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Out of Time #1
Time Waits
An Out of Time Novel
Badly wounded and on the run from his WWII Hungarian brigade, Janos Nagy stumbles through a temporal gateway to the future. Suddenly stranded in Manchester, England, 2041, Janos wants answers about a crazy world he doesn’t recognize.
Dieter Schmidt, flamboyant historian/linguist for the Temporal Research Institution has those answers, but the TRI is a neutral entity, set up to verify historical events under a strict code of noninterference. That doesn’t stop Dieter from taking Janos under his protection. Trust doesn’t come easy to Janos, who came from a time when revealing his secrets could get him killed, but the two men slowly build a tentative friendship with a possibility for more. But Janos’s continued presence in the future and Dieter’s persistence raise questions about the limits of the noninterference policy.
Since the rules have been bent once, one agent sees no reason why he can't push them further, and he travels back to 1914 to make a few changes of his own. Under Janos’s guidance, Dieter must leap back in time to stop the rogue agent from changing the past and risking everyone’s future—if he can survive history.
Badly wounded and on the run from his WWII Hungarian brigade, Janos Nagy stumbles through a temporal gateway to the future. Suddenly stranded in Manchester, England, 2041, Janos wants answers about a crazy world he doesn’t recognize.
Dieter Schmidt, flamboyant historian/linguist for the Temporal Research Institution has those answers, but the TRI is a neutral entity, set up to verify historical events under a strict code of noninterference. That doesn’t stop Dieter from taking Janos under his protection. Trust doesn’t come easy to Janos, who came from a time when revealing his secrets could get him killed, but the two men slowly build a tentative friendship with a possibility for more. But Janos’s continued presence in the future and Dieter’s persistence raise questions about the limits of the noninterference policy.
Since the rules have been bent once, one agent sees no reason why he can't push them further, and he travels back to 1914 to make a few changes of his own. Under Janos’s guidance, Dieter must leap back in time to stop the rogue agent from changing the past and risking everyone’s future—if he can survive history.
330 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 15, 2015
12 people are currently reading
267 people want to read
About the author
C.B. Lewis
15 books24 followersA book-lover from infancy, C.B. has been writing and telling stories for as long as she can remember. Based in Edinburgh, she has diverse tastes and will quite happily attempt to write any genre, but always come back to history, fantasy, and sci-fi like an old friend. C. B. Lewis is small and Scottish and can often be spotted perched around historical monuments with her notepad and pen. She has been writing and telling tales for almost as long as she can remember, and has a brain that constantly fizzes with an abundance of ideas. If she’s not working on half a dozen things at once, it should be considered a slow day. She loves to travel and just has one continent left to complete her travel bingo card. A lot of the travel has also been research-based, and if pointed at any historical event, she will research it vociferously, just because she can. Normally, she is based in Edinburgh, where she tends toward the hermit-lifestyle, needing nothing but a kettle, a constant supply of tea, and – of course – the internet. There are no cats, no puppies, no significant others, only a lot of ideas, and an awful lot of typing. And occasionally, cake. Never forget the cake.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 48 reviews
could-not-finish
June 13, 201838% dnf
As great as the writing was, the repetitive internal monologues were tiresome. I was bored out of my mind. Zzzzzzz
As great as the writing was, the repetitive internal monologues were tiresome. I was bored out of my mind. Zzzzzzz
March 28, 2020
There's a reason why they say "Show, don't tell." A promising first two chapters were followed by page after page of telling with not enough showing -- which left me completely distanced from the characters. Poor pacing and awkward flow from scene to scene augmented the problem and made reading a chore.
Around 40% I started skimming in the hopes of reaching a point where the story would grab me. I finally had to throw in the towel at 52% when I realized I cared so little for the main characters that I wouldn't have shed a tear if they both spontaneously combusted. In fact, horrible and lingering deaths for both of them could only have improved the story. And that's NOT what I'm looking for from a romance, I assure you.
Around 40% I started skimming in the hopes of reaching a point where the story would grab me. I finally had to throw in the towel at 52% when I realized I cared so little for the main characters that I wouldn't have shed a tear if they both spontaneously combusted. In fact, horrible and lingering deaths for both of them could only have improved the story. And that's NOT what I'm looking for from a romance, I assure you.
June 20, 2016
4.25 stars
C.B. Lewis is a new-to-me author. I bought her short, Man's Best Friend, first from DSP Daily Dose 2016 Collection and I liked her writing style. I decided to take a dive in and read this debut novel of hers, released in 2015.
Well, I was in such a NICE surprise!! Because this was great! The story hooked me from the very get go, during that first chapter where Nagos ran for his life and then stumbled into the temporal gate, which then brought him to the future. Manchester in 2041 to be exact. Then Dieter came into the room, and there was sort of a gun-point situation because Nagos was in daze about where he was ....
And I just couldn't stop reading
Lewis's writing clicks with me. Interestingly, I discovered that she was a fan fiction author, which probably a plus point for her to me. See, sometimes I find fan fiction authors have 'different/unique/loose' storytelling that doesn't feel 'too mainstream'; if you can understand what I mean.
Anyway, I was immersed in this world Lewis created; with Dieter and Janos as characters, Dieter's job at the Temporal Research Institute (and what the agents were doing), and then near the end, when one of their agents went rouge and tried to change the course of history. It was pretty gripping. I definitely enjoyed the whole WW1 history too!!
The romance was slow-built but believable. I thought Dieter and Janos had strong chemistry, and heck, I was loving them so much, their sex scenes became significant for me to read (ha!). It was good :)
Few complaints would be related to Dieter's cursing. I am okay with a lot of curse words, but Dieter used a couple that I truly hate: cunt -- urgh, I hate that word. I hate it in MF, during sex, and now as swearing? Totally uncool! Also faggot because come on! It's 2041, shouldn't that word have been banned?!
Oh, and I also thought that the future setting in this book was a bit unclear. While yes, Dieter and Janos spend more time at TRI, but I couldn't really feel the future outside of TRI? Like, shouldn't it be more, well, 'futuristic'? It is not well described, in my opinion.
But apart from that, this would be one of the most memorable reads from a relatively new-to-me author this year. I'm so happy that I read it. Now I cannot wait for the upcoming book next month!
C.B. Lewis is a new-to-me author. I bought her short, Man's Best Friend, first from DSP Daily Dose 2016 Collection and I liked her writing style. I decided to take a dive in and read this debut novel of hers, released in 2015.
Well, I was in such a NICE surprise!! Because this was great! The story hooked me from the very get go, during that first chapter where Nagos ran for his life and then stumbled into the temporal gate, which then brought him to the future. Manchester in 2041 to be exact. Then Dieter came into the room, and there was sort of a gun-point situation because Nagos was in daze about where he was ....
And I just couldn't stop reading
Lewis's writing clicks with me. Interestingly, I discovered that she was a fan fiction author, which probably a plus point for her to me. See, sometimes I find fan fiction authors have 'different/unique/loose' storytelling that doesn't feel 'too mainstream'; if you can understand what I mean.
Anyway, I was immersed in this world Lewis created; with Dieter and Janos as characters, Dieter's job at the Temporal Research Institute (and what the agents were doing), and then near the end, when one of their agents went rouge and tried to change the course of history. It was pretty gripping. I definitely enjoyed the whole WW1 history too!!
The romance was slow-built but believable. I thought Dieter and Janos had strong chemistry, and heck, I was loving them so much, their sex scenes became significant for me to read (ha!). It was good :)
Few complaints would be related to Dieter's cursing. I am okay with a lot of curse words, but Dieter used a couple that I truly hate: cunt -- urgh, I hate that word. I hate it in MF, during sex, and now as swearing? Totally uncool! Also faggot because come on! It's 2041, shouldn't that word have been banned?!
Oh, and I also thought that the future setting in this book was a bit unclear. While yes, Dieter and Janos spend more time at TRI, but I couldn't really feel the future outside of TRI? Like, shouldn't it be more, well, 'futuristic'? It is not well described, in my opinion.
