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Metronome
Not all that is hidden is lost.
For twelve years Aina and Whitney have been in exile on an island for a crime they committed together, tethered to a croft by pills they take for survival every eight hours. They've kept busy - Aina with her garden, her jigsaw, her music; Whitney with his sculptures and maps - but something is not right.
Shipwrecks have begun washing up, supply drops have stopped and on the day their punishment is meant to end, the Warden does not come. Instead a sheep appears; but sheep can't swim.
Aina becomes convinced that they've been abandoned, and that Whitney has been keeping secrets. As she starts testing the limits of their prison, investigating ways she might escape, she is confronted by decisions that haunt her past. Little does she realise that her biggest choice is yet to come.
For twelve years Aina and Whitney have been in exile on an island for a crime they committed together, tethered to a croft by pills they take for survival every eight hours. They've kept busy - Aina with her garden, her jigsaw, her music; Whitney with his sculptures and maps - but something is not right.
Shipwrecks have begun washing up, supply drops have stopped and on the day their punishment is meant to end, the Warden does not come. Instead a sheep appears; but sheep can't swim.
Aina becomes convinced that they've been abandoned, and that Whitney has been keeping secrets. As she starts testing the limits of their prison, investigating ways she might escape, she is confronted by decisions that haunt her past. Little does she realise that her biggest choice is yet to come.
320 pages, Paperback
First published March 31, 2022
134 people are currently reading
3823 people want to read
About the author
Tom Watson
109 books22 followersLibrarian's Note: There is more than one author with this name on GR. This profile might contain books by more than one author with this name.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 496 reviews
November 28, 2022
In brief - A strange book - eerie and compelling for me.
In full
Aina and Whitney are exiled to an island for a crime they committed. Initially that is really all we know. When we meet them they have been there twelve years and are expecting their parole soon. However their supply drops have ceased and they are surviving off the land and the occasional shipwreck. What does turn up one day is a sheep and sheep can't really swim - where has it come from? That starts a chain of thoughts and events - this book follows that thread. They are tied to the croft that they are on as they have to take a pill every 8 hours to survive. It is dispensed to them via their thumbprint and only one at a time by a clock.
What secrets are involved in this story? You very quickly realise how little you know. The characters of Aina and Whitney emerge gradually. I guess Aina was the better developed character too and rather more rounded. The environment around the croft was part of the story but only very locally to them.
I really liked the writing here. There were times when it was quite poetic and it almost felt like it had a "beat" to it. Maybe the Pill clock had an impact or the repeated refrain of "Yan, tan, tethera, methera, pip". I found this interesting and knew immediately I'd seen the words before. Sure enough it is a sheep counting system that is probably Celtic in original and used in the north of Britain in the main. I still cannot honestly say why but it added something to the book for me.
When I started this book I only intended to read one chapter - I read five. I found this oddly fascinating. It's deep and compelling to me and with a real feeling of mystery around it. It has an eerie quality to it which I liked. That said I have to say that the ending didn't really work for me. When I read it it felt odd; looking back now it seems less odd but I can't say I loved it. Overall I found this a worthwhile read and one that seemed quite different to many of the books I I've read. A good choice maybe if you want something that is "different".
Note - I received an advance digital copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair review
In full
Aina and Whitney are exiled to an island for a crime they committed. Initially that is really all we know. When we meet them they have been there twelve years and are expecting their parole soon. However their supply drops have ceased and they are surviving off the land and the occasional shipwreck. What does turn up one day is a sheep and sheep can't really swim - where has it come from? That starts a chain of thoughts and events - this book follows that thread. They are tied to the croft that they are on as they have to take a pill every 8 hours to survive. It is dispensed to them via their thumbprint and only one at a time by a clock.
What secrets are involved in this story? You very quickly realise how little you know. The characters of Aina and Whitney emerge gradually. I guess Aina was the better developed character too and rather more rounded. The environment around the croft was part of the story but only very locally to them.
I really liked the writing here. There were times when it was quite poetic and it almost felt like it had a "beat" to it. Maybe the Pill clock had an impact or the repeated refrain of "Yan, tan, tethera, methera, pip". I found this interesting and knew immediately I'd seen the words before. Sure enough it is a sheep counting system that is probably Celtic in original and used in the north of Britain in the main. I still cannot honestly say why but it added something to the book for me.
When I started this book I only intended to read one chapter - I read five. I found this oddly fascinating. It's deep and compelling to me and with a real feeling of mystery around it. It has an eerie quality to it which I liked. That said I have to say that the ending didn't really work for me. When I read it it felt odd; looking back now it seems less odd but I can't say I loved it. Overall I found this a worthwhile read and one that seemed quite different to many of the books I I've read. A good choice maybe if you want something that is "different".
Note - I received an advance digital copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair review
December 9, 2021
Metronome is Tom Watson’s debut novel and wow, what a debut it is. I don’t want to reveal too much about the plot as I think it’s one it’s best to go into blind.
In brief, Aina and Whitney have been exiled to an unknown island from an unknown country, and are tethered to a machine which dispenses a pill every eight hours that ensures their survival. They’ve been in exile for twelve years and are awaiting parole when one day a sheep turns up, but sheep can’t swim so where has this one come from?
