This is How You Lose the Time War

This was enjoyable overall. A love story unfolds amongst two rivals who are trying to destroy and revive the world respectively. It starts with little taunts left in unusual letters and blossoms into more as the story progresses. I found myself genuinely entranced with the characters and caring about their outcomes. The ending was not exactly expected so it took me by surprise a little.

The main reason I can't rate it higher is because of the world-building. There was both too much and not enough world-building going on. Too often I found myself confused and unable to track what was going on in the background. Once the story ramped up, it didn't matter as much because the information wasn't being handed out as much unless it directly affected the characters. I feel like if the world had been hashed out a little more, or even a little less, I would have found it a lot more enjoyable.

Admittedly, it might also just not be a good one to listen to on audiobook, which is what I did. I found it enjoyable enough that I might see about revisiting it in the future and reading a physical copy to see if it's easier to track what's going on and understand it better.

An interesting story of a two characters on opposite sides of a war fought through time. It begins with Red finding a letter with the words, "Burn before reading," which turns out to be from her adversary, Blue, who teases and challenges her before their next encounter. This time war is fought between two forces, Agency and Garden, who move agents (like Red and Blue) through time to tease and alter events so that, far in the future, victory is theirs.

Each chapter features an event as seen by Red or Blue, in alternate, with a hidden letter discovered by one or the other once victory (or defeat) is tasted by one or the other. But after a few rounds, the tone of the story changes, as both Red and Blue start to talk about their past, and their lives during the war. Then, events happen that show that at some time in the past, their lives have intersected with each other, thought they may not be aware of it at the time. It is then that romance and love being to blossom between the adversaries, an affair that both have to keep hidden from their masters.

At the end, as adversaries, one is given the task of killing the other, with not way out without betraying the other. Yet, there may be a way, and it may involve a shadowy character that has been following their steps, but not revealed until the end of the book.

Very enjoyable, quite romantic (even if I'm not that big of a fan of the enemies to lovers trope) and tells us a very important lesson: you win the time war by not writing about paradoxes, meeting your grandparents or much of the details of time travel in general.

Amal El-Mothar and Max Gladsonte's "This is How You Lose the Time War" follows two agents, Red and Blue, on opposite sides of a war that spans all of time and (some of?) space across multiple universes.

Each chapter starts with a snapshot of what each agent is doing to advance their side's cause, whether that's taking part in major historical events or planting the seeds for 'coincidences' in the future, and ends with the discovery of a letter from their counterpart. What begins as acknowledgements of respect, nods across the battlefield, gradually grow into something more.

Fans of science fiction may be disappointed by the lack of focus on the time-traveling, universe-hopping backdrop to this story of star-crossing lovers. Details are sparse, and little is disclosed about the factions or why they are at war other than hints and impressions throughout the book.

The gradual, tip-toeing romance between Red and Blue via their elegantly composed letters is the strength of this book. There is a sweetness as the characters, hovering just beyond what one might call "human", discover that they are capable of such love, and for who should be their mortal enemy, no less. Readers who never tire of "Romeo and Juliette" will find much to love in "This is How You Lose the Time War".

Quirky and unexpected, the things I appreciate most in a book. Also, not that long, which means it can't get too lost in it's unique abstractions. Loved it, will read it again.

Beautiful novella! A lot of it is very abstract, on purpose. Like, how unlikely is it that two agents from rivaling parties both name themselves after colours, Blue and Red? It doesn't matter. Neither do the specific missions. The war events. The time strands.

What does matter, are the letters they send each other. The Seeker following them everywhere, snorting teapots like cocaine. And how they lose and win the time war.

Bonus points for the writing method (the two authors wrote the letters to each other, one after another, and built the universe that way). Bonus points for wlw romance. Bonus points for singing Steven Universe songs while writing the book. Bonus points for posing with swords on the backcover photo.

If you like books where you don't get all the answers, that aren't necessarily linear, and are more about prose and gut-wrenching heartache, you'll enjoy this book. It's art. If you don't like artsy books, you probably should pick something else to read.

I loved it.

I can't decide if this would have worked better (for me) as a short story, or a full length book. If it was longer, it could have expanded on it's ideas. If it had been shorter, it wouldn't have felt so repetetive.

There is some good ideas here, but they deserve better than being hand waved away. How do Red and Blue target their letters to each other across strands of time? If there are certain contested junctures in time, shouldn't they be swarmed with agents, and multiple aspects of the same agents? If the protagonists are just cogs in two massive opposing machines battling for supremacy over all time - why does it seems like they are the only two operators in the field?

I'm not saying this is a bad book, there is a lot good writing here. But it didn't work for me. Two highly subjective stars. (I'm going to hold of actually rating as there are so few reviews here yet)

"This is How You Lose the Time War" asks the reader to perch on the shoulders of two operatives on opposing sides of a time-traveling war.

Each chapter follows "Red" or "Blue" as they scurry up and down timelines and across dimensions. The book is both sweepingly broad and extremely contained and personal.

The settings flit by, dizzying: a temple for mechanized humans, an ancient holy cave, the assassination of Caesar - each sketched with broad, emotional strokes to give the setting an aesthetic. One gets the sense that a great web of cause and effect is being constantly constructed, altered, and destroyed, without ever seeing the full picture.

Against these backdrops, the characters "Red" and "Blue" write to each other - as nemeses, then as friends, ever deeper entangled even as they demolish each other's plans and forces. The letters make up an enormous part of the experience, and they are comic, intimate... poignant. I didn't give a damn about the war - I just wanted these two characters to be alright.

I loved it. I stayed up past midnight every day I was reading, which wasn't long because I had to see what came next and kept reading.