Timekeeper

Set in a Victorian England, the clock towers keep time from fracturing and the Timekeepers keep the clocks ticking along smoothly. Danny Hart is a time mechanic like his father and he hopes to one day free his father and citizens of a Stopped town where a clock tower broke 3 years ago. Meanwhile, he has been assigned temporarily to the clock tower in the little town of Enfield where small things keep going wrong. Danny begins to suspect sabotage even as he learns an unsettling yet still intriguing truth about the clock tower – it does indeed have a clock spirit. Colton seems equally intrigued by Danny and the two share a spark of romance that may or may not go anywhere.

This book was so much more than I was expecting. First, I was show more sucked in by the mythos of Chronos and how time was shattered but brought back under control by the clock towers and their spirits. Through out the book, we get little snippets of this mythology – never enough to bore and they always intrigued me. Then we learn more about the clock mechanics, their rigorous training, and how it’s more than just sprogs and bolts. There’s also this slightly mystical ability to feel the flow of time coupled with intuition of knowing just what the clock needs to run smoothly.

Danny Hart enters the picture and he has plenty going on in his life. He’s the youngest mechanic to graduate from the training program. His dad has been absent for the past 3 years trapped in the stopped city of Malden and no one has figured out how to free the city yet. Also, the lad survived a nasty accident himself and he’s suffering from PTSD. Lastly, he has finally come out of the closet, now that being gay is no longer a hanging offense. Few people are understanding, including his mom. Luckily, he has a stalwart friend in Cassie, a lass who has been his friend since childhood. As you can see, I was totally caught up in Danny’s character and definitely wanted to follow him around and see what he could accomplish in this book.

When Colton, the clock spirit in Enfield, first appears, he doesn’t tell Danny what he is. Danny guesses early on in their friendship but this presented yet another problem. Few people believed that the clock spirits were real so it wasn’t something he could readily explain to folks. Then as their romance begins, he finds it even more difficult to chat about Colton to folks. The romance is light, sweet, fumbling, and has a few misunderstandings between the two. I look forward to seeing where the author takes their relationship in the next book.

Danny becomes convinced that someone is sabotaging the tower in Enfield and so the hunt for clues begins. I enjoyed this little mystery and I only began to suspect the culprit late into the story. I was delighted that the tale hid the true nature of this person for so long. That made the reveal that much more delicious to me as the reader and it hit a hard punch to Danny when he figured it out.

As for side characters, I felt they were nicely developed and weren’t simple stand ins. Mrs. Hart is obviously grieving for her lost husband and is ready to move on. I think she’s a bit afraid to care too deeply as her son is in the same line of work and has already escaped one nasty accident. Cassie is a mechanic herself, though she tends to enjoy automobiles most. Daphne greatly intrigued me. She has a facial tattoo, wears men’s work clothes, and is rumored to have a parent from India. I hope there is more about her in the next book. I was charmed by Matthias, an older friend of Danny’s who went through a hardship and now is a teacher instead of a mechanic. He often took Danny under his wing in a paternal uncle-ish sort of way.

All together, it’s a great start to the trilogy. I saw that some folks stuck this book in the steampunk genre but I wouldn’t call it steampunk. I don’t recall a single thing being steam-driven. Regardless of what genre you place this book in, it’s going on my top shelf.

I received a free copy of this book via The Audiobookworm.

The Narration: Gary Furlong was a great pick for this book. I loved his rich, older voice for Matthias. He had the perfect on-the-cusp-of-manhood voice for Danny. His female voices were believable and varied (the ladies didn’t all sound the same). show less

I received a copy of this book free from the publisher via Netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review.

I loved the concept of this novel, time being controlled and affected by clocks. You all know I love a bit of magic in my books and this novel had no shortage.

A refreshing plot with great and openly LGBT characters. You could feel that Tara Sim had really done their research in terms of characters, lifestyles and timelines. Relationships and people were honest and raw and I look forward to seeing how the story progresses.

Timekeeper is a blend of steampunk and urban fantasy. The Victorian-ish world that Sim created is unique with its premise that clocks control time in the vicinity of the clock tower. If a clock is damaged, time behaves erratically. If a clock is destroyed, time stops in the vicinity, and the area is cut off from its surroundings. Timekeepers are those rare individuals who can feel time and thus fix the clock towers.

The characters are well-drawn. I feel that the mental and emotional issues are handled well for the most part. PTSD, grief, loss, and fear are integral to the story. I dinged the book by half a star because self-hurting to get attention is more serious than the book indicated, and falling instantly in love is usually far more show more along the lines of falling instantly in lust. Love takes time to grow.

I highly recommend this book for fans of steampunk. I bought the sequel already. show less

Very Charming with Some Serious Issues

For the most part this is a genuinely lovely young adult alternative history fantasy romp with a fascinating approach to time that is both amusing and sad. I do wish it had explored this a little more and made more of a connection between the whimsical introduction of the strangeness of time and the more central aspects of time and the clock towers.

