Status
Available
Call number
Description
London, 1896. Andrew Harrington's lover Marie Kelly was murdered by Jack the Ripper and he longs to turn back the clock and save her. Meanwhile, Claire Haggerty, forever being matched with men her family considers suitable, yearns for a time when she can be free to love whom she chooses. As their quests converge, it becomes clear that time is the problem--to escape it or to change it. Hidden in the attic of popular author--and noted scientific speculator--H.G. Wells is a machine that might offer them the hope they need!
Pages
613
DDC/MDS
| 863.64 |
Language
Awards
Seiun Award (Nominee — 2011)
The A.V. Club best books (2011)
Series
Library's review
There are three major parts to this book. Hints of the book's structure gradually appear in the first two parts, and it is fully revealed in all their jewel-like intricacy in the third part, which gets dizzyingly self-referential by the end.
I liked the intricacy of the third part, although not the
But the overall unpleasantness of the first two parts outweighs my enjoyment of the intricacy. I simply don't enjoy novels that focus on venal, cynical, self-serving characters, or that have a secondary focus on genitalia and bodily functions. Yuck.
Clever, but not at all to my taste.
I liked the intricacy of the third part, although not the
Show More
ultimate conceit that is revealed at the very end. But the overall unpleasantness of the first two parts outweighs my enjoyment of the intricacy. I simply don't enjoy novels that focus on venal, cynical, self-serving characters, or that have a secondary focus on genitalia and bodily functions. Yuck.
Clever, but not at all to my taste.
Show Less
User reviews
LibraryThing member bragan
It's hard to know quite what to say about this one. To begin with, It's set in Victorian England (albeit not a particularly authentic-feeling version of Victorian England), and involves H.G. Wells, Jack the Ripper, improbable love affairs, and various ideas about time travel. Among other things. It
The writing is... kind of odd. It's rambling and bloated, with some weird, pulpy turns of phrase, and it's peppered with authorial intrusions that are distracting and sometimes entirely too cutesy. I think this may be deliberate, an attempt at some sort of parody of Victorian melodrama, and there's a definite tongue-in-cheek quality evident in places. But it's honestly difficult to tell. Maybe it works better in the original Spanish.
The plot, although very little of it holds up to any kind of logical scrutiny, is actually pretty amusing. Not really 600+ pages worth of amusing, though; there were places where I desperately wanted to whip out a red pen and edit out entire sections. For all that, it was a much faster read than I would remotely have expected, and its flaws irritated me less than I feel they should have. In the end, well... I really don't think it qualifies as a good book, by any reasonable criteria. Maybe not even a decent book. But it is kind of an entertaining book.
Not that it's particularly relevant, but I have to add that the cover art on the American edition is gorgeous.
Show More
also reads more like three closely linked stories than one coherent novel. The writing is... kind of odd. It's rambling and bloated, with some weird, pulpy turns of phrase, and it's peppered with authorial intrusions that are distracting and sometimes entirely too cutesy. I think this may be deliberate, an attempt at some sort of parody of Victorian melodrama, and there's a definite tongue-in-cheek quality evident in places. But it's honestly difficult to tell. Maybe it works better in the original Spanish.
The plot, although very little of it holds up to any kind of logical scrutiny, is actually pretty amusing. Not really 600+ pages worth of amusing, though; there were places where I desperately wanted to whip out a red pen and edit out entire sections. For all that, it was a much faster read than I would remotely have expected, and its flaws irritated me less than I feel they should have. In the end, well... I really don't think it qualifies as a good book, by any reasonable criteria. Maybe not even a decent book. But it is kind of an entertaining book.
Not that it's particularly relevant, but I have to add that the cover art on the American edition is gorgeous.
Show Less
LibraryThing member quigui
I was expecting great things out of The Map of Time, after reading my friend's review of it. What I was not expecting was that it would be so good and marvellous – a strong candidate to The Best Book I Read This Year.
The Map of Time defies classification, it embodies Historical Fiction, Science
The setting is Victorian London, where Murray Time Travel Company offers the chance to travel to the year 2000, and see the the final confrontation between humans and automatons.
There are three main characters, as there are three stories: Andrew Harrington, who has been half-living since Jack, the Ripper murdered the love of his life, the Whitechappel prostitute Mary Kelly, and is quite ready to end that; Miss Claire Haggerty, who feels that she was born on the wrong time period, quite certain that she will never be happy; and finally H. G. Wells. The writer of The Time Machine, which is also an important book within the story, as it motivates innumerable characters to try Time Travel.
I absolutely loved this book – the plot, the characters, the writing, but most of all, the narrator. Although he was not one of the characters, he was the connection between the reader and the London in the book. His tone was quirky, and the entire book felt like a story that was being told to me, and only me. Much like an aside during a theatrical play.
It's hard to talk about the plot of this book, without giving to much away, and believe me, you wouldn't want spoilers on this one. It's full of twists and turns, so much that you end up with a general feeling of suspicion towards the author at the beginning of each part. But by the end, you'll still be in love with the story.
I can say only good things about The Map of Time, a great book, indeed.
Also at Spoilers and Nuts
The Map of Time defies classification, it embodies Historical Fiction, Science
Show More
Fiction, Historical Fantasy, Steampunk, Mystery, Romance, Metafiction and even Biography, all of this articulated seamlessly into one book.The setting is Victorian London, where Murray Time Travel Company offers the chance to travel to the year 2000, and see the the final confrontation between humans and automatons.
There are three main characters, as there are three stories: Andrew Harrington, who has been half-living since Jack, the Ripper murdered the love of his life, the Whitechappel prostitute Mary Kelly, and is quite ready to end that; Miss Claire Haggerty, who feels that she was born on the wrong time period, quite certain that she will never be happy; and finally H. G. Wells. The writer of The Time Machine, which is also an important book within the story, as it motivates innumerable characters to try Time Travel.
I absolutely loved this book – the plot, the characters, the writing, but most of all, the narrator. Although he was not one of the characters, he was the connection between the reader and the London in the book. His tone was quirky, and the entire book felt like a story that was being told to me, and only me. Much like an aside during a theatrical play.
It's hard to talk about the plot of this book, without giving to much away, and believe me, you wouldn't want spoilers on this one. It's full of twists and turns, so much that you end up with a general feeling of suspicion towards the author at the beginning of each part. But by the end, you'll still be in love with the story.
I can say only good things about The Map of Time, a great book, indeed.
Also at Spoilers and Nuts
Show Less
LibraryThing member cathyskye
First Line: Andrew Harrington would have gladly died several times over if that meant not having to choose just one pistol from among his father's vast collection in the living room cabinet.
The Map of Time is a rollicking homage to the Victorian world and to H.G. Wells and the concept of time
The book is divided into three sections. The first deals with traveling back to the past. The second, with traveling into the future, and the third and final section with the future coming back to the past.
The first section was by far the best of the three. Andrew Harrington, the poor little rich boy who's been terrorized by the prototypical power-mad father, has decided to commit suicide. He lost the love of his life six years ago. (If I were to say "Mary Kelly" and "1880s London", aficionados of that particular time period will know where this is headed.) Andrew's best friend is not going to let him go quietly into that good night, and comes up with the only solution he can think of: Go to the man who owns Murray's Time Travel to see if they can't pay to go back in time to prevent the death of Andrew's beloved Mary Kelly. This section is full of the bustle, the smells, the sound of Victorian London. Palma also shows a deft hand at humor when describing the origins of the senior Harrington's wealth.