But apart from that, this would be one of the most memorable reads from a relatively new-to-me author this year. I'm so happy that I read it. Now I cannot wait for the upcoming book next month!
April 1, 2017
4.5 holy wowsers yeah I'm bumping up to 5 stars on Prism Book Alliance®
Dieter, I liked you right away. A smart ass, smart, daring, and with enough of those smarts to be scared out of your wits when warranted. Even more, we’re dropped right into the story, a tense situation, unpredictable in its outcome. Opening with a bang, my curiosity was poked and I was already being given insider info about this world.
I’m in!
So is Nagy Janos, apparently. A soldier who finds himself in an unexpected place, with unexpected people, due to a very unexpected reason. His reticence, rudeness, and fear were palpable and understandable, to say the least. He was in rough shape.
I was confident this story was going to take me places, and it did. The writing fostered great trust, as well, hooking me early on:
He was already pale, but when the icy spray touched the inflamed flesh of his arm, the soldier’s face went grey. The muscles in his jaw twitched as he clenched his teeth, but he didn’t make a sound. His pupils seemed to expand, dark and black and full of pain.
I wanted to know what was going to happen. I already cared about Dieter and Janos. I already felt invested. I was already feeling a healthy dose of worry. Connection made.
The story has a good rhythm to it, given flight by organic portrayal of relationships, instinctive dialogue, and realistic interactions. I understood and liked the friendship between Dieter and Sally, the tense but caring way Dieter and his boss, Sanders treated each other, and this:
Dieter shrugged. “We’re not friends. The bastard shot me. Why should I care?”
“Why shouldn’t you?” Sally said. “It’s human nature to feel compassion for someone who is clearly afraid. It’s not wrong to want to help them.”
Oh, it’s on now, baby.
Janos is afraid, and of many things. He’s also curious, and feeling a need to stretch beyond his current confines. Couple that with Dieter’s inability to ignore his natural inclination to help and you’ve got a winning combo. Granted, that innate talent is sorta kinda well hidden behind several emotionally built walls, and the road is inescapably rough, but it’s so worth the journey. Conflict, discovery, and empathy. Maybe even more?
This author is so very good at relaying intimate detail and drenching it in importance and emotion. The simplest things still feel simple, normal, and yet are weighted with consequence and heart and doubt, so full of expression.
Emotions and thoughts are given time to form and breathe. There’s no rushing here. At the same time, forward progress is maintained, never really letting up. A wonderful combination that kept me fully engaged. Best of all, every part of the telling of this story fit the characters, fit the ways Dieter and Janos expressed themselves, supporting the whys and hows of their actions.
I need to tell you how much I like these two guys. Dieter with his unapologetic potty mouth and even dirtier brain, and Janos with his steady, solid ways… mostly. Both of them can smirk and be grumpy and avoid with the best of them. And then they turn around and leave me breathless with their gentle gestures.
A few traumatic events from the past are mentioned and meant to help explain the mindsets of these two men. We’re not given much detail so their heft was given short shrift. On the flipside, the hoarding of detail and not sharing every last thought fits both of the characters. Still, as the reader, they didn’t quite hit the mark with their intended impact.
This author has major talent for subtlety, stillness, and quiet, surrounding them with ceaseless tension and progress within the story. That idn’t easy, folks, and it worked so well here, so well.
The final act, the final third of this story is a study in how to build and maintain that tension. I could feel everything straining, everything pulled taut, with no obvious release in sight. Intimate gestures, selfless generosity, palpable fear and worry, all of them kept this book fueled and roaring along. No convenient explosions or fake misunderstandings, just human beings trying to survive and maybe end up with something more than what they started.
I’m wholly satisfied, and this is yet another must-read recommendation from me. I’ve been on a roll recently!
*still suffering the best book hangover*
ETA: Recommended Read on PBA for August 2015
Dieter, I liked you right away. A smart ass, smart, daring, and with enough of those smarts to be scared out of your wits when warranted. Even more, we’re dropped right into the story, a tense situation, unpredictable in its outcome. Opening with a bang, my curiosity was poked and I was already being given insider info about this world.
I’m in!
So is Nagy Janos, apparently. A soldier who finds himself in an unexpected place, with unexpected people, due to a very unexpected reason. His reticence, rudeness, and fear were palpable and understandable, to say the least. He was in rough shape.
I was confident this story was going to take me places, and it did. The writing fostered great trust, as well, hooking me early on:
He was already pale, but when the icy spray touched the inflamed flesh of his arm, the soldier’s face went grey. The muscles in his jaw twitched as he clenched his teeth, but he didn’t make a sound. His pupils seemed to expand, dark and black and full of pain.
I wanted to know what was going to happen. I already cared about Dieter and Janos. I already felt invested. I was already feeling a healthy dose of worry. Connection made.
The story has a good rhythm to it, given flight by organic portrayal of relationships, instinctive dialogue, and realistic interactions. I understood and liked the friendship between Dieter and Sally, the tense but caring way Dieter and his boss, Sanders treated each other, and this:
Dieter shrugged. “We’re not friends. The bastard shot me. Why should I care?”
“Why shouldn’t you?” Sally said. “It’s human nature to feel compassion for someone who is clearly afraid. It’s not wrong to want to help them.”
Oh, it’s on now, baby.
Janos is afraid, and of many things. He’s also curious, and feeling a need to stretch beyond his current confines. Couple that with Dieter’s inability to ignore his natural inclination to help and you’ve got a winning combo. Granted, that innate talent is sorta kinda well hidden behind several emotionally built walls, and the road is inescapably rough, but it’s so worth the journey. Conflict, discovery, and empathy. Maybe even more?
This author is so very good at relaying intimate detail and drenching it in importance and emotion. The simplest things still feel simple, normal, and yet are weighted with consequence and heart and doubt, so full of expression.
Emotions and thoughts are given time to form and breathe. There’s no rushing here. At the same time, forward progress is maintained, never really letting up. A wonderful combination that kept me fully engaged. Best of all, every part of the telling of this story fit the characters, fit the ways Dieter and Janos expressed themselves, supporting the whys and hows of their actions.
I need to tell you how much I like these two guys. Dieter with his unapologetic potty mouth and even dirtier brain, and Janos with his steady, solid ways… mostly. Both of them can smirk and be grumpy and avoid with the best of them. And then they turn around and leave me breathless with their gentle gestures.
A few traumatic events from the past are mentioned and meant to help explain the mindsets of these two men. We’re not given much detail so their heft was given short shrift. On the flipside, the hoarding of detail and not sharing every last thought fits both of the characters. Still, as the reader, they didn’t quite hit the mark with their intended impact.
This author has major talent for subtlety, stillness, and quiet, surrounding them with ceaseless tension and progress within the story. That idn’t easy, folks, and it worked so well here, so well.
The final act, the final third of this story is a study in how to build and maintain that tension. I could feel everything straining, everything pulled taut, with no obvious release in sight. Intimate gestures, selfless generosity, palpable fear and worry, all of them kept this book fueled and roaring along. No convenient explosions or fake misunderstandings, just human beings trying to survive and maybe end up with something more than what they started.
I’m wholly satisfied, and this is yet another must-read recommendation from me. I’ve been on a roll recently!
*still suffering the best book hangover*
ETA: Recommended Read on PBA for August 2015
August 25, 2015
4 solid stars.
I honestly don't know what I was thinking when I got this book. I don't read many sci-fi books, Time Travel is something I've never been interested in. I'm so happy I read this book. I liked it alot. It was different from my comfort zone reads, this was also a new author to me as well. I think the author did a good job with the WWII facts pertaining the history part of the story. I thought the concept was really good, and executed okay. For a story that was based on the future I didn't see alot of futuristic elements in here. The blurb says it's 2041, nothing was different from now until then. I think the only noticeable thing was the pod cars. My thing is, if you're going to write a story based on a futuristic time, I'd like to see some of those elements throughout the setting. Other then that, I liked everything else.
