The Ministry of Time The romantic, sci-fi, comedic, literary, genre-defying bestseller

Interesting idea, execution just wasn't for me

Johanna am 17.06.2024
Bewertungsnummer: 2224527
Bewertet: eBook (ePUB)

Phew, this book was definitely.. something. The idea and general concept were super interesting and the characters were unique, gritty and real. Not necessarily good or relatable (for me) or someone I'd like to befriend, but they were real. The biggest issue for me was the slow pacing and a ton of foreshadowing over the first half of the book, which never really got relieved or explained.. I mean yes, it does pick up the pace and there are a few unexpected twists towards the end, but in my opinion it doesn't explain the frequent repetition of "if only I had known"... The whole love story also didn't feel relatable for me, because we see so little of it, yet it's supposed to be this great romance that spans time (literally). Only afterwards did I find out it was also marketed as Romance and I don't at all see why? I found it rather problematic with both characters somehow fetishizing each other while not really making time to learn each others' cultural and historical backgrounds The interesting parts for me were the adjustments of the "expats" to modern culture. Those scenes were endearing, interesting, eye-opening and I wish there would have been more of them. The whole ministry-jargon and also many of the references to British culture and discussions between Simellia and our protagonist were completely lost on me, of course mainly due to me being not British and having no idea how their ministries (or any tbh) and the hierarchies there work. Thus the whole political intrigue stuff was mainly confusing, also because a lot of things were only alluded to but never spelled out, leaving anyone without pre-existing knowledge outside the metaphorical door. Regarding the writing style, it wasn't really my cup of tea and I found it often a bit exhausting to read (also because Netgalley provided the arc as a PDF which was terrible to read on my phone). The metaphors often fell a little short or were so unusual that I had to think about them, which interrupted my reading flow. Still it's written eloquently, in a distinct style and with gritty details. So overall mixed feelings, mainly just not my cup of tea I think, though the idea was really unique and interesting Thanks to Hodder & Stoughton and Netgalley for the e-arc in exchange for my honest opinion

Das hat mich sprachlos gemacht!

Bewertung am 23.01.2025
Bewertungsnummer: 2393725
Bewertet: Buch (Taschenbuch)

Ich weiß gar nicht genau, wie ich diese Geschichte beschreiben soll, ich bin wirklich sprachlos. (Absolut positiv sprachlos) Das Buch hat ein wirklich spannendes Konzept und ich finde, es lässt sich in kein Genre einteilen, viel mehr spielt der Roman mit verschiedenen Elementen. Kaliane Bradley benutzt Sci-Fi, Liebesgeschichte und Spy-Thriller sowie die englischen Sprache wie eine Spielfigur auf eine unfassbar faszinierende Art und Weise. Ich bin absolut begeistert vom Schreibstil der Autorin, sie beschreibt Liebe, Zeit und Veränderung so interessant und anderes (besser kann ich es nicht sagen). Auch der historische Aspekt (Graham Gore gab es wirklich!) fand ich sehr spannend und sehr gut eingearbeitet. "The Ministry of Time" muss man einfach gelesen haben!