The second section was much less successful. I love time travel, and I'm the most willing subject to suspend my disbelief to enter a story. However, once details crop up that don't sync with that story, I can get thrown out very easily. This is what happened in the second section. Some of the jarring details were to clue the reader in on the fact that things weren't what they seemed. However, when you tell me in one sentence that the hero is flat broke, then two paragraphs later (without benefit of payday or windfall) I'm told the same hero is treating a lady to tea and sandwiches AND paying for a room in a boarding house, I get thrown out of the story and am more likely to search for other discrepancies.
I was completely hooked in part one, suspicious in part two, and by the time the time traveler from the future showed up, my interest began to wander. Badly. Partly because it was rather obvious what the time traveler was up to, and partly because the story had the feeling of a helium balloon with a slow leak.
Historical figures play a large part in this book-- in particular H.G. Wells, author of The Time Machine. The use of historical personages as characters doesn't bother me as well as it's done well, which it is in The Map of Time. I loved the premise, I loved the historical detail, I loved the characters. However, the plot just wasn't meaty enough to hold up through six hundred pages.
The Map of Time is a rollicking homage to the Victorian world and to H.G. Wells and the concept of time
Show More
travel. When it succeeds, it has the power to transport readers to a fascinating world. When it doesn't, reader interest can rapidly wander.The book is divided into three sections. The first deals with traveling back to the past. The second, with traveling into the future, and the third and final section with the future coming back to the past.
The first section was by far the best of the three. Andrew Harrington, the poor little rich boy who's been terrorized by the prototypical power-mad father, has decided to commit suicide. He lost the love of his life six years ago. (If I were to say "Mary Kelly" and "1880s London", aficionados of that particular time period will know where this is headed.) Andrew's best friend is not going to let him go quietly into that good night, and comes up with the only solution he can think of: Go to the man who owns Murray's Time Travel to see if they can't pay to go back in time to prevent the death of Andrew's beloved Mary Kelly. This section is full of the bustle, the smells, the sound of Victorian London. Palma also shows a deft hand at humor when describing the origins of the senior Harrington's wealth.
The second section was much less successful. I love time travel, and I'm the most willing subject to suspend my disbelief to enter a story. However, once details crop up that don't sync with that story, I can get thrown out very easily. This is what happened in the second section. Some of the jarring details were to clue the reader in on the fact that things weren't what they seemed. However, when you tell me in one sentence that the hero is flat broke, then two paragraphs later (without benefit of payday or windfall) I'm told the same hero is treating a lady to tea and sandwiches AND paying for a room in a boarding house, I get thrown out of the story and am more likely to search for other discrepancies.
I was completely hooked in part one, suspicious in part two, and by the time the time traveler from the future showed up, my interest began to wander. Badly. Partly because it was rather obvious what the time traveler was up to, and partly because the story had the feeling of a helium balloon with a slow leak.
Historical figures play a large part in this book-- in particular H.G. Wells, author of The Time Machine. The use of historical personages as characters doesn't bother me as well as it's done well, which it is in The Map of Time. I loved the premise, I loved the historical detail, I loved the characters. However, the plot just wasn't meaty enough to hold up through six hundred pages.
Show Less
LibraryThing member HollyRae
Ok! First let me start off by saying this book was AWESOME!!! I really enjoyed it. Such an interesting read. It just pulls you right in and keeps you flipping the pages. I loved that it felt or was being narrated to you. The author did such a great job of creating these different stories and
It's as if one minute you think you know what is going to happen and the next you realize you were surprised with something completely different than what you thought would happen. So, Overall the cover is Beautiful, The book is very well written and I would say if you are looking for a read to take you on a journey you should give this one a go.
Show More
effortlessly weaving them all together.It's as if one minute you think you know what is going to happen and the next you realize you were surprised with something completely different than what you thought would happen. So, Overall the cover is Beautiful, The book is very well written and I would say if you are looking for a read to take you on a journey you should give this one a go.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Dr_Cicle
I read the first chapter and I couldn't seem to get into it. I got upper confused with what was happening and it seemed like a chore to read even to the first chapter. I found that there was poor word choice as well. I was sooo hoping that this book was going to be good but it let me down.
LibraryThing member fyrefly98
Summary: The Map of Time is a series of three interconnected stories, set in Victorian London just after the publication of H. G. Wells's novel The Time Machine. Sparked by Wells's fiction, the possibilities of time travel have caught the public imagination... and now it seems that such a thing may
Review: This book was wonderful. Wonderful. Intricate, almost labyrinthine, beautifully written, and stunningly constructed. It flows effortlessly through genres, starting out like pure historical fiction, but then it becomes steampunk, romance, mystery, and science fiction in turns, so smoothly and so subtly that you barely notice the transitions. Each of its three separate stories could, with a few tweaks, stand more-or-less on its own, but they're woven together so neatly and perfectly that the whole becomes greater than the sum of its parts. And the ending... no spoilers here, but I will say that this ending is one of the most perfectly constructed that I've ever come across, just a wonderful summation of everything that has come before it, something that fits the story and its characters and its themes together so completely and so beautifully that I was actually left with tears in my eyes at how right it all was.
The book did have a few (very minor) flaws. In general found the prose absolutely beautiful - kudos for that not only to Mr. Palma, but also his translator - but it does use the device of having the omniscient narrator speaking directly to the reader, which was mostly used to good effect but occasionally felt a little intrusive. The second section (and some details from the third) were very reminiscent of The Time Traveler's Wife. I can't tell whether it was convergence, homage, or copying, and I certainly enjoyed the story, but the similarities left me a little uncomfortable. Finally, the third section of the story was by far the most complex and convoluted, yet it felt rather rushed relative to the more leisurely unfolding of the more straightforward stories that preceded it.
However, those are all minor, minor points in light of how much I enjoyed this book. It's a book that rewards close attention and careful reading by sweeping you away into the fantastic, complicated, and ultimately intensely satisfying world that Palma creates. 4.5 out of 5 stars.
Recommendation: Highly, highly recommended. I think there's something here for most readers; historical fiction fans and sci-fi fans in particular will love it, even if they're not a particular reader of the other genre.
Show More
be more than just fiction, as a company has recently opened that offers fabulously expensive sightseeing trips to the year 2000. Andrew Harrington, the young scion of a wealthy family, wants nothing more than use the new time travel device to travel back through time and save the life of his lover, a Cheapside whore murdered by Jack the Ripper. Claire Haggerty feels out of place in the society of her own time, so books passage onto an expedition to the year 2000, where she falls in love with a man from the future, despite knowing that they can never be together. And H. G. Wells himself: the author meant his story more as satiric commentary on society than a scientific treatise, and does not believe that time travel really exists... until he becomes involved in a series of murders, murders that could only have been committed by someone from the future, someone with an uncanny and inexplicable knowledge of Wells and his work.Review: This book was wonderful. Wonderful. Intricate, almost labyrinthine, beautifully written, and stunningly constructed. It flows effortlessly through genres, starting out like pure historical fiction, but then it becomes steampunk, romance, mystery, and science fiction in turns, so smoothly and so subtly that you barely notice the transitions. Each of its three separate stories could, with a few tweaks, stand more-or-less on its own, but they're woven together so neatly and perfectly that the whole becomes greater than the sum of its parts. And the ending... no spoilers here, but I will say that this ending is one of the most perfectly constructed that I've ever come across, just a wonderful summation of everything that has come before it, something that fits the story and its characters and its themes together so completely and so beautifully that I was actually left with tears in my eyes at how right it all was.
