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micaelamariem's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
I was so excited to dive back into the All Souls universe. I had adored the original trilogy and when I found out that there were two more books, I was ecstatic. Though, I was a little nervous because, in my experience, books that continue after the original series end tend to not be as good. Still, I dove into Time's Convert by Deborah Harkness, published by Penguin Books, with nervous expectations.
Deborah Harkness is more than just an author. Her novels have a historic quality because she spent a lot of her life as a history professor and she spent her PHD studying the history of magic, where a lot of the story's inspiration came from.
In Time's Convert, the novel is mainly focused on Marcus and Phoebe with a few updates from Diana and Matthew. Phoebe has decided to make the transition to vampire and become Marcus's mate. In order to do so the traditional way, they must spend ninety days apart while Phoebe makes the transition. During this time, Marcus stays with Matthew and Diana at Sept-Tours and is nostalgic for his own transition in the midst of the American and French Revolution.
My initial misgivings proved to be correct--this book was not as good as the original trilogy. It wasn't bad, per se, but I didn't find it as enjoyable. I'm having a hard time deciding how to rate it, so bear with me as I talk with you all about what I liked and didn't like to process it!
As far as characters go, there wasn't really anything new added to them. The most interesting aspect, in my opinion, was getting to know Phoebe better. But, honestly, she seemed to just be an art version of Diana and Marcus is a more naive version of Matthew.
Atmosphere, though, was the best part of the novel. As always, Harkness did a beautiful job at describing when and where the setting was--important in a book that splits timelines. She painted the Revolutions and modern day in a way that activated all the senses and really included the reader. The vivid descriptions made my heart soar.
Version 1.0.0
Similarly, the writing style was beautiful. I totally understand that her writing style isn't for everyone, but if you enjoyed the initial trilogy, you'll also like the writing style here. It's sophisticated and vivid.
As for the plot, I wasn't as interested. It was fascinating to see Phoebe's transition, but as for wading through Marcus' memories, I didn't care much for. I already knew the formula--trauma, transition, make mistakes or be evil for a while, be redeemed. Perhaps being set in a historic period I didn't care much about anymore didn't help. I did also enjoy Diana's chapters and getting to know her children.
I also didn't think there was much intrigue to the book. There weren't a lot of plot twists--I kind of already knew how things would turn out. Nothing besides a new familiar really kept me turning the pages or kept me up at night.
Logically, most things made sense. We had the same tradition yielding vampires and witches keeping them on their toes. The one thing that made me yield was the one scene in which Matthew (in the past) was with Juliette and didn't say anything as she had slaves to feed from. That does not sound like Matthew to me, not like anything he'd stand for. It was Past Matthew but I still lost a lot of respect.
Overall, I enjoyed Phoebe's and Diana's chapters but, unfortunately, the majority of the book was Marcus' memories and I just could not get into them. I read for the women, I guess, and the writing descriptions.
With that in mind, I think I'll be giving this book three stars. It was okay, but I wouldn't have missed anything if I hadn't read it. Will I read Black Bird Oracle? Yes, because I can't abandon the characters now. But I don't have high expectations for it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic
Moderate: Child abuse and Cursing
Minor: Bullying, Racism, Sexual content, Slavery, Religious bigotry, and Abandonment
laurenleigh's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
informative
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I loved the first three books so much, it was a given I’d pick this up. The first three were such a trilogy structurally, and this does somewhat continue that storyline, but focuses more on Marcus and Phoebe. I didn’t personally love a lot of the gory details of becoming a vampire, but I’m working on loosening my hold on those phobias. The other half is historical fiction set in late 18th C America, which Professor Harkness does so well, unsurprisingly. It was honestly interesting to read about inoculations and infectious disease of that time period. I didn’t realize how much damage smallpox did to Washington’s soldiers. If you’re into this series, vampires, and/or Revolutionary War historical fiction, you’ll enjoy this. Otherwise it probably won’t appeal to you!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore and Blood
Moderate: Death, Gun violence, and War
lucyatoz's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Time's Convert is an intriguing prequel and sequel to Deborah Harkness All Souls trilogy that, at times, it was difficult to keep a track of the narrative with it jumping between Marcus Whitmore's backstory and the present for Diana Bishop and Matthew de Claremont and their children and Phoebe Taylor, a human warmblood and Marcus' mate as she becomes a vampire.
It does not capture my imagination in the same way that A Discovery of Witches did, however it was still worth reading just to get the history of Matthew's son, Marcus and how they become fledgling vampires!
It does not capture my imagination in the same way that A Discovery of Witches did, however it was still worth reading just to get the history of Matthew's son, Marcus and how they become fledgling vampires!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Death, Sexual content, Medical trauma, and Pandemic/Epidemic
Minor: Alcoholism
ka_ke's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
A good comfort read. If you have not read the All Souls trilogy, do not start here. Times Convert is a welcome look into the life of Marcus, Matthew’s son and the journey to becoming a vampire, in this universe’s version anyway.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Terminal illness, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Colonisation, War, and Classism
Moderate: Animal death, Deadnaming, Domestic abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Medical content, Grief, and Classism
Minor: Sexual content, Slavery, and Xenophobia
keepcalmblogon's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I know it’s meant to have been a spin-off, but Diana and Matthew really do not relinquish the spotlight all that easily. Time’s Convert brought to further attention the biggest flaw in the series: Diana’s stubbornness about magic. By book four, one would expect Diana to have grown into this aspect of her character after battling with it and then learning to harness and control it, but it’s as if she regresses in this book, and, honestly, after hundreds of pages of her hesitancy I was pretty over it.
In the end, Marcus and Phoebe do get their chance at center stage and I loved learning about Marcus’ past and joining Phoebe on her baby-vampire journey!
In the end, Marcus and Phoebe do get their chance at center stage and I loved learning about Marcus’ past and joining Phoebe on her baby-vampire journey!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Gun violence, Sexual content, Violence, Murder, and War
bookspaperink's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Gun violence, Violence, Blood, and Medical content
Minor: Cursing, Gore, Medical content, and Alcohol
msjk427's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Time's Convert is a bit of a spin off from the main three books in the All Souls Trilogy. While I was happy to see Diana and Matthew, they take a secondary role to the story of Marcus and Phoebe. This book was pretty good, but wasn't as good as the rest of the All Souls books. I just wasn't as invested in Phoebe and Marcus's story. I also don't find Phoebe all that likeable. If you want to delve more into those characters or into Harkness' version of the vampire making process, then it's worth a read. Or if you really enjoy American and French Revolution history.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood
Moderate: Child abuse, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Violence, Vomit, and Medical trauma
Minor: Slavery
Deals with pandemics, epidemics, and American and French Revolution/War.