I really liked Dieter and Janos. Each guy had different qualities about themselves, that made them better with each other. From the first meeting of the two, until the last moment on the page I was happy. Sure they had a very rocky beginning. I can't blame them, Janos is from early 1900's, and everything he knew was gone, blown out the water. I thought it adapted very well. He was a very quick study. My favorite thing about Janos was him accepting that this present world he lives in does not care who he loves. He was cautious about showing his intentions with Dieter and I get it, he's from a time where even the thought of sodomy had the person killed. I liked his reactions at the end of the story when Dieter was doing his own Jump. His emotions came full circle. Dieter was amazing as well. I love that he was super confident in his sexuality. I love how his approach to the story was done. For me Dieter grew the most in this story. He had countless hurdles to get across, he was not an aggressive person, but he had to put on a strong face numerous of times.
As for the plot of the story, I really liked that as well. I wish for me that the historic event could have been better known to me. When I was reading it, I had to stop and google to see if this information really happened. LOL, it did. I enjoyed those scenes alot. All in all, I think the author did a very good job on this book, and I liked it alot.
I honestly don't know what I was thinking when I got this book. I don't read many sci-fi books, Time Travel is something I've never been interested in. I'm so happy I read this book. I liked it alot. It was different from my comfort zone reads, this was also a new author to me as well. I think the author did a good job with the WWII facts pertaining the history part of the story. I thought the concept was really good, and executed okay. For a story that was based on the future I didn't see alot of futuristic elements in here. The blurb says it's 2041, nothing was different from now until then. I think the only noticeable thing was the pod cars. My thing is, if you're going to write a story based on a futuristic time, I'd like to see some of those elements throughout the setting. Other then that, I liked everything else.
I really liked Dieter and Janos. Each guy had different qualities about themselves, that made them better with each other. From the first meeting of the two, until the last moment on the page I was happy. Sure they had a very rocky beginning. I can't blame them, Janos is from early 1900's, and everything he knew was gone, blown out the water. I thought it adapted very well. He was a very quick study. My favorite thing about Janos was him accepting that this present world he lives in does not care who he loves. He was cautious about showing his intentions with Dieter and I get it, he's from a time where even the thought of sodomy had the person killed. I liked his reactions at the end of the story when Dieter was doing his own Jump. His emotions came full circle. Dieter was amazing as well. I love that he was super confident in his sexuality. I love how his approach to the story was done. For me Dieter grew the most in this story. He had countless hurdles to get across, he was not an aggressive person, but he had to put on a strong face numerous of times.
As for the plot of the story, I really liked that as well. I wish for me that the historic event could have been better known to me. When I was reading it, I had to stop and google to see if this information really happened. LOL, it did. I enjoyed those scenes alot. All in all, I think the author did a very good job on this book, and I liked it alot.
April 28, 2020
Time travel with all its pitfalls and potential paradoxes has been known to do my head in, but that is not what made this novel so emotionally exhausting – yet extremely worthwhile - to read. What got to me instead were the carefully drawn characters and the emotions involved as Dieter, a British out-and-proud linguist from 2041, and Janos, an almost-killed Hungarian soldier from WW2, meet and get to know each other. There are so many reasons why they should never have met, and even more obstacles of all kinds when they do, that I wasn’t sure they’d make it. Then, in the last third of the novel, the author threw me a curveball of epic proportions and the situation looked very dire indeed. This book is an emotional wringer of the first order, an action/adventure that made me bite my nails, and a thoughtful and thought-provoking story about the difficulties of overcoming fear, prejudice, and cross-cultural boundaries.
Please find my full review of the second edition on Rainbow Book Reviews.
Please find my full review of the second edition on Rainbow Book Reviews.
July 18, 2015
Wow,where to start...one thing is certain - one of the best debut books I've ever read,if not the very best one!
This book is a blend of science-fiction,history and romance. By all means,I should have not enjoyed this book as much as I did,because I'm not big fan of SF and long novels,I really am not,but the cover drew me,and all I can say is that I'm really,really glad that it did! There were no plot holes,every aspect of this story was well-balanced and for the most part I was glued to my tablet. As I am no stranger to the history surrounding WWI (which is no small part of this book) since it started in the country I was born,imagine my surprise when I started to read about assassination on Franz Ferdinand and circumstances that surrounded it. Here I have to thank author for being historically accurate,with a small addition that was necessary for the story which she explained in the author's note. Why I have to thank her? Because I had really bad experiences (in this genre) when authors completely twisted the history of this region (Balkan) to the point of insult. So yeah,thank you...
Back to the story...this book is like a minefield of emotions - there was anger,pride,hurt,sadness,sometimes kindness,hope,and you'll maybe get a little glimpses of love at the end,but not enough if you love classic love story (they meet,they fall in love,little angst thrown in and HEA). BUT,please,don't let that deter you from reading Time Waits because you will not be disappointed. I know that I wasn't,because Dietrich's I love you at the near end was,believe me,so powerful,that I wouldn't have it any other way.
As for characters...every one of them is so vivid,with so much depth (even secondary ones) that they will seem real to you. But,one of them is the reason why this is not one of the best romance books I've ever read (and it could have been). At the times Dietrich was just too much - too mean to Janus (he hurt him with his words and attitude,several times throughout the story),too bitchy to everyone else,word "fuc*ing" was used 538 times - of which 99.9% by him,too much calling everyone cu*t,bastard,as*hole and etc. Just too much...I had to take a break from the story only when being in his head was too much for me. I'm not someone who easily forgives,but at the end I couldn't hold a grudge against Dietrich,I just couldn't. His coming back to Jan was just too emotional and it felt real,which is most important...
I think I could list even more reasons why should you read this book,but if I haven't lost you yet - I highly recommend this book!!!
This book is a blend of science-fiction,history and romance. By all means,I should have not enjoyed this book as much as I did,because I'm not big fan of SF and long novels,I really am not,but the cover drew me,and all I can say is that I'm really,really glad that it did! There were no plot holes,every aspect of this story was well-balanced and for the most part I was glued to my tablet. As I am no stranger to the history surrounding WWI (which is no small part of this book) since it started in the country I was born,imagine my surprise when I started to read about assassination on Franz Ferdinand and circumstances that surrounded it. Here I have to thank author for being historically accurate,with a small addition that was necessary for the story which she explained in the author's note. Why I have to thank her? Because I had really bad experiences (in this genre) when authors completely twisted the history of this region (Balkan) to the point of insult. So yeah,thank you...
Back to the story...this book is like a minefield of emotions - there was anger,pride,hurt,sadness,sometimes kindness,hope,and you'll maybe get a little glimpses of love at the end,but not enough if you love classic love story (they meet,they fall in love,little angst thrown in and HEA). BUT,please,don't let that deter you from reading Time Waits because you will not be disappointed. I know that I wasn't,because Dietrich's I love you at the near end was,believe me,so powerful,that I wouldn't have it any other way.
As for characters...every one of them is so vivid,with so much depth (even secondary ones) that they will seem real to you. But,one of them is the reason why this is not one of the best romance books I've ever read (and it could have been). At the times Dietrich was just too much - too mean to Janus (he hurt him with his words and attitude,several times throughout the story),too bitchy to everyone else,word "fuc*ing" was used 538 times - of which 99.9% by him,too much calling everyone cu*t,bastard,as*hole and etc. Just too much...I had to take a break from the story only when being in his head was too much for me. I'm not someone who easily forgives,but at the end I couldn't hold a grudge against Dietrich,I just couldn't. His coming back to Jan was just too emotional and it felt real,which is most important...
I think I could list even more reasons why should you read this book,but if I haven't lost you yet - I highly recommend this book!!!
July 25, 2016
Well, the premise of this story drew me in straight away, intrigued doesn't cover it. Time Travel [and yes, I did immediately think of Dr Who, hehe], covert ops and a smoking hot affair with a man from the past.
Unfortunately, although I did enjoy the story, and Dieter and Janos the MC's, I really wasn't happy with the amount of f-bombs and the frequent over-usage of the c-word...and come on, I've been reading M/M for nearly 4 years now, I'm certainly no prude. I hate the c-word and the other f-word (which also made many appearances), and although I can excuse the odd use of c**t, seeing it used on what seemed like every other page wasn't something I liked.
