This Is How You Lose the Time War

By Max Gladstone and Amal El-Mohtar

Book Overview

* HUGO AWARD WINNER: BEST NOVELLA * NEBULA AND LOCUS AWARDS WINNER: BEST NOVELLA *

" An] exquisitely crafted tale...Part epistolary romance, part mind-blowing science fiction adventure, this dazzling story unfolds bit by bit, revealing layers of meaning as it plays with cause and effect, wildly imaginative technologies, and increasingly intricate wordplay...This short novel warrants multiple readings to fully unlock its complexities." --Publishers Weekly (starred review)

From award-winning authors Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone comes an enthralling, romantic novel spanning time and space about two time-traveling rivals who fall in love and must change the past to ensure their future.

Among the ashes of a dying world, an agent of the Commandment finds a letter. It reads: Burn before reading.

Thus begins an unlikely correspondence between two rival agents hellbent on securing the best possible future for their warring factions. Now, what began as a taunt, a battlefield boast, becomes something more. Something epic. Something romantic. Something that could change the past and the future.

Except the discovery of their bond would mean the death of each of them. There's still a war going on, after all. And someone has to win. That's how war works, right?

Cowritten by two beloved and award-winning sci-fi writers, This Is How You Lose the Time War is an epic love story spanning time and space.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1534430997
• ISBN13: 9781534430990
• Release Date: March 2020
• Publisher: S&s/Saga Press
• Length: 224 Pages
• Weight: 0.46 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.4" x 8.2"

Customer Reviews

Yes

Heartbreakingly good in the best way. The bar is hereby raised. My favorite book of all time.

Best book I've ever read.

I can't describe how much I love this book and how absolutely beautiful it was. The writing style is very metaphoric and poetic. I'm making everyone I know read it. So good!

I Live for This

More sapphic sci-fi romance IMMEDIATELY.

It's perfect

This book reads like a poetry, it's doesn't have the typical structure that I normally read in books and yet I completely loved it. I didn't think I would, I don't like a lot of poetry but I wouldn't have this book any other way. It's a book that you either get or you don't, and there's no shame in it. I love the characters, I love the imagery, I love the entire feel of the book. It's the kind of book I would love to read many times in the future, knowing that as I change it will also change what I see in the book.

Must read poetic prose

five stars is a rare rating for me but this book came close. not a perfect book but I would call it a must-read. I managed to read it in a day while procrastinating at work. Anyone who loves *good* poetic prose will enjoy it. I will say that I enjoy Blue's parts more than Red, which comes down to me not enjoying Max Gladstone's writing style at times. It feels too... edgy. Like something I would have written or enjoyed reading in high school. The book itself is hard to fit into a genre. Someone who is recommended this book because it is sci-fi would complain it isn't sci-fi. Someone who is recommended this book because it's romance would complain that it isn't a romance novel. So what is it? It starts as a sort of Dr Who meets Letterkenny, with witty banter between two time-traveling, history controlling super assassins. Think of it like Spy vs Spy where they start a correspondence of taunting each other but then quickly realize they are two unique (or too unique) characters that have more in common than they thought. amazing book, don't try to look too deep into it despite it's very dense content. get into a mindstate and speed through it without looking back, because you'll probably want to read it again as soon as you're done.

Unique, Futuristic and Syrupy Sweet

What a unique plotline with a beautifully complex romance that left me feeling both melancholic and completely satisfied.

Great sci-fi story melded with love

A confusing start was soon rewarded with one of the most epic futuristic science fiction stories I’ve ever read. Great read for lovers of time travel, dystopian and cyber punk genres.

One of the best books I’ve ever read!!!!

The writing flowed a bit different compared to most books. It took a minute to get used to but once I did I loved it! Red and Blue are amazing, beautiful characters.

Instructions unclear, time war won.

While I understand the desire to make an instructional guide easier to read through story, I found it completely impractical. The examples are way too specific for that story and I wasn't able to effectively apply them to the time war I'm currently trying to lose. I say, keep the story, but follow each chapter with an overview of what methods were used and how they contribute to the overall loss of the war. The story was great, I really enjoyed it. But as a guide, it's barely half finished.

Entertaining Story!

This was an entertaining story and more like what I look for when I am reading about time travel. There are two opposing forces, that of the Agency ( that is very technology based) and the other of the Garden ( which obviously is more ecology based). Each of those forces has agents, working to unbraid and rebraid strands to make the future more to their liking. This story is about two of those agents, on opposite sides, but in contact with each other through letters. I really enjoyed reading the letters between a Red and Blue. The deliveries of the letters were so cool, from bubbling water in an MRI, to goose feathers and owl pellets. It was fun to read their relationship as it developed, all while they were working to further their side’s goals. The little bits of history and alternative history and outright fantasy that were being manipulated by the agents were pretty interesting too. This was a well written book and even if it wasn’t very long, it was very complete and satisfying. I would definitely recommend this book to someone who is looking for a bit of escape from the real world for a time.

Lovely- ashley lovestoread

This story is not like my usual reads, it is unlike anything I have read before. A whole new way of world than the one I know that made for quite an enjoyable read. The story flowed well and had me guessing at times what could happen next. A slow building romance that is mainly communicated through messages at various points of time. These messages are hidden that only either red or blue can find that have been left for each other even though they are on the opposites sides of the war. One is on the side of technology while the other is on the side of environment. This is a science fiction time travel masterpiece. I would recommend this book to others to read and while this is the first book I have read from this author I hope it will not be the last.