The book begins slowly but picks up speed and you hear the metronome ticking in your ear throughout. The pace and intensity increases as the story goes on, with an almost unbearable crescendo until the breathless last line.
I read this in two sittings, inhaling every word. I think we can conclusively say that dystopian/speculative fiction is my favourite genre.
Afterwards, I sat in stunned silence for about five minutes, then went down a rabbit hole looking up “yan tan tethera”, discovering that’s it’s an ancient method of sheep-counting traditionally employed by shepherds in the North of England.
If you like your books dark, dystopian and creepy, and you don’t mind not knowing exactly what is going on, then you’ll love this one. Brilliant stuff. Echoes of Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go.
Thank you to @netgalley and the publishers Bloomsbury publishing for the ARC. Metronome will be published in March 2022.
In brief, Aina and Whitney have been exiled to an unknown island from an unknown country, and are tethered to a machine which dispenses a pill every eight hours that ensures their survival. They’ve been in exile for twelve years and are awaiting parole when one day a sheep turns up, but sheep can’t swim so where has this one come from?
The book begins slowly but picks up speed and you hear the metronome ticking in your ear throughout. The pace and intensity increases as the story goes on, with an almost unbearable crescendo until the breathless last line.
I read this in two sittings, inhaling every word. I think we can conclusively say that dystopian/speculative fiction is my favourite genre.
Afterwards, I sat in stunned silence for about five minutes, then went down a rabbit hole looking up “yan tan tethera”, discovering that’s it’s an ancient method of sheep-counting traditionally employed by shepherds in the North of England.
If you like your books dark, dystopian and creepy, and you don’t mind not knowing exactly what is going on, then you’ll love this one. Brilliant stuff. Echoes of Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go.
Thank you to @netgalley and the publishers Bloomsbury publishing for the ARC. Metronome will be published in March 2022.
May 23, 2022
Desolate Dystopia
Review of the Bloomsbury Publishing hardcover (March 31, 2022)
You are going to want to google Can Sheep Actually Swim? very soon after starting this book, so I've saved you some time.
Yes. but only short distances! According to Farm Animal Report.
I found it difficult to completely buy into the premise and situation of Metronome. So it became more a case of accepting its scenario where the characters play out their parts for dramatic effect.
The setup is that a couple, Aina and Whitney have been in exile on a supposed island for 12 years for the crime in their future dystopian society of conceiving a child without a permit. They are limited in their movements by being required to take a pill every 8 hours in order to survive the effects of the toxic bacteria released from melted permafrost. The pills are dispensed by a machine with an apparently infinite reservoir of the tablets. The machine dispenses according to an individual's thumbprint and is impregnable. The location is not exactly specified but certain factors (they live in a croft (a Scottish farm dwelling), shipwrecks often have Nordic names, the use of an ancient Celtic counting system, a nearby permafrost indicates a northern locale, etc.) hint that they are likely in the Orkney archipelago north of Scotland. They are nearing the end of their 12-year sentence but supply drops stopped a few years ago and their 'Warden' no longer answers their radio messages. They have survived with their meagre crops and from scavenging the occasional shipwreck.
The situation becomes a crisis when no one appears after the 12 years to rescue them. At the same time, a lone sheep appears and settles in to graze on their lands. Whitney is insistent that it is all a test to prove their repentance. Aina is meanwhile suspicious that they are not on an island at all (i.e. Can sheep swim? See above) and that the outside society has collapsed and no one is coming. Both of them yearn for their son from whom they were separated, and both are keeping secrets from each other. Aina begins to form a plan of escape (due to a small timing defect in the dispensing machine) but events become even more dramatic when signs of further human life appear.
You never really learn anything about the outside society so you have to just imagine a future population controlled civilization also subject to the poisonous effects of climate change. That this society also takes the time and trouble to exile people to isolated locations but still provide resources and communications becomes a bit of a stretch. Also the idea that people would wait 12 years before doing something further about their situation is also unbelievable. It is a first novel though, and it did build suspense and drama effectively towards the end.
It does also get an Ambiguous Ending Alert ™ though. The ending is in somewhat of a delirium state due to events, so what then occurs can be taken in various ways. You can imagine a 'happy ending' if you like, although realistically it seems unlikely. Anyway, if you don't like those sorts of endings, be forewarned.
I read Metronome through its inclusion in the 2022 Year of Reading blind subscription from the English language bookstore Shakespeare and Company in Paris, France.
Other Reviews
A mixed review at Fragile Hopes of Escape by Nina Allen, The Guardian, April 7, 2022.
Trivia and Links
Metronome was a BBC Radio 2 Between the Covers book club selection for the summer of 2022 and you can see the list of 14 selections here. The specific episode discussing the book has not yet aired as of mid-May 2022, (NOTE: These are only available for listening in the United Kingdom) but you can watch for it in the list of Between the Covers episodes here.
Review of the Bloomsbury Publishing hardcover (March 31, 2022)
You are going to want to google Can Sheep Actually Swim? very soon after starting this book, so I've saved you some time.
Yes. but only short distances! According to Farm Animal Report.