The other complaint I have was the quality of DsP's editing/proofreading/formatting, which was, for Dreamspinner Press, pretty dreadful. Can anyone tell me whether Llewellyn's name was actually Llewellyn or Llewelyn...different spellings used on each page or even in the same paragraph sometimes. Assume 'standing on breaking ice' is 'treading on thin ice', and if so, why the hell wasn't it used?? What does 'you could go out and be casual at him' mean?? The level of a building is a storey not story, and there were also grammatical errors which should have been picked up before publication.
In spite of all that, I have ordered book 2 Time Lost which comes out on the 29th of this month, and can only hope that the quality of the editing has been improved.
Unfortunately, although I did enjoy the story, and Dieter and Janos the MC's, I really wasn't happy with the amount of f-bombs and the frequent over-usage of the c-word...and come on, I've been reading M/M for nearly 4 years now, I'm certainly no prude. I hate the c-word and the other f-word (which also made many appearances), and although I can excuse the odd use of c**t, seeing it used on what seemed like every other page wasn't something I liked.
The other complaint I have was the quality of DsP's editing/proofreading/formatting, which was, for Dreamspinner Press, pretty dreadful. Can anyone tell me whether Llewellyn's name was actually Llewellyn or Llewelyn...different spellings used on each page or even in the same paragraph sometimes. Assume 'standing on breaking ice' is 'treading on thin ice', and if so, why the hell wasn't it used?? What does 'you could go out and be casual at him' mean?? The level of a building is a storey not story, and there were also grammatical errors which should have been picked up before publication.
In spite of all that, I have ordered book 2 Time Lost which comes out on the 29th of this month, and can only hope that the quality of the editing has been improved.
June 30, 2018
I found the unimaginative cursing childish and annoying. I didn't like the writing and
I skipped a lot of the sex scenes because they didn't add to the story for me.
I skipped a lot of the sex scenes because they didn't add to the story for me.
June 25, 2015
A Joyfully Jay review.
4.25 stars
I really liked the idea of this book and felt like it was well-executed. The romance between Janos and Dieter is slow to build and develop. Each man experiences an attraction he feels is wrong—Janos due to ingrained homophobia and fear, Dieter because he feels like he’s taking advantage of a man trapped in time. They are tentative, holding back until an informant tips Janos off regarding Dieter’s feelings. They still must keep everything hidden—which is Janos’ natural state, but their growing affection is clearly an issue when tracking and retrieving the rogue agent becomes a priority.
Dieter and Janos were fantastic characters. They have a real chemistry that simmers. Dieter is required to retrieve his fellow time agent, and he’s intellectually prepared for a job that he is physically untrained to perform. He’s never BEEN on a mission, and his own mother was lost to a time incident, but Dieter is determined to do this right. It is heartbreaking for Janos to have to train him, both of them knowing that this time jump will likely separate them forever, even if Dieter is successful in his mission. My heart was racing through the final third of the book, as I kept turning the page to find out if Dieter would return. The more time Dieter spent in history, the more dangerous his experience. It was agonizing for me, as well as Janos.
Read Veronica’s review in its entirety here.
4.25 stars
I really liked the idea of this book and felt like it was well-executed. The romance between Janos and Dieter is slow to build and develop. Each man experiences an attraction he feels is wrong—Janos due to ingrained homophobia and fear, Dieter because he feels like he’s taking advantage of a man trapped in time. They are tentative, holding back until an informant tips Janos off regarding Dieter’s feelings. They still must keep everything hidden—which is Janos’ natural state, but their growing affection is clearly an issue when tracking and retrieving the rogue agent becomes a priority.
Dieter and Janos were fantastic characters. They have a real chemistry that simmers. Dieter is required to retrieve his fellow time agent, and he’s intellectually prepared for a job that he is physically untrained to perform. He’s never BEEN on a mission, and his own mother was lost to a time incident, but Dieter is determined to do this right. It is heartbreaking for Janos to have to train him, both of them knowing that this time jump will likely separate them forever, even if Dieter is successful in his mission. My heart was racing through the final third of the book, as I kept turning the page to find out if Dieter would return. The more time Dieter spent in history, the more dangerous his experience. It was agonizing for me, as well as Janos.
Read Veronica’s review in its entirety here.
January 20, 2017
SUPER COOL IDEA.
Seriously, I'm usually wary of time travel but I loved this one - if Stargate was about historians travelling to the past while observing the Prime Directive of noninterference, with added heaps of trauma recovery and hurt/comfort, and then nail-biting danger and hard ethical choices, that would be it.
I loved the worldbulding, and I adored the protagonists, especially Janos' journey of coping with being thrown from dying in a ditch in the middle of a war to a shiny, alien, future world where most people don't speak his language, and with his disability and options the future technology offers him.
I'm looking forward to reading the second book in the series soon.
Seriously, I'm usually wary of time travel but I loved this one - if Stargate was about historians travelling to the past while observing the Prime Directive of noninterference, with added heaps of trauma recovery and hurt/comfort, and then nail-biting danger and hard ethical choices, that would be it.
I loved the worldbulding, and I adored the protagonists, especially Janos' journey of coping with being thrown from dying in a ditch in the middle of a war to a shiny, alien, future world where most people don't speak his language, and with his disability and options the future technology offers him.
I'm looking forward to reading the second book in the series soon.
July 3, 2015
Sadly I have to say that this was a bit disappointing. I struggled to like either MC, which is never a good sign :(
Dieter was a good guy, really, but his language >___< Calling everyone fucker, bastard (even his lover) just didn't sit right with me.
And. There were just too many words...
Dieter was a good guy, really, but his language >___< Calling everyone fucker, bastard (even his lover) just didn't sit right with me.
And. There were just too many words...
May 5, 2020
Thanks to Netgalley for the complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.
I'm not normally a fan of time travel books, but I loved this. It hit pre-WW1, which is my history nerd sweet spot. Loved the in-depth historical components and that Dieter was a linguist and historical expert. I could identify with his inner geek-out about walking around the living history when he was sent to the past.
Janos and Dieter were good together after their rocky start and very slow burn romance with a touch of Stockholm syndrome. Having seen these characters at the end of the series, it was good to see how they and the TRI started.
I'm not normally a fan of time travel books, but I loved this. It hit pre-WW1, which is my history nerd sweet spot. Loved the in-depth historical components and that Dieter was a linguist and historical expert. I could identify with his inner geek-out about walking around the living history when he was sent to the past.
Janos and Dieter were good together after their rocky start and very slow burn romance with a touch of Stockholm syndrome. Having seen these characters at the end of the series, it was good to see how they and the TRI started.
May 12, 2020
The time is the near future 2041, in Manchester a semi-secret organisation called the Temporal Research Institute travels in time to observe historical events. Dieter is a linguist and an historian but he rushes to the fore when a mission goes badly wrong and a Hungarian soldier from World War II stumbles through the open portal.
Janos Nagy is close to death, in fact he thought he was walking into the light, when he stumbles nearly 100 years into his future. Shocked and scared he threatens the pretty man with the outrageous hair and make-up who greets him, scared that this is a Nazi trap.
The TRI can't upset Janos' timeline by returning him, miraculously healed from what should have been a fatal wound, so he is forced to remain in this strange new world. Although Janos terrified Dieter when he first arrived Dieter feels a strange sense of responsibility for the man, especially since he is the only person at the TRI with a passable understanding of Magyar (Hungarian). But as the two men gradually become friends, and then lovers, someone decides if the rules of time travel can be broken once, why not again?
If you are hoping for an LGBTQIA+ version of Jodi Taylor's St Mary's stories this isn't in the same vein. Primarily a romance/stranger in a strange land story the time travel aspect doesn't really feature until late in the book.
I loved both Janos and Dieter, men from very different times in history with very different experiences of what it is like to be a gay man. I also liked the side characters, they felt real and I am pleased to see that one of them features in the next book in the series.
A charming, novel which is hard to define but I really enjoyed it and would definitely read others in the series.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.