The book did have a few (very minor) flaws. In general found the prose absolutely beautiful - kudos for that not only to Mr. Palma, but also his translator - but it does use the device of having the omniscient narrator speaking directly to the reader, which was mostly used to good effect but occasionally felt a little intrusive. The second section (and some details from the third) were very reminiscent of The Time Traveler's Wife. I can't tell whether it was convergence, homage, or copying, and I certainly enjoyed the story, but the similarities left me a little uncomfortable. Finally, the third section of the story was by far the most complex and convoluted, yet it felt rather rushed relative to the more leisurely unfolding of the more straightforward stories that preceded it.
However, those are all minor, minor points in light of how much I enjoyed this book. It's a book that rewards close attention and careful reading by sweeping you away into the fantastic, complicated, and ultimately intensely satisfying world that Palma creates. 4.5 out of 5 stars.
Recommendation: Highly, highly recommended. I think there's something here for most readers; historical fiction fans and sci-fi fans in particular will love it, even if they're not a particular reader of the other genre.
Show Less
LibraryThing member kakadoo202
a story in a story in a book in book in a story. just being on page 100-something made me confused. the storyline takes just too many detours and the main story is nust slow and i cannot connect to the main character who seems selfish and ignorant to others. and the writing is not as elegant and
Show More
flowery as i was hoping for. i might try it at some other time again. Show Less
LibraryThing member ltcl
As excited as I was to receive the advance reader copy of "A Map of Time" the book was not what I expected at all. A third party narrator guides us in and out of three connected stories all involving Victorian London and it's new fascination with time travel. The novel weaves together these
Show More
characters and historical figures from that era such as H.G. Wells, Jules Verne, Jack the Ripper and Joseph Merrick (the Elephant Man). The interesting twist is that you aren't sure if the author wants you to believe that time travel was a giant hoax and many people were taken advantage of or if time travel was real and known only to a select few. Palma pulls you into the lives and intertwining of the stories with great skill and the book has the feel of one of those early science fiction novels it speaks of. Beautifully crafted and a joy to read - it will make a believer or you too and wanting more! Show Less
LibraryThing member turtlesleap
This book consists of three loosely connected stories rather than a single cohesive novel. The narrative style put me off, although it was apparent that Palma was striving to give the book a "Victorian voice." The result, unfortunately, seemed overwritten. Phrases like "Pianistic accomplisments"
Show More
and "his will to live was stronger than the bullet's desire to kill him" were so off-putting that I found it hard to focus on the story. In brief, the first story tells of a young man's implausible affair with a prostitute, his remorse over her death and his desire to go back in time to rectify matters. The second is a love story between a woman of Victorian times and a man from the 21st Century. The third poses a fictional interaction between three famous authors of the era, again with the emphasis on time travel. Perhaps the flaw was in the translation but I found the book disappointing. One of criterion for good fantasy writing is to postulate an impossible situation but then to allow the story to proceed from that in a logical fashion. The flaw I found in this book was that so much of it was implausible--people's behaviors, descriptions of the mundane, relationships between the characters and, in particular, the dialogue. Show Less
LibraryThing member SuseGordon
The Map of Time by Felix Palma was not really what I expected. It is actually 3 parts, told separately, but each contains at least one if not more threads of commonality. It is related/told by a rather quirky narrator, whom occasionally digresses into more explanations on some situations than is
The story is set in Victorian England with the author, H.G. Wells and his novel The Time Machine as the central motivators for the different stories. Each story told, both believes-in and questions the ability for time travel up until the final chapter/story, and who knows, maybe it can be done.
A Romantic, mysterious, Science Fiction, Fantasy story!
Show More
needed. The story is set in Victorian England with the author, H.G. Wells and his novel The Time Machine as the central motivators for the different stories. Each story told, both believes-in and questions the ability for time travel up until the final chapter/story, and who knows, maybe it can be done.
A Romantic, mysterious, Science Fiction, Fantasy story!
Show Less
LibraryThing member Enamoredsoul
"The Map of Time" by Felix J. Palma is a book that defies being boxed into a single genre. Its a magnificent novel that is part Historical Fiction, part Science Fiction, part Romance, even part Steampunk, and all in all, a great Mystery/Thriller. Even if you are a fan of only one of those genres,
The book begins with a narrator introducing the reader to the story and its various characters. Author Palma has created a narrator with a clear, strong voice and a commanding presence. The narration is fluid, and on various occasions it tends to engage into direct dialogue with the reader, thus drawing the reader right into the novel itself. It has been quite some time since I have enjoyed a book narrated in the third-person, and seldom have I come across a narrator who resonates so well with me.
The story is simple, and the story is good. It involves the manipulation of time, and time travel, and is full of adventures. But it is not just telling an interesting story that this author succeeds in, he has also given birth to characters that are dynamic and multi-dimensional, much like the story itself. Felix J. Palma takes great pains to infuse as much detail as possible into his story, he leaves no stone unturned in order to give great depth to his characters, which in turn gives a lot of substance to this magical tale.
The novel is woven around three main intertwined tales. First, we have Andrew Harrington, the wealthy and heartbroken bachelor residing in Victorian London who lost the love of his life, prostitute Marie Kelly, to the evil and conniving murderer 'Jack the Ripper'. In his destitution, and inability to move on from his tragedy, he is willing to try anything, perhaps something even as implausible as time travel, in order to save Marie Kelly from the hands of the cold-blooded murderer. Then there's Claire Haggerty, a woman who feels stifled by the norms of the Victorian society which dictate her to marry a suitable man from the many suitors that her family finds for her. She feels disconnected from the people and customs of her time, and longs to exist in another world - a world where she is free to follow her desires, and love whomever she pleases. Last, but definitely not the least, there is the young author H.G. Wells, the man whose novel, 'The Time Machine' has motivated many to try their hands at time travel, and his book becomes the root from which the branches of this story sprout forth. Also incorporated into the story are the stories of Dracula, Joseph Merrick (the Elephant Man), and the futuristic Captain Shackleton battling the automatons of the year 2000.
Ultimately, Felix J. Palma has authored a novel that is sublime in all its aspects. Acerbic wit, intellectual commentary, mind boggling twists and turns, combined with unique characters makes for an enchanting, satisfying and deeply mesmerizing novel. In the novel, the author writes about an invention being something that supersedes the being of the man who invents it, and outlasts him to form part of world as it goes into the future - to which I surmise that in this case, "The Map of Time" is Felix J. Palma's greatest invention to date, a novel invention that transports us to another place and another time, and this will surely be a novel talked about for ages to come.