I found it difficult to completely buy into the premise and situation of Metronome. So it became more a case of accepting its scenario where the characters play out their parts for dramatic effect.
The setup is that a couple, Aina and Whitney have been in exile on a supposed island for 12 years for the crime in their future dystopian society of conceiving a child without a permit. They are limited in their movements by being required to take a pill every 8 hours in order to survive the effects of the toxic bacteria released from melted permafrost. The pills are dispensed by a machine with an apparently infinite reservoir of the tablets. The machine dispenses according to an individual's thumbprint and is impregnable. The location is not exactly specified but certain factors (they live in a croft (a Scottish farm dwelling), shipwrecks often have Nordic names, the use of an ancient Celtic counting system, a nearby permafrost indicates a northern locale, etc.) hint that they are likely in the Orkney archipelago north of Scotland. They are nearing the end of their 12-year sentence but supply drops stopped a few years ago and their 'Warden' no longer answers their radio messages. They have survived with their meagre crops and from scavenging the occasional shipwreck.
The situation becomes a crisis when no one appears after the 12 years to rescue them. At the same time, a lone sheep appears and settles in to graze on their lands. Whitney is insistent that it is all a test to prove their repentance. Aina is meanwhile suspicious that they are not on an island at all (i.e. Can sheep swim? See above) and that the outside society has collapsed and no one is coming. Both of them yearn for their son from whom they were separated, and both are keeping secrets from each other. Aina begins to form a plan of escape (due to a small timing defect in the dispensing machine) but events become even more dramatic when signs of further human life appear.
You never really learn anything about the outside society so you have to just imagine a future population controlled civilization also subject to the poisonous effects of climate change. That this society also takes the time and trouble to exile people to isolated locations but still provide resources and communications becomes a bit of a stretch. Also the idea that people would wait 12 years before doing something further about their situation is also unbelievable. It is a first novel though, and it did build suspense and drama effectively towards the end.
It does also get an Ambiguous Ending Alert ™ though. The ending is in somewhat of a delirium state due to events, so what then occurs can be taken in various ways. You can imagine a 'happy ending' if you like, although realistically it seems unlikely. Anyway, if you don't like those sorts of endings, be forewarned.
I read Metronome through its inclusion in the 2022 Year of Reading blind subscription from the English language bookstore Shakespeare and Company in Paris, France.
Other Reviews
A mixed review at Fragile Hopes of Escape by Nina Allen, The Guardian, April 7, 2022.
Trivia and Links
Metronome was a BBC Radio 2 Between the Covers book club selection for the summer of 2022 and you can see the list of 14 selections here. The specific episode discussing the book has not yet aired as of mid-May 2022, (NOTE: These are only available for listening in the United Kingdom) but you can watch for it in the list of Between the Covers episodes here.
June 6, 2022
Metronome is sadly as monotonous as it’s name suggests.
I had approached this book with high hopes: The premise of two people being exiled to a remote island for 12 years as a punishment is intriguing. A dystopian book perhaps? I still don’t know.
I don’t know ultimately why. I don’t know where the book is set. I don’t know what happened at the end. I don’t know if there were other people still around or not. I’m just left lost in the mist and darkness that the author successfully created. Wondering why there are so many holes and unbelievable situations (and the pill clock!), and why I spent so much time on this book to still know nothing.
I can’t explain more without giving out spoilers so I’ll leave it there. It may just be me - after all it has been nominated for several awards….
Yan, tan, tethera methera pip….you may be counting down to the end too.
A frustrating and bleak read.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.
I had approached this book with high hopes: The premise of two people being exiled to a remote island for 12 years as a punishment is intriguing. A dystopian book perhaps? I still don’t know.
I don’t know ultimately why. I don’t know where the book is set. I don’t know what happened at the end. I don’t know if there were other people still around or not. I’m just left lost in the mist and darkness that the author successfully created. Wondering why there are so many holes and unbelievable situations (and the pill clock!), and why I spent so much time on this book to still know nothing.
I can’t explain more without giving out spoilers so I’ll leave it there. It may just be me - after all it has been nominated for several awards….
Yan, tan, tethera methera pip….you may be counting down to the end too.
A frustrating and bleak read.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.
March 28, 2022
Discover the location in Metronome
A very unique novel this. Sparse and raw , remote and bleak but there is something that pulls you to it and draws you in.
A couple have been banished to a (fictional) island in Scotland which has been their prison for twelve years. They are due for parole but the warden never arrives. With time passing, they start to wonder if they will ever be able to leave, to escape. They are tethered to the island by the need to take a pill every 8 hours and if they don’t take it, they die. There seems to be little to no sign of life here apart from them. Shipwrecks start to appear off the coast and this is spooky and unusual, However it does provide them with food and a few pickings if they are lucky.
It was interesting to find out that their crime was to go against the governments rules over having a baby. We are told that they went against strict laws and Aina fell pregnant. It’s all very The Handmaid’s tale although we never find out what the rules are exactly and why they are in place. Government control would be the obvious conclusion.
