorne have so perfectly captured the pain and loss that Mia carries inside her?

Through a journey of heartbreak, love, and time, Mia must abandon the rules she was raised with at the Community. As she does, she realizes that reading can transport you to other worlds or bring them to you, and that readers and writers affect one another in mysterious ways. She learns that time is more fluid than she can imagine, and that love is stronger than any chains that bind you.

As a girl Mia fell in love with a book. Now as a young woman she falls in love with a brilliant writer as she makes her way back in time. But what if Nathaniel Hawthorne never wrote The Scarlet Letter ? And what if Mia Jacob never found it on the day she planned to die?

~ ~ ~

Mia Jacobs - reader, time traveler, muse.

A young girl escaping her cult-like existence, discovers that reading can transport her to another world - quite literally - and in doing so, she discovers a strength her mother never quite found for herself. Is Hawthorn's book based upon her life or is her current life the result of her time travel.

I think this is definitely deserving of more than one reading - after the first, you definitely need to go back and start again to ensure you have taken in all the little hints and clues to this story. There is much to be said of the power of the written word.

My first Hoffman book, and though not really a fan of the time-travel genre, I did enjoy this one.

Review: The Lane Betrayal by John A Heldt

Synopsis: Virginia physicist Mark Lane has a problem. Weeks after privately creating two time machines, he learns his corporate partner wants to use the portable devices for nefarious purposes. Rather than give him the chance to do so, Mark takes the time boxes and escapes to the relative safety of 1865.

For Mark, wife Mary, and their children, the adventure is a chance to grow. Mary runs a business. Jeremy, 19, and Ashley, 12, befriend escaped slaves. Laura, 22, finds her place as a nurse. Jordan, 25, falls for a beautiful widow. All hope to find peace in the past.

Billionaire Robert Devereaux has other ideas. Shortly after Mark's betrayal, he sends an assassin to 1865 to retrieve his property and set matters straight.

Filled with romance, suspense, and history, The Lane Betrayal follows a modern American family as it tries to find security and contentment in the final weeks of the Civil War.

This is my first book from author John Heldt, and I must say, for a "time travel" tome, I was pleasantly surprised. Though I am sure we, as readers and historians, have no doubt contemplated it, I will be the first to admit that the whole "time travel" genre is not really my thing as what I had previously read, was poorly done and just put me off altogether.

As mentioned, I was pleasantly surprised with this story of a family on the run from a meglomaniac with plans to use the devices created, to rule the world. Yes I know, rather Austin Powers-esque. However, that is not the case here. The family must fly under the radar to avoid bringing undue attention to themselves, whilst not altering events, and avoid crossing paths with the man sent to find them. To that end, the family must adapt and adopt their surroundings - Civil War Virginia in 1865 - which for some members of the family present some challenges.

The narrative is told from alternating points of view - the members of the Lane family, the man sent to find them, and Mark Lane's modern-day colleagues for whom (bar one) he is an anathema. Can the family stay one step ahead and survive, or will they be forced to reveal themselves.

Well ... no real spoiler alert as the second in the series "The Fair" has been published and a third - "Sea Spray" - is due out soon - so more thrilling adventures into America's past with the Lane family await the reader!

John A Heldt is the author of the Northwest Passage, American Journey, Carson Chronicles, and Time Box series.

Blog: http://johnheldt.blogspot.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/johnaheldt

Twitter: https://twitter.com/johnheldt

Review: Mystery of the Templars by Martina Andre

I so wanted to like it (due to my long fascination with the Templars) but it really just lost me and I consider it a waste of my valuable reading time.

My goodness - with the wealth of information, intrigue, legends, scandal and conspiracy theories surrounding the Templars, there was so much that could have been written, but just wasn't taken advantage of in this instance.  

The inclusion of the character of Amalie was unnecessary and left me completely flat - the action scenes with the Templars were fast paced and dynamic enough for a decent storyline. Then it takes a Da Vinci Code turn when the main character, Gerald of Breydenback, finds himself going forward in time, then back, and then forward again to live happily ever after. 

I honestly didn't know if this was supposed to be a thriller with historical overtones, or a poor man's "Outlander" (which I also could not get into).  A good plot that was poorly executed.

Review - The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton

The first thing that struck me was the very clever writing and story telling. Typically, when you are telling a story its either first or third person narrative, and usually the story focuses on one character or from that character's point of view. In this instance, we not only have the first person narrative of one character, we have the additional narratives of multiple characters - yet all are, at various time, one and the same! And that is where this book stands out in both its writing and in the telling of the story.

Narrator Aiden Bishop awakens to find himself in the body of one of the guests at a private party. Sounds a bit like an episode of "Quantum Leap" - however, in this story, the scene is played out over and over until the mystery of the death of Evelyn Hardcastle is solved (a bit like "Groundhog Day" where a wrong must be put right for the universe to get back to normal), with Aiden waking each day in the body of yet another party guest, edging ever closer to the day when he must reveal what he knows or is condemned to repeat it all again in an eternal time loop.

It is through Aiden's eyes, when inhabiting the body of his hosts, that the story and clues to this mystery (a murder that is not a murder) are eventually put before us as each "host" sees the scenes being played out differently. But its not that simple afterall, "... how lost do you have to be to let the devil lead you home ...". And Aiden is certainly led on a merry chase by allies and foes alike, while unseen hands manipulate the guests like a proverbial puppeteer but to what end and purpose.

What was intriguing is that we never really get a sense of time (ie: when is this story set), or how long the protagonists have dwelt in this time loop. What we do know is that an answer will release them, and as the tale progresses, " ... it is no longer simply about finding the right answer, its about holding onto it long enough to deliver it ...".

It may take a chapter or two to get in the swing of things, but persevere - the answers to this story are not as obvious as you may think, and just when you think all is resolved, you realise you have 100 or so more pages to go!

Review: Christopher Wild by Kathe Koja

..... he lives by his pen, his wit, his nerves, his temper, his ambitions, his appetites, 

his ability to manoeuvre on several fields at once, keeping free of the floods that wash others away .....

Synopsis: Three lives. One man. 

Marlowe lives three different lives in this story, each time awakening in an dark alley, living a new life. I am afraid that for me, the narrative did not work; it was incoherent and disjointed (each paragraph begins with a dash symbol). I could barely follow the dialogue - was it all in his head or was he actually speaking the words aloud (hint: all dialogue is in italics), and thus I struggled at times to work out who was actually narrating the stories.

For me personally, the character portrayal, the editing and punctuation (or lack thereof), writing style and storytelling put the author firmly on the back foot with me. Marlowe was a complex character - poet, spy, heretic - there is so much that you could do with him in a fictional context.

And as much as I love Marlowe, I was not a fan of this, and sadly, I would not recommend it.