Show More
but not a fan of the others, I guarantee that you are still going to enjoy this book because it manages to do justice to all the genres it encompasses.The book begins with a narrator introducing the reader to the story and its various characters. Author Palma has created a narrator with a clear, strong voice and a commanding presence. The narration is fluid, and on various occasions it tends to engage into direct dialogue with the reader, thus drawing the reader right into the novel itself. It has been quite some time since I have enjoyed a book narrated in the third-person, and seldom have I come across a narrator who resonates so well with me.
The story is simple, and the story is good. It involves the manipulation of time, and time travel, and is full of adventures. But it is not just telling an interesting story that this author succeeds in, he has also given birth to characters that are dynamic and multi-dimensional, much like the story itself. Felix J. Palma takes great pains to infuse as much detail as possible into his story, he leaves no stone unturned in order to give great depth to his characters, which in turn gives a lot of substance to this magical tale.
The novel is woven around three main intertwined tales. First, we have Andrew Harrington, the wealthy and heartbroken bachelor residing in Victorian London who lost the love of his life, prostitute Marie Kelly, to the evil and conniving murderer 'Jack the Ripper'. In his destitution, and inability to move on from his tragedy, he is willing to try anything, perhaps something even as implausible as time travel, in order to save Marie Kelly from the hands of the cold-blooded murderer. Then there's Claire Haggerty, a woman who feels stifled by the norms of the Victorian society which dictate her to marry a suitable man from the many suitors that her family finds for her. She feels disconnected from the people and customs of her time, and longs to exist in another world - a world where she is free to follow her desires, and love whomever she pleases. Last, but definitely not the least, there is the young author H.G. Wells, the man whose novel, 'The Time Machine' has motivated many to try their hands at time travel, and his book becomes the root from which the branches of this story sprout forth. Also incorporated into the story are the stories of Dracula, Joseph Merrick (the Elephant Man), and the futuristic Captain Shackleton battling the automatons of the year 2000.
Ultimately, Felix J. Palma has authored a novel that is sublime in all its aspects. Acerbic wit, intellectual commentary, mind boggling twists and turns, combined with unique characters makes for an enchanting, satisfying and deeply mesmerizing novel. In the novel, the author writes about an invention being something that supersedes the being of the man who invents it, and outlasts him to form part of world as it goes into the future - to which I surmise that in this case, "The Map of Time" is Felix J. Palma's greatest invention to date, a novel invention that transports us to another place and another time, and this will surely be a novel talked about for ages to come.
Show Less
LibraryThing member bbellthom
A quick synopsis of the story hopefully without any spoilers.
The Map of Time is set in Victorian London and it is divided into three stories. The first story deals with Andrew Harringtom a wealthy young man who falls in love with a White Chapel Prostitute. He plans on proposing but before he does
The second story deals with Murray’s Time Travel and its ability to travel to the year 2000. A young women by the name of Claire Haggerty travels to the year 2000 to see the great battle between Captain Shakleton and the automatons. While in the year 2000 she plans to become separated from her fellow time travelers and stay in the year 2000. She ends up falling in love with Captain Shackleton who she believes has travelled from the year 2000 to meet her. Below is a quote from the book that has got to be one of the greatest pickup lines I’ve ever heard:
““I can understand why you’re surprised, but imagine how I felt. I was astonished when I read the letter in which you described our lovemaking, because for you it was something we already done, but as far as I was concerned it hadn’t happened yet.” Tom paused and smiled sweetly at her: “I ‘ve come from the future to fulfill my destiny, Claire, which is to love you.””
In the second story Captain Shaackleton also enlists the help of HG Wells to fulfill his pre described destiny with Claire and to save her life.
The third story deals with three famous authors, HG Wells, Henry James, and Bram Stoker and the recent novels they have written that have not yet been published. The third story is very interesting and deals with time travel and how it could alter the world. Something happens in the first story that is not historically accurate (which I am sure some will catch, I did and I wasn’t that knowledgeable about the event) which will play a role in the third story.
Overall I liked this book. The narrator of the story was absolutely wonderful and it felt like you were having an actual conversation with him. At times the parts about Time Travel and parallel words could become overwhelming if you thought to hard about all their implications. This book is long (about 600) pages and IMO at times I felt it to be too wordy but I would still recommend this book as a good read.
The Map of Time is set in Victorian London and it is divided into three stories. The first story deals with Andrew Harringtom a wealthy young man who falls in love with a White Chapel Prostitute. He plans on proposing but before he does
Show More
she is brutally murdered by Jack the Ripper. Andrew wishes to end his life but his cousin convinces him to visit Murray’s Time Travel to see if he can travel back in time to prevent the death of his beloved Marie. At Murray’s Time Travel they meet Gilliam Murray who convinces them that he is only able to travel to the year 2000, he advises them to go see H.G. Wells the author of The Time Machine. H.G. Wells does appear to help Andrew travel back in time to kill Jack the Ripper before he murders Marie. But all does not end as happily as it first appears. The second story deals with Murray’s Time Travel and its ability to travel to the year 2000. A young women by the name of Claire Haggerty travels to the year 2000 to see the great battle between Captain Shakleton and the automatons. While in the year 2000 she plans to become separated from her fellow time travelers and stay in the year 2000. She ends up falling in love with Captain Shackleton who she believes has travelled from the year 2000 to meet her. Below is a quote from the book that has got to be one of the greatest pickup lines I’ve ever heard:
““I can understand why you’re surprised, but imagine how I felt. I was astonished when I read the letter in which you described our lovemaking, because for you it was something we already done, but as far as I was concerned it hadn’t happened yet.” Tom paused and smiled sweetly at her: “I ‘ve come from the future to fulfill my destiny, Claire, which is to love you.””
In the second story Captain Shaackleton also enlists the help of HG Wells to fulfill his pre described destiny with Claire and to save her life.
The third story deals with three famous authors, HG Wells, Henry James, and Bram Stoker and the recent novels they have written that have not yet been published. The third story is very interesting and deals with time travel and how it could alter the world. Something happens in the first story that is not historically accurate (which I am sure some will catch, I did and I wasn’t that knowledgeable about the event) which will play a role in the third story.
Overall I liked this book. The narrator of the story was absolutely wonderful and it felt like you were having an actual conversation with him. At times the parts about Time Travel and parallel words could become overwhelming if you thought to hard about all their implications. This book is long (about 600) pages and IMO at times I felt it to be too wordy but I would still recommend this book as a good read.
Show Less
LibraryThing member fuzzy_pickle
I was really looking forward to reading the book. The description sounded amazing! Maybe my expectations were way too high, but I wasn't very impressed. It was more like 3 novellas rather than a cohesive novel. I found the writing difficult as well as the story difficult to get into. It was too
Show More
easy to put down, but I picked back up because I hoped the story would get better (it didn't). The true test for me is that I won't be passing this on to anyone else to read. Show Less
LibraryThing member lalawe
Absolutely delightful! I've seen this compared to Dr. Strange & Mr. Norrell, and while the setting is Victorian England, in some parts this remind me more of a Victorian adventure novel meets Time Traveller's Wife.
The book is a set of three novellas, with the characters and events intertwining. I
I hope to see more of the author's work in English!
Note: I received this as an ARC in return for a review.