There is an absolutely gorgeous little Queer story here that brought me a lot of joy, but the decision to set this in alternative historic England with some right on, but largely handwavy comments on homophobia and colonialism were very clunky. If these weren't things that the book didn't really want to acknowledge or deal with appropriately, simply show more porting Big Ben into a fictional setting or making the world significantly different, beyond low steampunk and time oddity, as in the Oxford and beyond of His Dark Materials.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and the narration was wonderful (putting me in mind of a more well-behaved Tim Key), but with the above, the thoughtless acceptance of prison as a solution (prison abolition now, ACAB), and the way it ends with a character self-harming to get attention from their lover, something already addressed as not being OK in the book, played off as actually rather charming and cute, rather than incredibly abusive and indicative of someone needing serious mental health support, meant that an enjoyable read ended rather sourly and I don't think I will continue the series. show less

Rating: 4.7/5 Stars
Title: Timekeeper
Author: Tara Sim

Synopsis:
Two o'clock was missing.
In an alternate Victorian world controlled by clock towers, a damaged clock can fracture time--and a destroyed one can stop it completely.
It's a truth that seventeen-year-old clock mechanic Danny Hart knows all too well; his father has been trapped in a Stopped town east of London for three years. Though Danny is a prodigy who can repair not only clockwork, but the very fabric of time, his fixation with staging a rescue is quickly becoming a concern to his superiors.
And so they assign him to Enfield, a town where the tower seems to be forever plagued with problems. Danny's new apprentice both annoys and intrigues him, and though the boy is eager to show more work, he maintains a secretive distance. Danny soon discovers why: he is the tower's clock spirit, a mythical being that oversees Enfield's time. Though the boys are drawn together by their loneliness, Danny knows falling in love with a clock spirit is forbidden, and means risking everything he's fought to achieve.
But when a series of bombings at nearby towers threaten to Stop more cities, Danny must race to prevent Enfield from becoming the next target or he'll not only lose his father, but the boy he loves, forever.

Initial thoughts:
To be honest, one of the reasons I started reading this book was because it was recommended to me through Amazon because I had read Victoria Schwab’s books. Gotta say I was really excited to read this one because the synopsis sounded really interesting to me. It is a steampunk lgbt romance that takes place in london. It really was my aesthetic all around. Plus the cover is simply gorgeous (Chainbreaker and Firestarter also have amazing covers). I am writing this review now that I have read it for a second time and I am about to begin Chainbreaker for a second time before Firestarter comes out.

Plot:
What I liked:
The premise of this book was simply fantastic. I loved the ideas of the clocks and how they kept time moving properly in specific areas of the world. It was very original to me and had me wondering exactly how the towers worked and where they actually came from. The characters were anything but flat. They had a lot of heart and layers to them that made me feeling for each and every one of them. Tara Sim was a master at illustrating PTSD and trauma in this book. I swear, I was amazed by how she showed and handled it in this book. Another things that I really loved about this book was the romance. I am not going to go into too much depth about their relationship with one another, but it seriously made my heart warm when they were together.

What I didn't like:
There were really only a few things that I found myself questioning the antagonist in the book. Things seemed a little forced in that aspect, but I did find myself wanting to see where Tara was going with the plot line in the book. I also found that the way Colton was getting attention to be a little toxic in the sense that he would hurt himself so that Danny would come back to repair his clock tower. It was pushed aside as harmless in a sense when self-harm for the attention of a loved one should never be seen as anything but serious.


Characters:
Danny Hart: I wanted to just hug him and tell him that he was doing a good job and that deserved better. He was a bit quick to jump to conclusions as well and quick to act, but that was something that made him more relatable.
Brandon: I loved how supportive he was. He was a good kid who was working hard to provide for his family.
Leila Hart: Seeing her through Danny’s eyes kind of made her hard to like. I wanted to see things from her perspective a little bit.
Colton: A precious angel who needs to stop hurting himself for attention. I love this golden boy though.
Cassie: She is seriously super amazing! She was kind and cared about her friend so much and just wanted to make sure he was happy and safe.
Matthis: He was a very complicated character. I wished that things would have turned out differently with him.
Daphne Richards: She was intelligent, talented, and fighting in a man’s world where women are looked down upon. I applaud her and think she is an amazing character.

Overall:
This book is probably one of my favorite LGBT reads in a while. I found myself happy to return to it with such beautifully crafted book. It has a magical element merging with the steampunk and I was captivated by the creativity and originality of it. I need to read the last book in this series! It seriously cannot wait for it to come out. show less

It’s definitely more of a 3.5.

This book has been on my radar for almost 2 years now I think and I always thought I’ll read it someday, but never actually picked it up. Finally I couldn’t avoid anymore when our Stars and Sorcery Book club chose this as our first BOTM of 2020 and I’m happy I finally got the chance to dive into this world.