Then one day, a sheep arrives on the island having swum from somewhere. But can sheep swim? Where and how did it get here? That strange event starts off a chain of thoughts which spirals out of control. Metronome takes you on the journey down that chain and what a journey it is. The setting feels very closed off and limited as we only see the immediate area through their eyes. We see what they do which is not much at all. I played a game as a child once where you could only see two cms around you at any one time and you had to navigate blindly really through a maze. This feels like that and I recalled the feeling of frustration, fear, the unknown and everything the characters must be feeling.
Metronome is a good name for this novel as it measures time, the unrelenting passing of time as on this island. There is a clock/timer which dispenses the pills they must take each day and again, there is the image of time ticking, counting down. I loved the mention of Yan, tan, tethera, methera, pip and googled it as it sounded like an old song of sorts and it interested me. Turns out it’s an old system for counting sheep that was popular in the north of England. With the mysterious sheep arriving on the island, this gave me the chills!
I have fully crafted a 3d Revolving island in my head where I can see characters arriving and living on the island. I can also see onto the island from a boat and so have the view of an outsider as well as having lived on the island for sometime.
Ironically as I was reading this, I kept popping M and Ms into my mouth without thinking. Like those pills eh? Is Tom Watson carrying out some kind of mind control? If we ever meet at a book event I will have to avert my eyes. Until his next book comes out. I’m definitely reading that.
October 17, 2022
Ever since I read Blurb Your Enthusiasm, I've been paying more attention to the jacket copy on books. This is an example of a great synopsis that really gives a sense of the plot: unexplained events, suspicion within a marriage, and curiosity about what else might be out there. Aina and Whitney believe they are the only people on this (Scottish?) island. They live simply on a croft and hope that, 12 years after they were exiled, they might soon be up for parole. Whitney stubbornly insists that they wait for the warden to rescue them, while Aina has given up thinking anyone will ever come. There's a slight Beckettian air, then, to the first two-thirds of the novel. Then someone does turn up, but it's not who they expect. The eventual focus on parenthood meant this reminded me a lot of The Road, and there were also shades of The Water Cure and Doggerland (though, thankfully, the dual protagonists ensure a less overly male atmosphere). This was an easy and reasonably intriguing read, but ultimately a bit vague and bleak for me, and not distinguished enough at the level of the prose (e.g. way too many uses of "onside").
August 1, 2022
In a dystopian future society, Aina and her husband Whitney have been exiled to an isolated island for 12 years for a family crime - and are tied to the isolated croft by the need to take pills dispensed by a machine every eight hours in order to survive the polluted environment. As time has gone on and they have developed a degree of self-sufficiency, the couple have also noticed that supply drops have become irregular and subsequently stopped and abandoned boats have started to wreck themselves on the island. Finally, when their 12-year parole is due, the Warden does not appear as expected and cannot be contacted via the radio. The only thing that appears is a lone sheep - which leads to Aina becoming suspicious that they are not in fact on an island as she believes sheep cannot swim....
This is a mesmerising and engrossing tale - well-drawn characters and location with an intriguing and unique storyline makes this an excellent debut novel - 9/10.
This is a mesmerising and engrossing tale - well-drawn characters and location with an intriguing and unique storyline makes this an excellent debut novel - 9/10.
May 3, 2022
A book in a day, rare thing for me. However, a plane flight will help. This debut novel by Tom Watson is for me, a work that’s unable to be pigeonholed. Sure, there’s an undercurrent of mild thriller, a human study, a deeper issue of crime and punishment - no matter what the crime or misdemeanour, and whether the punishment fits it.
Aina and Whitney are sentenced to 12 years banishment, for a crime that increasingly becomes apparent - they had an illegal child. This is a dystopian near future, and if you don’t have a Permission To Conceive pass (issued after conception), then you’re not allowed to have a child. This gives an insight into the desperation of the parents, then the discovery and removal to remote Long Sky Croft. In addition, environmental factors mean they must be issued with a tablet to counteract potential adverse medical effects, so that is dispensed, upon thumb scan of the recipient, three times a day. In effect, their sentence is at the same time physical, punitive, and psychological.
However, they are coming to the end of their time there, ready for the Warden to come and take them back to society.
So they wait. And wait…
This book really emphasises the two types of people - those who accept what is, and those who try to chang their situation. The events move along at a good pace - for life on an exile island, and soon all is revealed to be not as we, or they, were lead to believe.
This book was just picked up by chance, because I had seen a review of it in the local press, but it has certainly made me think more deeply than the words on the page.
Aina and Whitney are sentenced to 12 years banishment, for a crime that increasingly becomes apparent - they had an illegal child. This is a dystopian near future, and if you don’t have a Permission To Conceive pass (issued after conception), then you’re not allowed to have a child. This gives an insight into the desperation of the parents, then the discovery and removal to remote Long Sky Croft. In addition, environmental factors mean they must be issued with a tablet to counteract potential adverse medical effects, so that is dispensed, upon thumb scan of the recipient, three times a day. In effect, their sentence is at the same time physical, punitive, and psychological.
However, they are coming to the end of their time there, ready for the Warden to come and take them back to society.
So they wait. And wait…
This book really emphasises the two types of people - those who accept what is, and those who try to chang their situation. The events move along at a good pace - for life on an exile island, and soon all is revealed to be not as we, or they, were lead to believe.