The book is a set of three novellas, with the characters and events intertwining. I
Show More
found the start of the first novella a bit slow, but got drawn in once more of the backstory was revealed (Jack the Ripper? Heck yeah!). Overall, the first novella was my favorite, with the third a close second. The second novella (and parts of the third) read as a bit too similar to The Time Traveller's Wife for me to enjoy it as much as I think I would've had I not read that book previously. With all that said, the writing is rich and descriptive, and I got a kick out of the Victorian-style narrator and the outrageously Victorian sub-plots.I hope to see more of the author's work in English!
Note: I received this as an ARC in return for a review.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Tasker
Whether it's the author or the translation or both, the three stories with their interlaced characters in Victorian London experiencing time travel - a deception, then a scam, then the real thing - makes one wish the concept actually exists. H. G. Wells' THE TIME MACHINE is now at the top of my "to
Show More
be read" list along with a reread of Mr. Palma's novel. I miss these characters. Show Less
LibraryThing member justabookreader
If truth be told, the idea of time travel has fascinated me for a long time, since I read The Time Machine as a teenager in a high school English class. The complicated systems, consequences, and the mechanisms by which time travel is possible are the making of stories I love dearly. Then there are
Andrew Harrington is a man in mourning for a woman brutally murdered by Jack the Ripper. Years pass and yet he still can’t forget the harlot he met in the dark, dank, back alleys of London. He had hopes of bringing her home to his comfortable mansion and making a true lady of her; a dream now lost. His cousin, however, has plans to change his grieving by means of time travel. If Andrew could travel back in time, he would be able to rescue his girl and move on with his life. Game for anything that will stop his pain and possibly save the love of his life, Andrew agrees and the plot to kill Jack the Ripper is set in motion with the aid of H.G. Wells.
On the other side of London, Gilliam Murray, the proprietor of Murray’s Time Travel, an expedition taking patrons to witness a great future battle between man and automaton, is happily filling his coffers thanks to a time traveling device and fabulous marketing tactics. It is on this expedition that Claire Haggerty, a woman attempting to escape to the future and a new exciting life free of Victorian ideals, falls for the brave Captain Derek Shakleton, the man who saves humankind. But has she really fallen for a man from the future?
Pondering the affect his work, The Time Machine, has had on readers and literature in general, H.G. Wells is approached by a man claiming to be a true time traveler and a man in need of his help in order to save great works of literature from destruction. Skeptical, Mr. Wells becomes a detective of sorts to understand what and who he is dealing with --- is the man a true time traveler? Can he be believed? Should he be? Can time travel really exist? Unsure what to believe, he decides to meet with the man anyway and see what his future, and fate, have in store for him.
What Palma does so well is make everything believable even for the most skeptical of his characters, H.G. Wells. He is also a master of tying up loose ends; creating an amazing web of intricate tales that all have similar elements yet are so very different. He’s a fascinating writer able to bring alive the time period of Victorian England with its fascination with new inventions as well as imagining a future world that would entrance. Each of the three stories have common themes, love being the main one, and he treats each story gently to make everything plausible --- even if some of the characters are not sure of what they’ve gotten themselves into.
The Map of Time is an intricate story set in a brightly imaged Victorian England but with a fantasy subplot that causes each and every character to re-think their actions and lives. This story is a cautionary tale about the use of science and the foibles of love for his characters but above all, it’s an utterly fascinating and readable book. You won’t want to put this one down.
Show More
the questions: can the past be changed and should it be? So much potential for a fantasy lover like me! In The Map of Time, three stories intertwine to make Victorian England the birth place of time travel with the author, H.G. Wells, crisscrossing stories to investigate instances of time travel.Andrew Harrington is a man in mourning for a woman brutally murdered by Jack the Ripper. Years pass and yet he still can’t forget the harlot he met in the dark, dank, back alleys of London. He had hopes of bringing her home to his comfortable mansion and making a true lady of her; a dream now lost. His cousin, however, has plans to change his grieving by means of time travel. If Andrew could travel back in time, he would be able to rescue his girl and move on with his life. Game for anything that will stop his pain and possibly save the love of his life, Andrew agrees and the plot to kill Jack the Ripper is set in motion with the aid of H.G. Wells.
On the other side of London, Gilliam Murray, the proprietor of Murray’s Time Travel, an expedition taking patrons to witness a great future battle between man and automaton, is happily filling his coffers thanks to a time traveling device and fabulous marketing tactics. It is on this expedition that Claire Haggerty, a woman attempting to escape to the future and a new exciting life free of Victorian ideals, falls for the brave Captain Derek Shakleton, the man who saves humankind. But has she really fallen for a man from the future?
Pondering the affect his work, The Time Machine, has had on readers and literature in general, H.G. Wells is approached by a man claiming to be a true time traveler and a man in need of his help in order to save great works of literature from destruction. Skeptical, Mr. Wells becomes a detective of sorts to understand what and who he is dealing with --- is the man a true time traveler? Can he be believed? Should he be? Can time travel really exist? Unsure what to believe, he decides to meet with the man anyway and see what his future, and fate, have in store for him.
What Palma does so well is make everything believable even for the most skeptical of his characters, H.G. Wells. He is also a master of tying up loose ends; creating an amazing web of intricate tales that all have similar elements yet are so very different. He’s a fascinating writer able to bring alive the time period of Victorian England with its fascination with new inventions as well as imagining a future world that would entrance. Each of the three stories have common themes, love being the main one, and he treats each story gently to make everything plausible --- even if some of the characters are not sure of what they’ve gotten themselves into.
The Map of Time is an intricate story set in a brightly imaged Victorian England but with a fantasy subplot that causes each and every character to re-think their actions and lives. This story is a cautionary tale about the use of science and the foibles of love for his characters but above all, it’s an utterly fascinating and readable book. You won’t want to put this one down.
Show Less
LibraryThing member ken1952
And the book had such promise. But...ugh!...it was a big chore to read. I thought about quitting when I hit page 120, but it held my interest just enough to keep me reading. And I appreciated some of the tricks played on me the unsuspecting reader. And the recreation of Victorian England was very
Show More
good. Still, there was way too much narration in the form of letters and stories told by the characters. And there were too many plot threads. Yikes! The fella could have made three or four good books out of this rather mediocre attempt. I usually love time travel novels. Time and Again is one of my top ten favorite novels. But this one just didn't have it. Ugh! Show Less
LibraryThing member DonnerLibrary
The Map of Time is a wonderful novel in three parts. In the first, H.G. Wells assists in traveling to the past to prevent a murder. In the second, H.G Wells bridges the gap between the future and the present. In the third, H.G. Wells must make a decision that will chart the course of the future.
Felix J. Palma writes beautiful prose that wanders through time. The narrator of the story occasionally addresses the reader directly to ponder events or to move the reader along to another part of the story. Although this does draw the reader out of the story a bit, I found that it gave the novel the feeling of truly listening to someone tell this story as if I were sitting right next to the narrator.
The only thing that prevents me from giving The Map of Time the full five stars is the amount of repetition it contains. While some of this is completely necessary to bring characters up to speed on events as they enter the story at different points, there were times when it felt the narrator was summarizing events up to that point for the reader. These summaries felt unnecessary and added quite a bit of length to the book.
