Thank you to Avid Reader Press for sending me a copy of The Ministry of Time in exchange for an honest review.
In the near future, a civil servant lands her dream salary in exchange for an intriguing new job. Her role is to serve as a bridge between the present and an expat from 1847, Commander Graham Gore. Despite initial awkwardness, the bridge gradually forms a deep connection with the disoriented Commander, navigating cultural clashes and technological marvels.
As their relationship deepens, they uncover the true purpose of the Ministry’s project, leading to a reckoning with their choices and beliefs about altering the future. Amidst charming characters and unexpected twists, the bridge grapples with love, duty and the implications of their extraordinary journey.
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The Ministry of Time is getting a ton of hype. The publisher’s description alone promises big things: “An exquisitely original and feverishly fun fusion of genres and ideas … a blazing, unforgettable testament to what we owe each other in a changing world.” Kaliane Bradley’s debut is indeed an ambitious, genre-bending novel. It’s charming, strange and surprisingly romantic.
Does it read a bit like fanfiction about a real historical person? Yes, but that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. This gives the novel an introspective style that goes beyond a simple love story between a biracial British-Cambodian translator and a 19th-century Arctic explorer. Since dialogue drives most of the scenes, the pace keeps moving quickly.
Most of The Ministry of Time consists of slice-of-life moments, even though they involve unwilling time travelers from all over history. The book’s best scenes come from its fish-out-of-water hijinks, like a woman from the 17th century learning to use Tinder. It isn’t necessarily realistic that the participants in a secret government operation would be allowed as much freedom as they are, but it leads to plenty of entertaining scenes.
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The only pushback I have against this book is the dramatic shift in tone throughout. The first two-thirds mainly consist of the bridge working with Gore and the other “expats” to acclimate them into modern society. However, the thriller elements rapidly pick up at the end, and it almost becomes a different genre entirely. Building off that shift results in an ending I think will be divisive among readers. In a novel that presents multiple timelines as possibilities, I feel like Bradley chose to conclude with the least interesting one.
While The Ministry of Time is more slice-of-life than a full-on time travel thriller, it’s still super captivating and entertaining. This is a great read for anyone who enjoyed Sea of Tranquility or How High We Go in the Dark.
The Ministry of Time is out on May 7, 2024, and is available for preorder from your local independent bookstore or Bookshop.org.
TW: animal death, cannibalism, death, drug use, forced institutionalization, gaslighting, genocide, grief, gun violence, homophobia, medical content, murder, racism, sex, sexism, violence, war, xenophobia
https://www.geekgirlauthority.com/new-book-releases-april-9-2024/
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