This book was just picked up by chance, because I had seen a review of it in the local press, but it has certainly made me think more deeply than the words on the page.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 28, 2022
This was one I had to endure with little to no satisfaction at the end.
The author seems to want to say something without saying it but not even hinting at what it might be. Mysterious for no apparent reason.
2 stars
The author seems to want to say something without saying it but not even hinting at what it might be. Mysterious for no apparent reason.
2 stars
March 31, 2022
Metronome is everything that I want from a book, this is most certainly going to be amongst my top books of this year. It is hauntingly beautiful, written with such precision and care. The premise is unusual and refreshing and the characters blaze gloriously from the pages.
Aina and Whitney live in an isolated croft cottage on desolated island. They've been there for twelve years; exiled after committing a crime. Life is harsh on the island and is dictated by the pills that they must take every eight hours, in order to stay alive. They spent their time attending to the ground, attempting to grow food with regular exercise as well as an ancient jigsaw. Whitney is an artist and forms sculptures from material that he can salvage.
Other the. years, shipwrecks have washed up on the shore, empty with no sign of life and more recently, a sheep has appeared in their yard. Sheep can't swim, can they? Aina begins to suspect that Whitney knows more about their prison, is it really an island? How did the sheep get there, and why are pine needles matted in its fur? There are no pine trees on the island ... or are there?
Their parole is due and they expect the Warden to come and free them, but he doesn't appear and Aina takes matters into her own hands. She too can have secrets and she forms a plan that she cannot share with Whitney.
Metronome is beautifully written, with prose so lyrical and moving. The author captures the pure desolation of the landscape, with the weather playing such a large part in the story. There are passages that made me take such a deep breath, he describes the simple things, such as a candle being snuffed out with such care and precision - I could almost smell the molten wax as the flame fluttered and died.
This is dystopian fiction at its best. Just like the great Margaret Atwood in The Handmaid's Tale, this author doesn't inform the reader of how the world becomes what it is in this story. It takes some time before we learn what crime Aina and Whitney are guilty of, and when we realise, we see the horror that the world has become, it's so clever and so compelling, and nothing is as expected.
This author is so talented, the way that the relationship between Aina and Whitney chop and change throughout the novel is done so very well. The claustrophobic feel of two people spending all of their time together, with no other human company is chilling, and the little niggles of doubt and blame between them, that grow with an intensity throughout is impeccably handled.
Metronome is the perfect title for this book. Aina often remembers the metronome that sat upon her piano in their previous life. The piano is central to the discovery of their 'crime' and their subsequent banishment to the island and it is a clever reminder of the time that ticks by between their eight hourly doses of medication.
Metronome is an addictive and hugely compelling novel, I was totally enraptured by the characters and the plot. Things take an unexpected turn toward the end and the reader is left with a sense of both sorrow and hopeful joy. Original and intriguing and highly recommended by me.
Aina and Whitney live in an isolated croft cottage on desolated island. They've been there for twelve years; exiled after committing a crime. Life is harsh on the island and is dictated by the pills that they must take every eight hours, in order to stay alive. They spent their time attending to the ground, attempting to grow food with regular exercise as well as an ancient jigsaw. Whitney is an artist and forms sculptures from material that he can salvage.
Other the. years, shipwrecks have washed up on the shore, empty with no sign of life and more recently, a sheep has appeared in their yard. Sheep can't swim, can they? Aina begins to suspect that Whitney knows more about their prison, is it really an island? How did the sheep get there, and why are pine needles matted in its fur? There are no pine trees on the island ... or are there?
Their parole is due and they expect the Warden to come and free them, but he doesn't appear and Aina takes matters into her own hands. She too can have secrets and she forms a plan that she cannot share with Whitney.
Metronome is beautifully written, with prose so lyrical and moving. The author captures the pure desolation of the landscape, with the weather playing such a large part in the story. There are passages that made me take such a deep breath, he describes the simple things, such as a candle being snuffed out with such care and precision - I could almost smell the molten wax as the flame fluttered and died.
This is dystopian fiction at its best. Just like the great Margaret Atwood in The Handmaid's Tale, this author doesn't inform the reader of how the world becomes what it is in this story. It takes some time before we learn what crime Aina and Whitney are guilty of, and when we realise, we see the horror that the world has become, it's so clever and so compelling, and nothing is as expected.
This author is so talented, the way that the relationship between Aina and Whitney chop and change throughout the novel is done so very well. The claustrophobic feel of two people spending all of their time together, with no other human company is chilling, and the little niggles of doubt and blame between them, that grow with an intensity throughout is impeccably handled.
Metronome is the perfect title for this book. Aina often remembers the metronome that sat upon her piano in their previous life. The piano is central to the discovery of their 'crime' and their subsequent banishment to the island and it is a clever reminder of the time that ticks by between their eight hourly doses of medication.
Metronome is an addictive and hugely compelling novel, I was totally enraptured by the characters and the plot. Things take an unexpected turn toward the end and the reader is left with a sense of both sorrow and hopeful joy. Original and intriguing and highly recommended by me.
November 12, 2021
I am honestly not sure what to say about this book- I have been left very confused and unsure about what actually happened in this novel.
