THIS IS HOW YOU LOSE THE TIME WAR (2019)
by Amal El-Mothar and Max Gladstone
by Amal El-Mothar and Max Gladstone
In the science fiction genre, stories are often written as replies
or comments to previous works.
Over time, new variations on established themes form an ongoing ”conversation” inside the field – a bit like jazz music.
One such theme is ”time war.” It probably originated with THE LEGION OF TIME by Jack Williamson (pulp-magazine serial in 1938, novel in 1952). Imagine two alternate, mutually exclusive futures competing for their very existence.
They try to manipulate a common past in order to determine their future... and the losing future will be erased from history.
In THIS IS HOW YOU LOSE THE TIME WAR, we follow the two women Red and Blue – cyborg agents, enemies in an extraordinarily complex time war that runs across alternate timelines. The twist is that this bewildering conflict is only the backdrop for Red and Blue’s growing obsession with each other.
As they exchange long secret messages, their mutual obsession grows into infatuation. Forbidden love between soldiers in wartime! It’s very romantic and very original, and written in gorgeous purple prose.
This is the kind of story you’ll have to read several times, because it is too rich to digest in just one go. I loved THIS IS HOW YOU LOSE THE TIME WAR, and I look forward to what the two authors are going to write next.
Heartily recommended for readers who enjoy beautiful, imaginative writing.
See also in the same genre: THE BIG TIME by Fritz Leiber.
#bookreviews #books #scifi #sciencefiction #literature #timetravel #alternatehistory #romance #thisishowyoulosethetimewar #amalelmohtar #maxgladstone
Over time, new variations on established themes form an ongoing ”conversation” inside the field – a bit like jazz music.
One such theme is ”time war.” It probably originated with THE LEGION OF TIME by Jack Williamson (pulp-magazine serial in 1938, novel in 1952). Imagine two alternate, mutually exclusive futures competing for their very existence.
They try to manipulate a common past in order to determine their future... and the losing future will be erased from history.
In THIS IS HOW YOU LOSE THE TIME WAR, we follow the two women Red and Blue – cyborg agents, enemies in an extraordinarily complex time war that runs across alternate timelines. The twist is that this bewildering conflict is only the backdrop for Red and Blue’s growing obsession with each other.
As they exchange long secret messages, their mutual obsession grows into infatuation. Forbidden love between soldiers in wartime! It’s very romantic and very original, and written in gorgeous purple prose.
This is the kind of story you’ll have to read several times, because it is too rich to digest in just one go. I loved THIS IS HOW YOU LOSE THE TIME WAR, and I look forward to what the two authors are going to write next.
Heartily recommended for readers who enjoy beautiful, imaginative writing.
See also in the same genre: THE BIG TIME by Fritz Leiber.
#bookreviews #books #scifi #sciencefiction #literature #timetravel #alternatehistory #romance #thisishowyoulosethetimewar #amalelmohtar #maxgladstone
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