Show More
The fist two stories contain romantic elements while the third is a bit of a mystery. All of the stories overlap a bit bringing different characters together at different points in time. The end result is a novel that explores the theme of time travel completely and questions whether one should undertake to change past events if one has the opportunity.Felix J. Palma writes beautiful prose that wanders through time. The narrator of the story occasionally addresses the reader directly to ponder events or to move the reader along to another part of the story. Although this does draw the reader out of the story a bit, I found that it gave the novel the feeling of truly listening to someone tell this story as if I were sitting right next to the narrator.
The only thing that prevents me from giving The Map of Time the full five stars is the amount of repetition it contains. While some of this is completely necessary to bring characters up to speed on events as they enter the story at different points, there were times when it felt the narrator was summarizing events up to that point for the reader. These summaries felt unnecessary and added quite a bit of length to the book.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Twink
Do you ever start a book , get a few pages in, recognize that you are inextricably hooked already and jump for joy when you realize there are 600 more pages left to savour?
That's exactly how I felt after the first two chapters of Félix J. Palma's novel The Map of Time.
It started off in one of my
"Yes, I know that when I began this tale, I promised there would be a fabulous time machine, and there will be, there will even be intrepid explorers and fierce native tribes - a must in any adventure story. But all in good time, isn't it necessary at the start of any game to place all the pieces on their respective squares first? Of course it is, in which case let me continue setting up the board, slowly but surely..."
At the heart of it all - Murray's Time Travel. Could the fourth dimension really have been discovered in 1896? ..."what was underneath the world, what was behind reality." Can the Murray Company really take travellers to the year 2000? All of Victorian England would like to believe so. Jules Verne and H.G. Wells and their futuristic novels are all the rage.
H. G. Wells plays a prominent role in this tale, as well as other historical figures including the Elephant Man, Henry James, Bram Stoker. Palma creates many other characters, all incredibly well drawn, leaping off the page and into my imagination with ease.
The book is written in three parts, with each part approaching time travel from a slightly different angle, with the third part tying it altogether. But not tying it all up with a neat little bow, for Palma plays with us many times throughout the 600+ pages. We are kept on our toes, wondering if time travel was/is possible....
There is no way to pigeonhole this book into any one genre. It is incredibly imaginative, ingenious, whimsical and addictive, combining history, mystery, romance, adventure and fantasy into a page turning, clever, keep you on your toes, thought provoking tale. What would you do if you could go back in the past or see what's coming in the future?
Palma is an absolutely fantastic storyteller. I was captured from first page to last. For those who are looking for something completely different, pick up The Map of Time, releasing today.
That's exactly how I felt after the first two chapters of Félix J. Palma's novel The Map of Time.
It started off in one of my
Show More
favourite time periods - Victorian England - with an unknown narrator telling us of a young man's visit to Whitechapel in 1888- the time of Jack the Ripper - and more."Yes, I know that when I began this tale, I promised there would be a fabulous time machine, and there will be, there will even be intrepid explorers and fierce native tribes - a must in any adventure story. But all in good time, isn't it necessary at the start of any game to place all the pieces on their respective squares first? Of course it is, in which case let me continue setting up the board, slowly but surely..."
At the heart of it all - Murray's Time Travel. Could the fourth dimension really have been discovered in 1896? ..."what was underneath the world, what was behind reality." Can the Murray Company really take travellers to the year 2000? All of Victorian England would like to believe so. Jules Verne and H.G. Wells and their futuristic novels are all the rage.
H. G. Wells plays a prominent role in this tale, as well as other historical figures including the Elephant Man, Henry James, Bram Stoker. Palma creates many other characters, all incredibly well drawn, leaping off the page and into my imagination with ease.
The book is written in three parts, with each part approaching time travel from a slightly different angle, with the third part tying it altogether. But not tying it all up with a neat little bow, for Palma plays with us many times throughout the 600+ pages. We are kept on our toes, wondering if time travel was/is possible....
There is no way to pigeonhole this book into any one genre. It is incredibly imaginative, ingenious, whimsical and addictive, combining history, mystery, romance, adventure and fantasy into a page turning, clever, keep you on your toes, thought provoking tale. What would you do if you could go back in the past or see what's coming in the future?
Palma is an absolutely fantastic storyteller. I was captured from first page to last. For those who are looking for something completely different, pick up The Map of Time, releasing today.
Show Less
LibraryThing member techeditor
THE MAP OF TIME by Félix J. Palma, Nick Caistor (Translator), begins with the tale of Andrew, spoiled son of a rich man in Victorian England. Andrew is an adult who’s never had a job, never done anything productive. He falls in love with a prostitute upon viewing her portrait.
To make matters
Once he finds the prostitute, he pays her fee, and they have sex. (She mentions that she has to get her husband out of the house, but this information doesn’t seem to phase Andrew.) And so it goes every night thereafter. They don’t talk much except when she expresses her concern that Jack the Ripper is lurking around Whitechapel and dissecting all the prostitutes there. And, of course, she was right to be concerned because Jack gets her next.
Although these characters are shallow and the author doesn’t give the reader one good reason to like or even care about them and although the prostitute never gave Andrew one good reason to like or even care about her, he spends the next eight years (yes, EIGHT years) in mourning. When he’s on the very brink of suicide, we get to the reason the book is called THE MAP OF TIME.
This story made me wonder, is this book a joke, or is Palma serious? I wasn’t sure.
Anyhow, that’s just the first story. Other reviews of this book say it contains three stories. That’s because the book is divided into three parts, each a separate (but sort of connected) story. But within each part (story) are stories within stories. This first part contains at least five stories, and at least two of them are spoofs.
For example, in the first part, after Andrew’s story (which we get back to), this part of the book continues with the stories, first, of Andrew’s father and, second, of the man Andrew and his cousin hope can send them back in time. Then that man tells a story, then H.G. Wells enters, and we get his story, then back to Andrew when H.G. Wells gets involved, and so on.
By the end of Part 1, I realized, I think, that Palma really is joking. Andrew’s story was too ridiculous to be serious.
At this point, I read various reader reviews of THE MAP OF TIME. I hoped they would verify my suspicion that Palma isn’t being serious. But I found to my dismay that the other readers were in even more fog about this book than I am. And the crazy thing about it is that they don’t even know they don’t understand.
I continued with Part 2, the story of Claire falling in love with a man from the future who really isn’t from the future. More ridiculousness, especially about everyone not realizing that they’re being spoofed, that it’s really not possible to time travel. This makes it even more obvious that Palma is joking. But other reader reviews didn’t see it that way.
Onto the third part. It seemed excessively wordy. But maybe that’s because I was getting pretty tired of all the nitwits in 19th century England who were so enamored with the possibility of time travel that they believed it was possible.
This is an honest review of a prerelease (but finished) copy of THE MAP OF TIME, which I received from Atria Books/Judith Curr.
To make matters
Show More
worse, he then has to borrow his servant’s clothes so as not to be noticed when he searches for her where she lives, Whitechapel. You mean Andrew has nothing but finery to wear? You mean he does nothing that might require casual clothing?Once he finds the prostitute, he pays her fee, and they have sex. (She mentions that she has to get her husband out of the house, but this information doesn’t seem to phase Andrew.) And so it goes every night thereafter. They don’t talk much except when she expresses her concern that Jack the Ripper is lurking around Whitechapel and dissecting all the prostitutes there. And, of course, she was right to be concerned because Jack gets her next.