The story centers around a couple who have been banished to an island for having a child against the rules of their country. They have been on this island for 12 years and are waiting to start their parole, with the hope of finally being reunited with their son. However, things start to go wrong and their hope of ever getting off the island starts to melt away.
I thought the storyline was really interesting and not like anything I had ever read before. The author clearly has a great imagination for creating worlds not quite like our own, but scarily close to what could happen in real life. Both Whitney and Aina were very complex characters but unfortunately I did not seem to warm to either of them. I wonder if this may have been the point? As both characters have lots of secrets that they keep to themselves throughout the novel and we don't ever really get to understand what they all are.
I want to talk about the ending- WHAT. ACTUALLY.HAPPEND? because I still don't understand it a day later. I actually NEED to know what happened- did Aina get reunited with Maxime or was she hallucinating? Please someone tell me!!
Overall, I thought the story was very complex, interesting and really dived into what isolation can do to people. I would give it a 3/5.
The story centers around a couple who have been banished to an island for having a child against the rules of their country. They have been on this island for 12 years and are waiting to start their parole, with the hope of finally being reunited with their son. However, things start to go wrong and their hope of ever getting off the island starts to melt away.
I thought the storyline was really interesting and not like anything I had ever read before. The author clearly has a great imagination for creating worlds not quite like our own, but scarily close to what could happen in real life. Both Whitney and Aina were very complex characters but unfortunately I did not seem to warm to either of them. I wonder if this may have been the point? As both characters have lots of secrets that they keep to themselves throughout the novel and we don't ever really get to understand what they all are.
I want to talk about the ending- WHAT. ACTUALLY.HAPPEND? because I still don't understand it a day later. I actually NEED to know what happened- did Aina get reunited with Maxime or was she hallucinating? Please someone tell me!!
Overall, I thought the story was very complex, interesting and really dived into what isolation can do to people. I would give it a 3/5.
December 22, 2022
I was attracted to this book by the premise : two people exiled for some mysterious crime trapped on an island by the requirement to take a pill every 8 hours in order to survive.
The couple's environment while beautiful is a little too harsh for easy living, and the couple's personalities are contrasting rather than complimentary:
She is ambitious, industrious, working hard to create whatever they need and investigating their surroundings. He is passive and compliant, spending time on his art projects and acquiescing to their fate.
At first, the author uses his elegant prose to create the island setting and the characters. Unfortunately, the writing never really develops its full potential.
The narrative ticktocks between the daily routine and the characters' inner thoughts, building tension as if towards a countdown however just like a metronome it simply becomes repetitive.
At 60% in there is some excitement, action. Random elements are introduced which offer more depth to the world building but little advancement of any kind of story. The result is chaos, violence and more incomprehensible loose ends.
And then the ending ……
It feels as if the author has run out of steam.
Instead of leaving the story in a state of complete hopelessness, we are given some hope, which is almost immediately dashed by a 'deus ex machina' event and a scene, which may or may not be an illusion. As if the author didn't have the energy or inspiration to write the story ending he desired.
I was left with so many questions
How is the pill dispenser made to be so reliable, adaptable and indestructible but maintenance-free?
How is this country so big and lacking in population that is has space to imprison people in such isolated situations.
How come decades pass without anyone accidentally coming upon them?
Are the answers essential to the story? Probably not, but when you start pondering such questions mid-book it is obvious that the 'magic' of the story has not drawn you in and you are no longer able to 'suspend disbelief'.
Such beautiful writing deserves more than 3 stars but the storytelling deserves much less.
I received this book from Net Galley, in exchange for an honest review.
The couple's environment while beautiful is a little too harsh for easy living, and the couple's personalities are contrasting rather than complimentary:
She is ambitious, industrious, working hard to create whatever they need and investigating their surroundings. He is passive and compliant, spending time on his art projects and acquiescing to their fate.
At first, the author uses his elegant prose to create the island setting and the characters. Unfortunately, the writing never really develops its full potential.
The narrative ticktocks between the daily routine and the characters' inner thoughts, building tension as if towards a countdown however just like a metronome it simply becomes repetitive.
At 60% in there is some excitement, action. Random elements are introduced which offer more depth to the world building but little advancement of any kind of story. The result is chaos, violence and more incomprehensible loose ends.
And then the ending ……
It feels as if the author has run out of steam.
Instead of leaving the story in a state of complete hopelessness, we are given some hope, which is almost immediately dashed by a 'deus ex machina' event and a scene, which may or may not be an illusion. As if the author didn't have the energy or inspiration to write the story ending he desired.
I was left with so many questions
How is the pill dispenser made to be so reliable, adaptable and indestructible but maintenance-free?
How is this country so big and lacking in population that is has space to imprison people in such isolated situations.
How come decades pass without anyone accidentally coming upon them?
Are the answers essential to the story? Probably not, but when you start pondering such questions mid-book it is obvious that the 'magic' of the story has not drawn you in and you are no longer able to 'suspend disbelief'.
Such beautiful writing deserves more than 3 stars but the storytelling deserves much less.
I received this book from Net Galley, in exchange for an honest review.
April 26, 2022
For fans of the slightly bizarre and ambiguous.