Janos Nagy is close to death, in fact he thought he was walking into the light, when he stumbles nearly 100 years into his future. Shocked and scared he threatens the pretty man with the outrageous hair and make-up who greets him, scared that this is a Nazi trap.
The TRI can't upset Janos' timeline by returning him, miraculously healed from what should have been a fatal wound, so he is forced to remain in this strange new world. Although Janos terrified Dieter when he first arrived Dieter feels a strange sense of responsibility for the man, especially since he is the only person at the TRI with a passable understanding of Magyar (Hungarian). But as the two men gradually become friends, and then lovers, someone decides if the rules of time travel can be broken once, why not again?
If you are hoping for an LGBTQIA+ version of Jodi Taylor's St Mary's stories this isn't in the same vein. Primarily a romance/stranger in a strange land story the time travel aspect doesn't really feature until late in the book.
I loved both Janos and Dieter, men from very different times in history with very different experiences of what it is like to be a gay man. I also liked the side characters, they felt real and I am pleased to see that one of them features in the next book in the series.
A charming, novel which is hard to define but I really enjoyed it and would definitely read others in the series.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.
June 27, 2015
This review was originally written for Joyfully Jay Reviews.
4.25 Stars
Dieter Schmidt is a linguist and historian for the Temporal Research Institute, a private shadow organization that investigates historical events to discover and clarify motives of global leaders in the times surrounding war. Dieter’s specialty is the early 20th century, and he’s fluent in several languages including English, German, and Hungarian. While the time agents are on a mission scouting WWII incidents, a barely-alive Hungarian soldier stumbles into the time gate. Though ravaged by starvation and injury, this man is a serious threat. He’s carrying a weapon and blocking the exit portal for the time agents. Dieter is dispatched to coax the soldier from the gate room, and it’s seriously touch-and-go.
Janos Nagy cannot believe his surroundings. Stepping from 1941 to 2041 is as unlikely as taking him from nearly dead to a sterile clean world where his injuries are tended and meals abound. It’s as difficult to adjust to as his newly-amputated arm. Plus, the only one who can communicate with him is the attractive German boy, Dieter. But, no matter what Dieter tells him, Janos knows that succumbing to his shameful lust will only result in death—for himself and probably Dieter, too. That’s experience talking; two of Janos’ lovers had been executed, and he would have been as well had he not escaped.
While time heals Janos’ physical wounds, his emotional wounds are deep and festering. Dieter tries to reach out, to communicate, but Janos is suspicious, and ashamed of the intimacy he feels building for Dieter. For his part, Dieter feels awkward regarding his growing affection/admiration for Janos. As the weeks and months pass, Janos longs for work. He’s not allowed to leave the confines of the TRI, due to his non-existent status, so he works within the TRI as a consultant helping the agents to better blend into the time environments they drop into. It proves invaluable, actually, and allows one of his most devoted students to go off the grid while on-mission in an attempt to re-write history by preventing a crime that tipped off a war. And only Dieter can stop him.
I really liked the idea of this book and felt like it was well-executed. The romance between Janos and Dieter is slow to build and develop. Each man experiences an attraction he feels is wrong—Janos due to ingrained homophobia and fear, Dieter because he feels like he’s taking advantage of a man trapped in time. They are tentative, holding back until an informant tips Janos off regarding Dieter’s feelings. They still must keep everything hidden—which is Janos’ natural state, but their growing affection is clearly an issue when tracking and retrieving the rogue agent becomes a priority.
Dieter and Janos were fantastic characters. They have a real chemistry that simmers. Dieter is required to retrieve his fellow time agent, and he’s intellectually prepared for a job that he is physically untrained to perform. He’s never BEEN on a mission, and his own mother was lost to a time incident, but Dieter is determined to do this right. It is heartbreaking for Janos to have to train him, both of them knowing that this time jump will likely separate them forever, even if Dieter is successful in his mission. My heart was racing through the final third of the book, as I kept turning the page to find out if Dieter would return. The more time Dieter spent in history, the more dangerous his experience. It was agonizing for me, as well as Janos.
I wish there had been a little more of a time gap, actually, because the technology and world described for 2041 seems too futuristic for our current scientific and societal progress to account for. This slightly hampered the suspension of disbelief for me. Description of the past, however, was completely spot on, and I was fully engaged in both the TRI setting and the rogue-tracking timescapes. I also liked how the time paradox was handled—and how trying to change history is a futile venture.
4.25 Stars
Dieter Schmidt is a linguist and historian for the Temporal Research Institute, a private shadow organization that investigates historical events to discover and clarify motives of global leaders in the times surrounding war. Dieter’s specialty is the early 20th century, and he’s fluent in several languages including English, German, and Hungarian. While the time agents are on a mission scouting WWII incidents, a barely-alive Hungarian soldier stumbles into the time gate. Though ravaged by starvation and injury, this man is a serious threat. He’s carrying a weapon and blocking the exit portal for the time agents. Dieter is dispatched to coax the soldier from the gate room, and it’s seriously touch-and-go.
Janos Nagy cannot believe his surroundings. Stepping from 1941 to 2041 is as unlikely as taking him from nearly dead to a sterile clean world where his injuries are tended and meals abound. It’s as difficult to adjust to as his newly-amputated arm. Plus, the only one who can communicate with him is the attractive German boy, Dieter. But, no matter what Dieter tells him, Janos knows that succumbing to his shameful lust will only result in death—for himself and probably Dieter, too. That’s experience talking; two of Janos’ lovers had been executed, and he would have been as well had he not escaped.
While time heals Janos’ physical wounds, his emotional wounds are deep and festering. Dieter tries to reach out, to communicate, but Janos is suspicious, and ashamed of the intimacy he feels building for Dieter. For his part, Dieter feels awkward regarding his growing affection/admiration for Janos. As the weeks and months pass, Janos longs for work. He’s not allowed to leave the confines of the TRI, due to his non-existent status, so he works within the TRI as a consultant helping the agents to better blend into the time environments they drop into. It proves invaluable, actually, and allows one of his most devoted students to go off the grid while on-mission in an attempt to re-write history by preventing a crime that tipped off a war. And only Dieter can stop him.
I really liked the idea of this book and felt like it was well-executed. The romance between Janos and Dieter is slow to build and develop. Each man experiences an attraction he feels is wrong—Janos due to ingrained homophobia and fear, Dieter because he feels like he’s taking advantage of a man trapped in time. They are tentative, holding back until an informant tips Janos off regarding Dieter’s feelings. They still must keep everything hidden—which is Janos’ natural state, but their growing affection is clearly an issue when tracking and retrieving the rogue agent becomes a priority.
Dieter and Janos were fantastic characters. They have a real chemistry that simmers. Dieter is required to retrieve his fellow time agent, and he’s intellectually prepared for a job that he is physically untrained to perform. He’s never BEEN on a mission, and his own mother was lost to a time incident, but Dieter is determined to do this right. It is heartbreaking for Janos to have to train him, both of them knowing that this time jump will likely separate them forever, even if Dieter is successful in his mission. My heart was racing through the final third of the book, as I kept turning the page to find out if Dieter would return. The more time Dieter spent in history, the more dangerous his experience. It was agonizing for me, as well as Janos.
I wish there had been a little more of a time gap, actually, because the technology and world described for 2041 seems too futuristic for our current scientific and societal progress to account for. This slightly hampered the suspension of disbelief for me. Description of the past, however, was completely spot on, and I was fully engaged in both the TRI setting and the rogue-tracking timescapes. I also liked how the time paradox was handled—and how trying to change history is a futile venture.
August 25, 2016
This is another one of those books that could have been really, really good if there just had been some decent content editing. It's still not a bad book but it pains me to see when an author who definitely has very good potential is left hanging by their publisher. I said it before, and I'll say it again - content editing - it's a thing. I don't blame the author but there is a reason why producing a book is usually a process that involves more than one person.