Although these characters are shallow and the author doesn’t give the reader one good reason to like or even care about them and although the prostitute never gave Andrew one good reason to like or even care about her, he spends the next eight years (yes, EIGHT years) in mourning. When he’s on the very brink of suicide, we get to the reason the book is called THE MAP OF TIME.
This story made me wonder, is this book a joke, or is Palma serious? I wasn’t sure.
Anyhow, that’s just the first story. Other reviews of this book say it contains three stories. That’s because the book is divided into three parts, each a separate (but sort of connected) story. But within each part (story) are stories within stories. This first part contains at least five stories, and at least two of them are spoofs.
For example, in the first part, after Andrew’s story (which we get back to), this part of the book continues with the stories, first, of Andrew’s father and, second, of the man Andrew and his cousin hope can send them back in time. Then that man tells a story, then H.G. Wells enters, and we get his story, then back to Andrew when H.G. Wells gets involved, and so on.
By the end of Part 1, I realized, I think, that Palma really is joking. Andrew’s story was too ridiculous to be serious.
At this point, I read various reader reviews of THE MAP OF TIME. I hoped they would verify my suspicion that Palma isn’t being serious. But I found to my dismay that the other readers were in even more fog about this book than I am. And the crazy thing about it is that they don’t even know they don’t understand.
I continued with Part 2, the story of Claire falling in love with a man from the future who really isn’t from the future. More ridiculousness, especially about everyone not realizing that they’re being spoofed, that it’s really not possible to time travel. This makes it even more obvious that Palma is joking. But other reader reviews didn’t see it that way.
Onto the third part. It seemed excessively wordy. But maybe that’s because I was getting pretty tired of all the nitwits in 19th century England who were so enamored with the possibility of time travel that they believed it was possible.
This is an honest review of a prerelease (but finished) copy of THE MAP OF TIME, which I received from Atria Books/Judith Curr.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Nastasha
Awesome.
That's all I can say about this book. I loved Palma's writing style and the way all three seemingly different stories were interwoven. The only thing that bothered me about the plot(s) was that the third part of the book seemed so much quicker. It wasn't like there wasn't much to the plot
I also felt incredibly bad for Claire in the second part of the book, because her whole future is based on a huge lie. Maybe that bothers me so much because I'm a woman, I don't know. I'm torn. Should I be happy that she's happy, or hope that she finds out the truth? It really haunts me whenever I think of the book.
And there were a lot of odd things happening with the quotation marks throughout the book.
Overall, however, I'm very happy that I was given the opportunity to read this book. It really makes you wonder about the fabric of time. Can it be changed? What happens if we change the past? Will time travel be possible? The conversations about parallel universes really fascinated me, and the one brief talk of hypercubes. I love stuff like this. Maybe someday I will read the book again.
That's all I can say about this book. I loved Palma's writing style and the way all three seemingly different stories were interwoven. The only thing that bothered me about the plot(s) was that the third part of the book seemed so much quicker. It wasn't like there wasn't much to the plot
Show More
of third part, it's just that it was resolved so neatly, unlike the first two parts.I also felt incredibly bad for Claire in the second part of the book, because her whole future is based on a huge lie. Maybe that bothers me so much because I'm a woman, I don't know. I'm torn. Should I be happy that she's happy, or hope that she finds out the truth? It really haunts me whenever I think of the book.
And there were a lot of odd things happening with the quotation marks throughout the book.
Overall, however, I'm very happy that I was given the opportunity to read this book. It really makes you wonder about the fabric of time. Can it be changed? What happens if we change the past? Will time travel be possible? The conversations about parallel universes really fascinated me, and the one brief talk of hypercubes. I love stuff like this. Maybe someday I will read the book again.
Show Less
LibraryThing member tammydotts
The Map of Time presents three separate stories set in Victorian England. In the first, Andrew Harrington seeks to travel through time to save Jack the Ripper’s last victim, with whom Andrew was in love despite the differences in their social class. The second centers on Claire Haggerty’s
If that seems confusing, you’re not far off. The three stories are tied together loosely by the illusion and reality of time travel and by the presence of Wells.
The ideas behind the novel are promising. The first two sections look at the ethics and paradoxes of time travel, while simultaneously rejecting it.
Whether Wells helps Harrington really save Mary Kelly, thus creating a parallel universe in which she and Harrington can live out their lives together, isn’t as important as the effect of believing in possibility. Likewise, Haggerty’s search for somewhere her 21st-century outlook is at home and her beau’s search for meaning in life doesn’t depend on his true identity or whether Haggerty visits the future. Much like Dorothy, the answers they seek were at home all along. To explain more about the ins and outs of the Harrington and Haggerty plots leads into spoiler territory.
Not that there’s much to be spoiled. The Map of Time doesn’t live up to its promise nor its book-jacket description. The characters are superficial and show no objection to being pushed into various set pieces by their overly vocal creator. Imitating the “dear reader” voice of some Victorian authors, Palma inserts himself as a commentator on action and character. At one point, he tells the reader he’s going to skip over a scene because it would be boring otherwise.
Wells is an integral part of Harrington’s story and pops in and out of Haggerty’s. He receives his own focus in the final section of the book where he, Henry James and Bram Stoker are told a time traveler is about to kill them and claim some of their works as his own. Wells is perhaps the most well-developed character of the novel. Not surprising as Palma has historical details to draw on. But the section feels underdeveloped and tacked on, as if Palma wanted a better hook to draw in readers.
He may not have needed one. The Victorian era is a favorite setting for authors, particularly those who dabble in time travel without jumping into steampunk. Like its cousins, The Map of Time makes sure readers revisit the high points of the time as if moving through a checklist: Jack the Ripper, Joseph Merrick, electricity, social mores. Some of these are relevant to the plot; others, mere waystations before the last page. Wells’ meeting with Merrick is the best nod to the genre tropes, with the conversation having an emotional resonance absent from the rest of the novel.
The main problem with The Map of Time isn’t that it’s a bad novel. Palma’s writing can be engaging, and the pages turn quickly. Readers looking for a great time travel story or Victorian novel or simply a good read, however, will be disappointed. Too often, Palma neglects what could be a good novel in favor of moving quickly to the next section or wrapping up the novel. Glimpses of a novel that could have been devoted to Tom Blunt’s life in the lower classes or one about Wells’ personal life may cause readers to wish they could find a parallel universe to read these (possibly) more rewarding stories.
Show More
desires to find a world where she belongs; she settles on the year 2000 when England has been overrun by robots. The final section has H.G. Wells determining which universe is real and which is merely a parallel universe destined to end abruptly.If that seems confusing, you’re not far off. The three stories are tied together loosely by the illusion and reality of time travel and by the presence of Wells.
The ideas behind the novel are promising. The first two sections look at the ethics and paradoxes of time travel, while simultaneously rejecting it.