The best part of this book is definitely the world building. It’s not always fully explained but I just loved the idea of clock towers and spirits and time being so interconnected to the cities, and the whole mythology behind it. It felt pretty unique and it’s nice to be surprised. I also loved the alternative historical London of the late 19th century, old in some ways, but modern and more show more industrialized in many others. What faltered for me was the overall pacing of the book. While I have really come to appreciate slow paced books which give the characters the time to breathe, it just made me feel a bit disconnected here, atleast for the first third of the book. Once the plot picked up a little and more events started to occur, then the book felt much more fascinating and I didn’t wanna put it down. The ending felt a tad bit too convenient but I hope it’s explored more in the rest of the trilogy.

I thought the author depicted Danny’s character very well - his melancholy about his dad, his panic attacks due to his own accident and just the effort it takes to go through life day to day feeling so lonely - I could totally feel his despair and kudos to Tara Sim for that. Colton’s character suffers from a different kind of loneliness, being almost immortal and stuck in a place and while I could empathize with him too, we didn’t get enough of his POV for me to feel really connected to him. Their relationship is almost instalove but considering the kind of lives they were living, I thought their relationship development felt realistic. The separations really heightened their emotions and I could really feel their desperate need to be together whenever they could. There were also some amazingly sweet moments between them, especially in the beginning of their friendship and it was just nice to see them smile and talk and not feel so alone.

Cassie is a great side character and best friend to have and I loved how much she cared for Danny, but showed her worries only by always asking about fixing his auto. She is also immensely supportive of him and I was glad he had her in his life. On the other hand, Danny’s mom felt very disconnected from life in general which pissed me off in the beginning but I slowly came to realize how debilitating her grief must be. Brandon and Daphne were interesting additions to the cast as well and I hope we’ll get to see more of them in the future.

At the end, I can say this was an interesting beginning to a different kind of fantasy which didn’t completely blow my mind, but kept me engaged enough to continue. It has great world building, a lovely cast of characters, a cute but forbidden romance and a fascinating mystery that’ll keep you guessing. I might not be rushing to pick up the next book yet, but I’m very interested to continue the series - particularly because the sequel takes place in a British occupied India and I really want to know how the author weaves India’s colonization into this story. show less

This review and others posted over at my blog.

I received this book for free from Sky Pony Press in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. All opinions in this post are my own.

In an alternate version of Victorian England, time is controlled by clock towers and if one is destroyed, a whole town could be stopped, its citizens trapped, possibly forever. At seventeen, Danny Hart is one of the youngest mechanics to earn his license to maintain clock towers and the flow of time they create. His father is trapped in a stopped town and Danny is desperate to get a position working on the new tower being built, in hopes that it will free the town and his father. But Danny’s show more obsession with the new tower has instead landed him in the small town of Enfield with a tower that seems to have one problem after another. There Danny meets a mysterious boy who turns out to be a clock spirit and as Danny falls head over heels for him, he’ll risk everything he’s worked for in order for them to be together.

I was very excited about the premise of this book. I love steampunk stories and with the added elements of clock spirits and a gay protagonist, I figured this book would really wow me. Unfortunately, I didn’t care for any of the characters and that left the story feeling lackluster.

Danny felt less like a character and more like a stereotype. Rather possessing a solid personality that evoked empathy in me for his situation, Danny felt whiny and almost pathetic. He felt people around him were treating him like a child, but he was acting like one. That, paired with the fact that his homosexuality felt more like a stereotypical personality trait than a real part of who he was, made it very hard for me to immerse myself in his life. He is also apparently a prodigy at repairing these clocks, yet (aside from the very end of the book where he randomly develops superpowers) we’re never given any evidence of this other than people talking about how he’s the youngest mechanic ever.

Colton, the clock spirit, didn’t stand out either. He’s essentially a pretty boy for Danny to fall “in love” with. He has no real personality other than curious, because he’s not human and so he doesn’t understand much about human life – despite saying he’s watched the people of his town for an unknowable amount of time. He feels overly innocent (or perhaps ignorant is the right word?) and it makes his relationship with Danny awkward and forced. Their bond borders on insta-love with Danny feeling immediately comfortable around Colton, which leads to them chatting a bit, and then suddenly they’re in love.

The story is mostly from Danny’s perspective, though it is broken up here and there by some interludes about the gods and how time was managed before it fell into human hands. There are also a couple random chapters voiced by a few of Danny’s enemies, but rather than deepen those characters, those chapters felt abrupt and left me wondering why we only heard from them once or twice.

I did like the idea of a clock tower controlling the time of the town it resided in and I found it interesting that a town could stop. I was fuzzy on the details of a stopped town though. Towards the end, we do get a feel for what it’s like inside a stopped town, but the rules of how they work seemed arbitrary and changeable based on what Danny needed to be able to accomplish.

The ending wrapped the book up with a neat bow and made me roll my eyes. Since I never cared for Danny, the conclusion wasn’t satisfying because at that point I didn’t care if he ended up with everything he wanted or not. I do have questions about how one maintains a relationship with someone who is actually made of time, but I don’t want to know badly enough to read another book, should this be made into a series. I wasn’t impressed, but I didn’t hate the book.

If you’re looking for a light, LGBT YA read with some steampunk and semi-magical elements thrown in, I’d recommend checking this out. show less