One thing that really grated on my nerves was the language. I'm not usually somebody who needs super clean language and I swear a lot myself but it is fucking annoying if every other fucking word is fucking fuck. Or a fucking variation of fuck. I mean, please, a staggering 709 times on 365 pages. Dieter is a linguist and speaks idk how many languages. One would think that he would show a little more imagination if he absolutely has to swear so much, which btw seems a little strange since he is a scholar who presumably loves language and not a dock-hand. I could have accepted for Janos to swear a lot since he was a soldier and simply not very well educated but Dieter, no. Wrong register.
The book would also have benefited from a little tightening. The last quarter was fine but there were long periods of time when basically nothing happened and those could have been trimmed considerably.
It's a time-travel story so I basically expect there to be plot-holes but still it would have been nice if there had been a bit more elaboration on that topic. But that's a minor niggle, really.
All in all an ok book that could have been so much better. I'll definitely will check out future books by this author but at the moment I'm not inclined to continue the series since I imagine that the problem with the lack of content editing won't magically disappear in the next instalments. It's a pity really because the book has seriously good bones.
One thing that really grated on my nerves was the language. I'm not usually somebody who needs super clean language and I swear a lot myself but it is fucking annoying if every other fucking word is fucking fuck. Or a fucking variation of fuck. I mean, please, a staggering 709 times on 365 pages. Dieter is a linguist and speaks idk how many languages. One would think that he would show a little more imagination if he absolutely has to swear so much, which btw seems a little strange since he is a scholar who presumably loves language and not a dock-hand. I could have accepted for Janos to swear a lot since he was a soldier and simply not very well educated but Dieter, no. Wrong register.
The book would also have benefited from a little tightening. The last quarter was fine but there were long periods of time when basically nothing happened and those could have been trimmed considerably.
It's a time-travel story so I basically expect there to be plot-holes but still it would have been nice if there had been a bit more elaboration on that topic. But that's a minor niggle, really.
All in all an ok book that could have been so much better. I'll definitely will check out future books by this author but at the moment I'm not inclined to continue the series since I imagine that the problem with the lack of content editing won't magically disappear in the next instalments. It's a pity really because the book has seriously good bones.
May 3, 2020
The premise for Time Waits is a good one, and I started the book geared up for an action-packed story. The opening is strong; however, things stall during the middle of the book until they pick up again in the last quarter. During that middle period, I was a little bored. With Janos stuck indoors for the most part, we didn't even get to see much of his adjustment to the new time period. He came across okay as a character, but I wasn't as taken with Dieter. I have no issue with Dieter's swearing, in and of itself, but it didn't feel right for his character, so I struggled to gel with him. I also didn't fully get into their romance, which initially seemed a little forced, while the sex scenes didn't always add anything to the story or characters. Overall, I give this three stars. The concept was good and there were a number of moments and elements I enjoyed, but the pacing could have used a little work, especially through the midpoint in the story. A few cuts and a little tightening of the prose here and there and this book would have worked better.
I received this book as a free eBook ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I received this book as a free eBook ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
January 7, 2017
4.5 stars. I loved this. It's an excellent time travel romance and it really grabbed me. Our protagonists, Dieter and Janos, are wonderfully deep and engaging characters. The writing is really nice and it's full of emotional honesty and subtlety. This appears to be the author's first book and, if so, it's a bang-up good debut. Looking forward to more. Irish Smurfette wrote a nice review.
There's a lovely holiday coda featuring Janos and Dieter here.
There's a lovely holiday coda featuring Janos and Dieter here.
Read
October 29, 2016DNF/No rating
Stalled at 43%. This is really dragging. No time travel since Janos accidentally came through to the present (our future) in the beginning of the book. And he’s being kept isolated so there’s not much about him acclimating to this new world. I haven’t really warmed to Dieter so far either. He comes off kind of young and unprofessional at times. I especially did not like his fondness for the word ‘cunt’. I’m guessing this isn’t a big deal in the UK, but I found it very off-putting. The writing isn’t bad, I’ve certainly read on in much worse cases. But I’m just not feeling this and, looking at the long way to go, I’m giving up.
Stalled at 43%. This is really dragging. No time travel since Janos accidentally came through to the present (our future) in the beginning of the book. And he’s being kept isolated so there’s not much about him acclimating to this new world. I haven’t really warmed to Dieter so far either. He comes off kind of young and unprofessional at times. I especially did not like his fondness for the word ‘cunt’. I’m guessing this isn’t a big deal in the UK, but I found it very off-putting. The writing isn’t bad, I’ve certainly read on in much worse cases. But I’m just not feeling this and, looking at the long way to go, I’m giving up.
August 7, 2016
I love time travel books, and this one really worked for me. Both MCs were a bit prickly, but I liked that; an dthe story was great.
It dragged a tad from 25 to 50 %, nothing much happening, but then it really picked up. Otherwise a great read.
It dragged a tad from 25 to 50 %, nothing much happening, but then it really picked up. Otherwise a great read.
Read
April 28, 2020Time travel with all its pitfalls and potential paradoxes has been known to do my head in, but that is not what made this novel so emotionally exhausting – yet extremely worthwhile - to read. What got to me instead were the carefully drawn characters and the emotions involved as Dieter, a British out-and-proud linguist from 2041, and Janos, an almost-killed Hungarian soldier from WW2, meet and get to know each other. There are so many reasons why they should never have met, and even more obstacles of all kinds when they do, that I wasn’t sure they’d make it. Then, in the last third of the novel, the author threw me a curveball of epic proportions and the situation looked very dire indeed. This book is an emotional wringer of the first order, an action/adventure that made me bite my nails, and a thoughtful and thought-provoking story about the difficulties of overcoming fear, prejudice, and cross-cultural boundaries.
Please find my full review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
Please find my full review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
April 14, 2020
I really adore this. Dieter is everything I need in an MC; femme, snarky and highly intelligent. He’s also got the worst potty-mouth of any MC I’ve ever read, but that somehow makes him even more appealing.
This series promises to be solid gold.
This series promises to be solid gold.
June 16, 2020
I really enjoyed reading this one. The mix of history and near future, how the writer made it all come to life. All the characters in this story not just the MC's are nicely done.
There are more books in this series I noticed, I am looking forward to them.
There are more books in this series I noticed, I am looking forward to them.
October 6, 2018
Time waits
Wow, how I liked this book! I felt like Dieter and Janos became my best friends. Blue princess and his grumpy soldier, I could so vividly imagine them. They were so real with all their emotions and characteristics. By the way, if you want to know their feelings and relationship better, don't forget to read the Christmas special, it's like mandatory for everyone who liked Time waits.
My favorite character was Janos. Him absolutely. It won’t be an understatement (100% conscious choice of word, if you manage to get to the end of the book, you’ll understand why. ) He was the reason I read the 2nd volume. I could not care less Kit and the Detective’s (I couldn’t even remember his name) story and relationship troubles.
I liked Janos brute description and sometimes aggressive behavior. He’s at first hostile with Dieter, slowly but surely they start to know each other and thus he starts to like Dieter (and they gradually fall in love), and so he becomes more and more protective of him. Janos is mesmerized by the new world he just arrived in and the exuberant, colorful personality of Dieter and regardless of the fact that he sometimes is shocked or freaked out off his mind by both, he manages to fit in this new and over-developed mind-blowing future. No wonder 2041 makes him fall from shock and awe.
As a Hungarian, I’ve done my far share of reading about Hungary in World War 2. And believe me when I say, rural Hungary (especially Szerencs and its surroundings from where Janos claims to originate) cannot be more different from actual England, not to mention 2041’s GB.
Speaking of Hungary and Hungarians, did you know how to pronounce his name NAGY János? (Yes, Hungarian name order is reverse, family name first, then the given name.) The pronunciation of his name is something like Naaj Yaanosh, unfortunately in English there is nothing similar pronounced like the Hungarian consonant „gy”. And the nickname Dieter sticks to Janos, „Jan” was endearing, I liked it, but it feels a bit strange for Hungarians. Based on its spelling it would be pronounced as „Yaan” in Hungarian, we would pronounce a vowel between English „a” and „o”. Hungarians usually use the nickname Jani (Yaanee) for Janos which I personally dislike, so I vote for Jan. ;-)
And the parts when Janos learns or tries to speak English were my absolute favorite! I think this as an important segment to show Janos’ isolation in the new world. He can’t express himself at first, his only connection to the unknown future is Dieter alone because he is the only one able to speak Hungarian. Later on Janos starts to interact with others without Dieter’s help, as if reconnecting himself to the new world.