Whether Wells helps Harrington really save Mary Kelly, thus creating a parallel universe in which she and Harrington can live out their lives together, isn’t as important as the effect of believing in possibility. Likewise, Haggerty’s search for somewhere her 21st-century outlook is at home and her beau’s search for meaning in life doesn’t depend on his true identity or whether Haggerty visits the future. Much like Dorothy, the answers they seek were at home all along. To explain more about the ins and outs of the Harrington and Haggerty plots leads into spoiler territory.
Not that there’s much to be spoiled. The Map of Time doesn’t live up to its promise nor its book-jacket description. The characters are superficial and show no objection to being pushed into various set pieces by their overly vocal creator. Imitating the “dear reader” voice of some Victorian authors, Palma inserts himself as a commentator on action and character. At one point, he tells the reader he’s going to skip over a scene because it would be boring otherwise.
Wells is an integral part of Harrington’s story and pops in and out of Haggerty’s. He receives his own focus in the final section of the book where he, Henry James and Bram Stoker are told a time traveler is about to kill them and claim some of their works as his own. Wells is perhaps the most well-developed character of the novel. Not surprising as Palma has historical details to draw on. But the section feels underdeveloped and tacked on, as if Palma wanted a better hook to draw in readers.
He may not have needed one. The Victorian era is a favorite setting for authors, particularly those who dabble in time travel without jumping into steampunk. Like its cousins, The Map of Time makes sure readers revisit the high points of the time as if moving through a checklist: Jack the Ripper, Joseph Merrick, electricity, social mores. Some of these are relevant to the plot; others, mere waystations before the last page. Wells’ meeting with Merrick is the best nod to the genre tropes, with the conversation having an emotional resonance absent from the rest of the novel.
The main problem with The Map of Time isn’t that it’s a bad novel. Palma’s writing can be engaging, and the pages turn quickly. Readers looking for a great time travel story or Victorian novel or simply a good read, however, will be disappointed. Too often, Palma neglects what could be a good novel in favor of moving quickly to the next section or wrapping up the novel. Glimpses of a novel that could have been devoted to Tom Blunt’s life in the lower classes or one about Wells’ personal life may cause readers to wish they could find a parallel universe to read these (possibly) more rewarding stories.
Show Less
LibraryThing member UnderMyAppleTree
Toss together mystery, romance, fantasy, murder, some scifi, a little steampunk, and a clever plot involving H.G. Wells and time travel and you get a magical story that is highly original, creative and unusual. Not at all what I expected and I was pleasantly surprised.
The book is divided into three
The first part was about an upper-class young man in love with a prostitute who was murdered by Jack The Ripper. He is so distraught he contemplates suicide. His cousin comes up with a plan to use H.G. Well’s time machine to travel back in time to save her life. In the second part Murray’s Time Travel offers an adventure ride to the future to the post apocalyptic year 2000 to watch the Battle of London against the Automatons. One young woman on the trip falls in love with the hero of the battle and wants to stay there. And in the last part a visitor from the future approaches Wells to enlist his help to save yet to be published literature from destruction.
I enjoyed the first part the most and this story could stand entirely on it’s own. There is a great twist in this story that will delight any time travel fan. The second part was a romance that, although fun to read, was a little difficult to believe even as a fantasy. I also thought it borrowed a bit from The Time Traveler’s Wife. Without giving away too many spoilers, the reader is never sure if the time travel is real or illusion. The last part brings it all together and ties up the loose ends. I especially enjoyed the many plot twists and this makes it difficult to describe much about the plot without giving anything away. Just when you think you know what is coming next you are once again surprised. I read an advance of this book knowing only the details in the publisher’s summary and not knowing much made it more fun.
The book was originally published in Spanish. Other than a few convoluted sentences the translation was excellent and the writing is beautiful. The author vividly describes Victorian London while at the same time giving us a fantastical view of the future and engaging characters. Occasionally he would ramble off into an aside, such as the encounter with Joseph Merrick the Elephant Man, that went on and on and didn’t seem to have a purpose in the plot, other than to enhance the feel of Victorian London.
At 600+ pages the book is a bit of a commitment but I urge you to give it a chance. It’s a very readable and enjoyable book. The loose plot and storyline comes together for a satisfying ending. Truly delightful, a fun journey to the past and the future. Highly recommended.
The book is divided into three
Show More
loosely related parts each involving incidents of time travel and H.G. Wells. The stories have a common theme but are each very different. All are set in Victorian London, Wells had just published his novel The Time Machine and talk of time travel was the rage.The first part was about an upper-class young man in love with a prostitute who was murdered by Jack The Ripper. He is so distraught he contemplates suicide. His cousin comes up with a plan to use H.G. Well’s time machine to travel back in time to save her life. In the second part Murray’s Time Travel offers an adventure ride to the future to the post apocalyptic year 2000 to watch the Battle of London against the Automatons. One young woman on the trip falls in love with the hero of the battle and wants to stay there. And in the last part a visitor from the future approaches Wells to enlist his help to save yet to be published literature from destruction.
I enjoyed the first part the most and this story could stand entirely on it’s own. There is a great twist in this story that will delight any time travel fan. The second part was a romance that, although fun to read, was a little difficult to believe even as a fantasy. I also thought it borrowed a bit from The Time Traveler’s Wife. Without giving away too many spoilers, the reader is never sure if the time travel is real or illusion. The last part brings it all together and ties up the loose ends. I especially enjoyed the many plot twists and this makes it difficult to describe much about the plot without giving anything away. Just when you think you know what is coming next you are once again surprised. I read an advance of this book knowing only the details in the publisher’s summary and not knowing much made it more fun.
The book was originally published in Spanish. Other than a few convoluted sentences the translation was excellent and the writing is beautiful. The author vividly describes Victorian London while at the same time giving us a fantastical view of the future and engaging characters. Occasionally he would ramble off into an aside, such as the encounter with Joseph Merrick the Elephant Man, that went on and on and didn’t seem to have a purpose in the plot, other than to enhance the feel of Victorian London.
At 600+ pages the book is a bit of a commitment but I urge you to give it a chance. It’s a very readable and enjoyable book. The loose plot and storyline comes together for a satisfying ending. Truly delightful, a fun journey to the past and the future. Highly recommended.
Show Less
LibraryThing member dduning
I enjoyed the first third of the book, but found that I could just skim the rest of the book and follow the story. It was wordy and I had figured out the ending way too early.
LibraryThing member Thomas.Taylor
Great book, wonderfully told as it intertwines itself into a very fulfilling conclusion. There is a sequel out this year and I plan to continue this journey.
Publication
Atria Books (2011), Edition: 1, 624 pages
Media reviews
Though the novel occasionally moves slowly, there is so much going on that one is almost grateful for being able to take a breath, before being whisked back into the adventure. And that is what The Map of Time truly is, despite its steampunkish inclinations, and a bit of masquerading as literary
Show More
science fiction: a rollicking good adventure yarn that, with a nudge and a wink and a bit of sleight of hand, is sure to leave delight in its wake and a smile on one’s face. And that, Dear Reader, is really all one can ask for. Show Less
Palma wanders in and out of genres—is his book science fiction? literary fiction? fantasy? Whatever the answer, it’s great fun to read, particularly for those with a bent for counterfactual history.
Original language
English
Original publication date
2008
Physical description
613 p.; 9 inches
ISBN
1439167397 / 9781439167397