A Tear in Time: Science Fiction Overload (2.5 Stars)

I recently completed reading the ebook version of A Tear in Time by Miranda Levi. Back in July, I won this book as part of a Goodreads Giveaway. While the book sounded interesting, it wasn’t what I was expecting. This is one win that I wish I could pass on to someone else who would appreciate it more.

My Complaints

Based on the other reviews that I’ve read, I’m in the minority, but I just really wasn’t a fan. I felt like there was too much going on. I was confused about timing. Some of this could have been resolved by simply showing at the start of the chapter when it was taking place. There were places where the story jumped around, and I wasn’t sure where we were or what was happening. The change of point of view was really abrupt at times. This is probably one of those books that makes more sense the second or third time that you read it, but I really don’t have a desire to read it again.

Our main character, Faer Michelson, is from 1999, but he goes back in time to several different times. At one point, 1999 Faer is there as well as three other different-aged versions of himself all in the same time period. Yet, none of the versions of Faer remember the event happening before. The reasoning behind them not remembering is sort of explained, but it’s still all a bit confusing to me.

There’s A Lot Going On

I should state that I’m probably not the ideal audience for this book. While there are some fantasy/science fiction novels that I like, I like ones that feel more realistic. This one had time travel, alternate realities, mind reading, mind manipulation, photographic memory, moving objects with your mind, alien invasions, and an assortment of other things going on. For me, it was just too out there.

Potential Reader Warning

From the book’s description, I expected something that leaned toward the comedy side. Instead, I felt like it was a bit dark and at times gruesome even. This book contains quite a bit of swearing. There are some pretty violent scenes, including at least one fairly descriptive murder scene. When body parts started getting chopped off, I skipped ahead, and even then, I was bothered by it. There’s no real sexual content.

This book has a bit of an open-ended ending. There were at least two things that were hinted at in the book that weren’t resolved at all. I know that some people will love this book, but unfortunately, I wasn’t one of them.