The imitation of his fautive language usage was also interesting. He used broken English with wrong word order (it wasn’t Hungarian-like, but it’s OK, I wasn’t expecting linguistic errors Hungarians would make). He tended to omit articles which was a rather Russian-like error (no articles in Russian as far as I know, so they usually forget to use them in English). In Hungarian a bunch of articles exist, therefore we tend to put articles everywhere when speaking English or any other foreign language on Janos’ language level. The other language difficulties were all good, like omitting personal pronouns or misuse of verb tenses. We express who speaks by verb conjugation, and we have only a two and a half verb tenses (future is rarely used), so we are far from being best friends with English verb tenses so to speak. But all this was necessary to make Janos an authentic MC. I could feel Janos’ frustration through his broken language when he searched for the appropriate worlds to make himself understand, when he tried to express his thoughts as accurately as possible. Understatement! (You’ll understand XD)
Sorry for the nitpicking, I have no malicious intension with it, this is what happens when a linguist reads and really likes a book. Can’t keep his/her findings to him/herself.
Linguistic items aside, the story and the relationship were slow burning, the action-packed parts mainly concentrate at the beginning (Janos’ arrival to the future, Dieter saving his life) and the last third (Dieter becoming a hero and scaring the living daylight out of Janos).
This is my first review not spoiling the fun (I mean story), I’m so proud of myself. :D
I hope you would enjoy this book as much as I did, when you decide to read it. Yeah, it’s not a matter of “if” on the contrary it is a matter of WHEN. You definitely have to read this. 😊
Wow, how I liked this book! I felt like Dieter and Janos became my best friends. Blue princess and his grumpy soldier, I could so vividly imagine them. They were so real with all their emotions and characteristics. By the way, if you want to know their feelings and relationship better, don't forget to read the Christmas special, it's like mandatory for everyone who liked Time waits.
My favorite character was Janos. Him absolutely. It won’t be an understatement (100% conscious choice of word, if you manage to get to the end of the book, you’ll understand why. ) He was the reason I read the 2nd volume. I could not care less Kit and the Detective’s (I couldn’t even remember his name) story and relationship troubles.
I liked Janos brute description and sometimes aggressive behavior. He’s at first hostile with Dieter, slowly but surely they start to know each other and thus he starts to like Dieter (and they gradually fall in love), and so he becomes more and more protective of him. Janos is mesmerized by the new world he just arrived in and the exuberant, colorful personality of Dieter and regardless of the fact that he sometimes is shocked or freaked out off his mind by both, he manages to fit in this new and over-developed mind-blowing future. No wonder 2041 makes him fall from shock and awe.
As a Hungarian, I’ve done my far share of reading about Hungary in World War 2. And believe me when I say, rural Hungary (especially Szerencs and its surroundings from where Janos claims to originate) cannot be more different from actual England, not to mention 2041’s GB.
Speaking of Hungary and Hungarians, did you know how to pronounce his name NAGY János? (Yes, Hungarian name order is reverse, family name first, then the given name.) The pronunciation of his name is something like Naaj Yaanosh, unfortunately in English there is nothing similar pronounced like the Hungarian consonant „gy”. And the nickname Dieter sticks to Janos, „Jan” was endearing, I liked it, but it feels a bit strange for Hungarians. Based on its spelling it would be pronounced as „Yaan” in Hungarian, we would pronounce a vowel between English „a” and „o”. Hungarians usually use the nickname Jani (Yaanee) for Janos which I personally dislike, so I vote for Jan. ;-)
And the parts when Janos learns or tries to speak English were my absolute favorite! I think this as an important segment to show Janos’ isolation in the new world. He can’t express himself at first, his only connection to the unknown future is Dieter alone because he is the only one able to speak Hungarian. Later on Janos starts to interact with others without Dieter’s help, as if reconnecting himself to the new world.
The imitation of his fautive language usage was also interesting. He used broken English with wrong word order (it wasn’t Hungarian-like, but it’s OK, I wasn’t expecting linguistic errors Hungarians would make). He tended to omit articles which was a rather Russian-like error (no articles in Russian as far as I know, so they usually forget to use them in English). In Hungarian a bunch of articles exist, therefore we tend to put articles everywhere when speaking English or any other foreign language on Janos’ language level. The other language difficulties were all good, like omitting personal pronouns or misuse of verb tenses. We express who speaks by verb conjugation, and we have only a two and a half verb tenses (future is rarely used), so we are far from being best friends with English verb tenses so to speak. But all this was necessary to make Janos an authentic MC. I could feel Janos’ frustration through his broken language when he searched for the appropriate worlds to make himself understand, when he tried to express his thoughts as accurately as possible. Understatement! (You’ll understand XD)
Sorry for the nitpicking, I have no malicious intension with it, this is what happens when a linguist reads and really likes a book. Can’t keep his/her findings to him/herself.
Linguistic items aside, the story and the relationship were slow burning, the action-packed parts mainly concentrate at the beginning (Janos’ arrival to the future, Dieter saving his life) and the last third (Dieter becoming a hero and scaring the living daylight out of Janos).
This is my first review not spoiling the fun (I mean story), I’m so proud of myself. :D
I hope you would enjoy this book as much as I did, when you decide to read it. Yeah, it’s not a matter of “if” on the contrary it is a matter of WHEN. You definitely have to read this. 😊
May 19, 2015
4 Hearts Review by Dan
I’ve always been a fan of time travel stories, and this one was no exception. The book bounces back and forth through time, from our past, to our future, and makes both very believable.
Janos Nagy is a soldier in the Hungarian brigade in World War 2. He has been severely wounded and is on the run for a large group of pursuers. When he finds a hole in a bank, he climbs in and covers himself with dirt, escaping the pursuit. But this act also makes him unseen by the Temporal Research Institute when they set their time gate to the exact time and area. Through a series of events, Janos passes through a doorway into another time and place. Into Manchester, England in 2041 to be exact.
Imagine you were thrust approximately 100 years into the future. How would you cope? What if they didn’t speak your language? What if you couldn’t get out of the room you entered and you were holding a gun?
That is the scene that Dieter Schmidt enters. Dieter is a historian/linguist with the Temporal Research Institute. He is a make-up wearing, quite flamboyant young gay man who is watching through the monitor and recognizes Janos for what he must be, a soldier from WW2, and only Dieter speaks even a little Hungarian. Dieter enters the room, and drops to his knees in submission to try to calm down the soldier, but Janos sees him as an overly pretty young man, who looks like a painted whore with all the paint on his face. Dieter is wounded, and very nearly killed by the desperate Janos.
So why when Janos wakes up in a white room, with a strange needle stuck in his hand, does he also find Dieter in the room? What will it mean to them both going forward?
As Janos and Dieter get to know each other, and start to develop a friendship, other things crop up to test them. When another agent for the Temporal Research Institute decides to stop WW1 from happening, it will take both Janos and Dieter’s knowledge to stop a major change to history. When Dieter jumps back, will he survive? Will our timeline be forever changed?
I enjoyed this book. It is well written and well edited, and overall has a very believable storyline. I particularly enjoyed how Ms. Lewis took us in the eras of both World Wars and made us aware of what the fate was for gay men in those times. With the memories of those times, contrasted with the openness in Dieter’s time, is it any wonder that poor Janos is terrified to let anyone know he is gay? I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good time travel story.
A copy of this book was provided in exchange for an honest review. Please visit www.lovebytesreviews.com to see this and many more reviews, author interviews, guestposts and giveaways!
I’ve always been a fan of time travel stories, and this one was no exception. The book bounces back and forth through time, from our past, to our future, and makes both very believable.
