Review: The Psychology of Time Travel by Kate Mascarenhas!

Alright ya’ll, I’ve fallen a bit behind in my reading. It’s been a hectic few weeks and I’ve had to put my favorite of favorite things to the side to take care of some personal matters with work and life. But! Good news – my husband passed his Master’s Defense so the next stop is PhD!! Anyway! I’ve got a big weekend planned ahead for recipes and reads and some extra special treats so stay tuned!

Today I’m giving you all a review for an ARC provided directly from the publisher to the wonderful ladies Brenda and Norma over at Two Sisters Lost In a Coulee. This was a great one to read with others because time travel is a tricky trickster and the ins and outs of this one left as all equally confused and impressed! However, my take-away here (despite some of it being over my head) was overall entertainment and enjoyment!

Featuring my pretty new iPad my husband got me for my birthday!

The Psychology of Time Travel by Kate Mascarenhas

Initial Thoughts: 

This was an incredibly unique and interesting story about four women who pioneered the invention of time travel in 1967 and the repercussions of that choice and ability. This book was 100% #LADYPOWER and I absolutely loved that. I think centering the story around women, gave Mascarenhas the ability to add a deep empathy to the affects of time travel and how it touched those who took part in it, and those on the sidelines.

There are three timelines in this, one running with the invention of the machine, another in the present and the last taking place 50 years later after time travel has really taken off. There is a lot of switching between POVs and differing story lines that made it a bit difficult for me to follow. In between the story of how time travel works and what it does to those who encounter it there is a little mystery thrown in. Ruby is the granddaughter to one of the pioneers Barbara (Granny Bee) and when a post from the future arrives about the murder of an unknown woman – this sends Ruby into a tailspin about what this could mean.

Your face is the wrong way round, Barbara thought. You’ve been burning the midnight oil – that’s why you’re pale. You are trembling – you are blinking over and over. Has the hard work been worth it? You can remember my feelings. But I don’t know what you’re feeling at all.

At the same time we receive the post, we’re also given the POV of Odette – the woman who finds this future unknown murder victim and this storyline begins to unfold and overlap as well. Time-Travel has always been a sticky subject for me – it’s like my brain has to slog through mud just to wrap itself around the intricacies of how that would all work and it was no different in this novel. The detail that went into this is truly impressive and wholly original. I think the sheer number of narratives going on in this hurt the flow a bit and made it hard not only to follow along, but to connect with the characters as well.

When you’re a time traveler, the people you love die, and you carry on seeing them, so their death stops making a difference to you. The only death that will ever change things is your own.

I’ll be honest – this one took me a minute to get through. As I mentioned, things are confusing and get a little convoluted. However, if you stick with it, there really is a magnificent and truly original story here that I found touching and overall worthwhile. It was a hodgepodge of many different genres – science fiction, fantasy, historical fiction and mystery all rolled into one book and it will take you on an interesting ride to say the very least.

A relationship between equals isn’t possible if one person has all the knowledge.

My favorite aspect here, and what I think worked the best was the examination of how time travel affects each person. It was incredibly interesting to see how it touched each individual character – from those that had encountered a great deal of it, to those that only touched it a bit. It is truly awe inspiring the level of detail and thought that went into this. While I do think this book suffered from a bit <i>too much</i> story at times my overall takeaway was enjoyment and entertainment. This is a real time-travel masterpiece that examines it for the convoluted subject it is.

I completed this as a Traveling Sisters read and while many of us were a bit confused, we all really enjoyed discussing the ins and outs of time travel and the moral dilemmas it presents! Thank you to Crooked Lane Books for an advanced copy of this novel.

Long Story Short: 

Shocking. Thrilling. Surprising.

Suggested For: Anyone with a mind that is good at keeping a lot of moving parts straight, those who enjoy female centered stories with a bit of science-fiction and fantasy thrown into a mystery

Music Mood: On Trees and Birds and Fire by I Am Oak

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Have you read anything that’s outside your comfort zone recently? What tropes are hard for you to wrap your mind around? Drop me a note in the comments and let me know!