My review is published in the May edition of goodREADING magazine.
My review is published in the May edition of goodREADING magazine.
February 15, 2025
What a captivating, claustrophic, extraordinarily atmospheric novel. Aina and Whitney awaiting parole on a desolate island. Despite the premise that they are serving a sentence on an island with few resources, this started out with a feeling that this was a familiar world which dissipated into dystopia as the narrative progressed and authoritarianism and menace crept in.
I recently read Catherine Chidgeley's Book of Guilt which, although a very different type of story also grasped a vision of a familiar world distorted by society following scary pathways to the future presented.
I would not place myself as a science fiction reader but remarkable novels such as this do spark my brain into supposition which cannot be a bad thing. I, like the protagonists felt myself trying (and failing) to chart the unknown territory.
I thought that most of the book had pace because I could suspend reality and immerse myself in the story. The final section I felt rather shattered that feeling. Whilst fitting the plot progression I just felt that suspending belief was out the window.
I recently read Catherine Chidgeley's Book of Guilt which, although a very different type of story also grasped a vision of a familiar world distorted by society following scary pathways to the future presented.
I would not place myself as a science fiction reader but remarkable novels such as this do spark my brain into supposition which cannot be a bad thing. I, like the protagonists felt myself trying (and failing) to chart the unknown territory.
I thought that most of the book had pace because I could suspend reality and immerse myself in the story. The final section I felt rather shattered that feeling. Whilst fitting the plot progression I just felt that suspending belief was out the window.
May 20, 2022
Dystopian, suspenseful and atmospheric, the premise of this novel is that a married couple are coming to the end of their 12 year incarceration on a remote (fictional) island. In their dwelling is a machine which, every 8 hours, dispenses a pill to keep them safe from the toxic atmosphere on the island, rendering them unable to explore the wider terrain. Although they've made preparations to leave because their sentence is over, their messages to the warden are going unheard. Aina begins to wonder whether Whitney knows more about their circumstances than he is letting on.
I really enjoyed the main plot that takes place on the island but the flashbacks let it down for me. I don't enjoy when a book relies on flashbacks to tell the story; I feel like if the story is good enough a chronological approach is just fine, but I realise this is a personal nit-pick. The flashbacks in Metronome are drip-feeding information you're really keen to learn - in this case why Aina and Whitney ended up on the prison island - and the reveal fell flat for me, personally, as did the reveal of Whitney's long-held secret.
[SPOILERS AHEAD] I think my issue comes from the blurb of the book. It suggested a story of survival and hardship, a situation which require out-of-the-box thinking and the island setting itself promised a mystery to unravel. I don't think I would have been as interested if the blurb had hinted at the central idea of population control through fertility regulation because this is a story that has been told many times.
Whilst I'm not sure Metronome brings anything new to the genre, I did enjoy the atmospheric descriptions and Watson did a good job of making the couple's predicament believable.
I really enjoyed the main plot that takes place on the island but the flashbacks let it down for me. I don't enjoy when a book relies on flashbacks to tell the story; I feel like if the story is good enough a chronological approach is just fine, but I realise this is a personal nit-pick. The flashbacks in Metronome are drip-feeding information you're really keen to learn - in this case why Aina and Whitney ended up on the prison island - and the reveal fell flat for me, personally, as did the reveal of Whitney's long-held secret.
[SPOILERS AHEAD] I think my issue comes from the blurb of the book. It suggested a story of survival and hardship, a situation which require out-of-the-box thinking and the island setting itself promised a mystery to unravel. I don't think I would have been as interested if the blurb had hinted at the central idea of population control through fertility regulation because this is a story that has been told many times.
Whilst I'm not sure Metronome brings anything new to the genre, I did enjoy the atmospheric descriptions and Watson did a good job of making the couple's predicament believable.
March 31, 2022
I loved the premise of this book and had high hopes of learning more about a world which exiles people as punishment, making them dependant on pills for survival. Instead we had a very slow burn of a story that said a lot but explained nothing. None of the characters had anything likeable about them, leaving me feeling strangely remote from the story. I kept reading until the end, which I found disappointing as it was very ambiguous and open to interpretation.
Thanks to the author and Pigeonhole for the opportunity to read this, but sadly not my cup of tea.
Thanks to the author and Pigeonhole for the opportunity to read this, but sadly not my cup of tea.
September 25, 2024
Aina and Whitney are a couple who have been sentenced to live on a deserted island for the past twelve years. This is their punishment for a crime they'd committed...the crime was having a baby without the state's permission. This is a bleak future where the population is mandated to take pills every eight hours in order to survive. They're promised a parole by an officer but for some reason, this is delayed indefinitely. One fateful day, a shipwreck appears on the shore, bringing with it a man and his 10 year old daughter...along with a load of trouble. As much as I'm not a huge fan of post-apocalyptic novels, this emotive work is a welcome exception.
June 8, 2023
I had to have a bit of a think about how to rate this one. I found it slow going in places and there seemed to be a lot of plot holes. But ultimately, I enjoyed it and wanted to keep reading despite this.