Janos Nagy is a soldier in the Hungarian brigade in World War 2. He has been severely wounded and is on the run for a large group of pursuers. When he finds a hole in a bank, he climbs in and covers himself with dirt, escaping the pursuit. But this act also makes him unseen by the Temporal Research Institute when they set their time gate to the exact time and area. Through a series of events, Janos passes through a doorway into another time and place. Into Manchester, England in 2041 to be exact.
Imagine you were thrust approximately 100 years into the future. How would you cope? What if they didn’t speak your language? What if you couldn’t get out of the room you entered and you were holding a gun?
That is the scene that Dieter Schmidt enters. Dieter is a historian/linguist with the Temporal Research Institute. He is a make-up wearing, quite flamboyant young gay man who is watching through the monitor and recognizes Janos for what he must be, a soldier from WW2, and only Dieter speaks even a little Hungarian. Dieter enters the room, and drops to his knees in submission to try to calm down the soldier, but Janos sees him as an overly pretty young man, who looks like a painted whore with all the paint on his face. Dieter is wounded, and very nearly killed by the desperate Janos.
So why when Janos wakes up in a white room, with a strange needle stuck in his hand, does he also find Dieter in the room? What will it mean to them both going forward?
As Janos and Dieter get to know each other, and start to develop a friendship, other things crop up to test them. When another agent for the Temporal Research Institute decides to stop WW1 from happening, it will take both Janos and Dieter’s knowledge to stop a major change to history. When Dieter jumps back, will he survive? Will our timeline be forever changed?
I enjoyed this book. It is well written and well edited, and overall has a very believable storyline. I particularly enjoyed how Ms. Lewis took us in the eras of both World Wars and made us aware of what the fate was for gay men in those times. With the memories of those times, contrasted with the openness in Dieter’s time, is it any wonder that poor Janos is terrified to let anyone know he is gay? I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good time travel story.
A copy of this book was provided in exchange for an honest review. Please visit www.lovebytesreviews.com to see this and many more reviews, author interviews, guestposts and giveaways!
July 23, 2015
This is another of those books that is hot and cold. I thought the premise was fun and the ideas were good. The characters were kind of overly stereotypical and their speech patterns didn't lend themselves to sentiment (it is a romance.)
The plot didn't really make sense in some places. She didn't really think it through all the way. If you have a time machine, and you send some guy back and he goes awol, why do you send the next guy back to a time days later when you didn't know what the first guy was doing? Because that was what she needed in her plot, I guess, but it didn't make any sense. You'd send the rescue person back to the last time you had contact with the awol guy.
And of course there are tons of paradoxes involved with time travel that good speculative fiction authors work out ahead of time. Like if someone goes back and does something that changes history, but they do it 10 days after they did the jump, do the people in the current time not see the changes for 10 days after the time jump? Why would that be?
And the whole idea that eliminating a war would be a net positive was something she didn't even explore. What would have happened in the world if ww1 had never happened? It never occurs to any of them that whatever happened instead might have been worse. There was no real speculation at all.
The plot didn't really make sense in some places. She didn't really think it through all the way. If you have a time machine, and you send some guy back and he goes awol, why do you send the next guy back to a time days later when you didn't know what the first guy was doing? Because that was what she needed in her plot, I guess, but it didn't make any sense. You'd send the rescue person back to the last time you had contact with the awol guy.
And of course there are tons of paradoxes involved with time travel that good speculative fiction authors work out ahead of time. Like if someone goes back and does something that changes history, but they do it 10 days after they did the jump, do the people in the current time not see the changes for 10 days after the time jump? Why would that be?
And the whole idea that eliminating a war would be a net positive was something she didn't even explore. What would have happened in the world if ww1 had never happened? It never occurs to any of them that whatever happened instead might have been worse. There was no real speculation at all.
April 13, 2017
It started with a bang, and I really liked the first part. The time travel thing was well made (I don’t like it when the switch just happens with no explanation). I also liked the psychologist/friend Sally.
Things I didn’t like:
- too much sex, not particularly interesting;
- the constant, boring swearing, I don’t have a problem with it in itself, but it was always the same («cunt» or «fuck» in its limited variations);
- Janos’ broken English when he started to speak English, I suppose it was inescapable, but still… and then at times even native speakers of English would answer him in broken English;
- the fact that the last part became an historical essay about the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria in June 1914, IMO a less detailed description would have been enough;
- typos, especially in the characters’ names: Llewellyn or Llewelyn? It would have been easy to fix this using the function «Search and Replace»…
So it’s 4 stars for the first half and 2.5 for the second.
I would buy another book by this author.
Things I didn’t like:
- too much sex, not particularly interesting;
- the constant, boring swearing, I don’t have a problem with it in itself, but it was always the same («cunt» or «fuck» in its limited variations);
- Janos’ broken English when he started to speak English, I suppose it was inescapable, but still… and then at times even native speakers of English would answer him in broken English;
- the fact that the last part became an historical essay about the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria in June 1914, IMO a less detailed description would have been enough;
- typos, especially in the characters’ names: Llewellyn or Llewelyn? It would have been easy to fix this using the function «Search and Replace»…
So it’s 4 stars for the first half and 2.5 for the second.
I would buy another book by this author.
January 30, 2018
Oh wow, what an amazing fucking ride.
I fell in love with everything in this book, every single thing. But what stands out the most is the dialogue. Incredible.
Time travel isn't even something that I'm particularly into, but it's all very well executed and I found myself enjoying even that part of the story very much.
The two main guys are great, well rounded characters. Each layer of them I discovered was a layer I came to love. The secondaries I got to know, I loved as well.
The romance is complicated and nothing is brushed away. Both men have traumas, as they should, and thay deal with them pretty realistically. They go slowly and steadily from being mostly scared of each other to maybe becoming friends that are secretly attracted to each other to loving each other fiercely. Everything happens in its right time.
It's funny and gritty, realistic and fantastic. It's just really, really good.
I fell in love with everything in this book, every single thing. But what stands out the most is the dialogue. Incredible.
Time travel isn't even something that I'm particularly into, but it's all very well executed and I found myself enjoying even that part of the story very much.
The two main guys are great, well rounded characters. Each layer of them I discovered was a layer I came to love. The secondaries I got to know, I loved as well.
The romance is complicated and nothing is brushed away. Both men have traumas, as they should, and thay deal with them pretty realistically. They go slowly and steadily from being mostly scared of each other to maybe becoming friends that are secretly attracted to each other to loving each other fiercely. Everything happens in its right time.
It's funny and gritty, realistic and fantastic. It's just really, really good.
August 1, 2016
I've gotten into a bad habit lately of adding books to my wish list just based on ratings rather than really reading what they're about. If I had read about this one, I probably wouldn't have picked it up. Time travel and wars just don't do it for me. It's not a historical period that interests me, so normally this one would have fallen right off my radar.
I'm so glad it didn't. This was a fantastic read. The mix of time periods, neither current, was interesting, and the situation intriguing even if it has been done in some variation plenty of times before. The tension -- personal, situational, and romantic -- for both Dieter and Janos was just right, keeping me turning the pages and wanting more, eager for that happy ending. All in all, a truly enjoyable read.
I'm so glad it didn't. This was a fantastic read. The mix of time periods, neither current, was interesting, and the situation intriguing even if it has been done in some variation plenty of times before. The tension -- personal, situational, and romantic -- for both Dieter and Janos was just right, keeping me turning the pages and wanting more, eager for that happy ending. All in all, a truly enjoyable read.
August 10, 2016
Does people still use condoms in 2041? I'm curious. There should be a better protection than condom, right? I was hoping that they had vaccines to prevent STDs by the 2041.
Also, for a linguist, Dieter had a limited vocabulary of cuss words. I mean, mixing up his repertoire with obscure cuss words from different languages would be fun. And a good learning opportunity to readers. Heh.
Also, for a linguist, Dieter had a limited vocabulary of cuss words. I mean, mixing up his repertoire with obscure cuss words from different languages would be fun. And a good learning opportunity to readers. Heh.
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