In a dystopian world, Aina and Whitney are a (married?) couple exiled to an island for the crime of having an unauthorised child. It feels near-future? They have to take a pill every 8 hours to survive the effects of toxic gases released by a melting permafrost. This limits the distance they can travel from their croft and therefore, a chance of escape. When a sheep turns up, Aina starts to question their island jail. They reach the 12 year mark when they should be up for parole but no-one comes to collect them. As time goes on, Aina's doubts about their situation and Whitney grow and her thoughts turn to escape.
Questions. What state are things in that only certain people are allowed to have children? Are all crimes punished in this way? In which case, how is there room to isolate all prisoners like this? How can the pill dispenser store so many pills? How can the pill dispenser be so indestructible when other tech in the croft is subject to usual damage by flooding, etc? Why is it they didn't need the pills before living on the island? So other parts of the world are not affected by the permafrost issue? Where do all the boat wrecks come from? Is this a world with no visible aircraft? These are just for starters. By the end, I still had questions about Aina and Whitney's relationship and the circumstances that led to their incarceration. Some of this was due to lack of info and some due to confusing info. Maybe it's because we meet the couple towards the end of their twelve years imprisonment when they are in separate beds and the sentence has already taken an irredeemable toll on their relationship. But even in the flashbacks to their time before the island, their relationship didn't feel quite right to me.
Some of it was too slow a burn for me. It's an atmospheric, desolate read but a good portrait of isolation and what it can do to a person and a relationship. The bleak life portrayed can be relentless. Some of it did remind me of the montage in Robert Eggers' film The Lighthouse where Robert Pattinson's character is shown doing non-stop physical chores day after day. But it built tension in the plot and between Aine and Whitney. The action ramps up quickly in the last third. The ending is ambiguous. It's left up to the reader to choose and I don't really have a problem with that.
So mixed feelings with the plot holes. However, I feel more forgiving towards Metronome than I have of other books I've read with plot issues. It's an interesting debut. I'll be curious to see what the author does next.
In a dystopian world, Aina and Whitney are a (married?) couple exiled to an island for the crime of having an unauthorised child. It feels near-future? They have to take a pill every 8 hours to survive the effects of toxic gases released by a melting permafrost. This limits the distance they can travel from their croft and therefore, a chance of escape. When a sheep turns up, Aina starts to question their island jail. They reach the 12 year mark when they should be up for parole but no-one comes to collect them. As time goes on, Aina's doubts about their situation and Whitney grow and her thoughts turn to escape.
Questions. What state are things in that only certain people are allowed to have children? Are all crimes punished in this way? In which case, how is there room to isolate all prisoners like this? How can the pill dispenser store so many pills? How can the pill dispenser be so indestructible when other tech in the croft is subject to usual damage by flooding, etc? Why is it they didn't need the pills before living on the island? So other parts of the world are not affected by the permafrost issue? Where do all the boat wrecks come from? Is this a world with no visible aircraft? These are just for starters. By the end, I still had questions about Aina and Whitney's relationship and the circumstances that led to their incarceration. Some of this was due to lack of info and some due to confusing info. Maybe it's because we meet the couple towards the end of their twelve years imprisonment when they are in separate beds and the sentence has already taken an irredeemable toll on their relationship. But even in the flashbacks to their time before the island, their relationship didn't feel quite right to me.
Some of it was too slow a burn for me. It's an atmospheric, desolate read but a good portrait of isolation and what it can do to a person and a relationship. The bleak life portrayed can be relentless. Some of it did remind me of the montage in Robert Eggers' film The Lighthouse where Robert Pattinson's character is shown doing non-stop physical chores day after day. But it built tension in the plot and between Aine and Whitney. The action ramps up quickly in the last third. The ending is ambiguous. It's left up to the reader to choose and I don't really have a problem with that.
So mixed feelings with the plot holes. However, I feel more forgiving towards Metronome than I have of other books I've read with plot issues. It's an interesting debut. I'll be curious to see what the author does next.
June 21, 2022
I came out of this book thinking I had mixed feelings about it, but it's starting to dawn on me that it's more an absence of any feeling at all.
There are certainly some compelling aspects to this novel in terms of depicting a dystopian future, but there were far too many questions left lingering about how this dystopian future came about. While there is an argument to be that as it's a story of Aina and Whitney's "present" they wouldn't be reflect on a past that they haven't interacted with, the fact that the story is told in the third person means that there is scope there in the writing to include it. It seemed very much that Watson wanted to keep the narrative focused solely on Aina and Whitney though with mixed success. The flashbacks of telling how they came to be parents and came to face their exile were engaging, as was the wedge that started to drive itself between Aina and Whitney as the end of their twelve years came and no warden appeared to end their exile. The plot started to get lost somewhere around the middle though and only really regained its footing in the final third only to end with such disappointing ambiguity. It was almost like Watson didn't have the confidence to commit to an ending and left it in the hands of the reader.
My main take away though is wondering how such an undoubtedly HUGE supply of pills (3x a day for 2 people) was stored on the island and how it never occurred to either of them that they could probably find/break their way into what must have been a pretty sizeable storage unit.
There are certainly some compelling aspects to this novel in terms of depicting a dystopian future, but there were far too many questions left lingering about how this dystopian future came about. While there is an argument to be that as it's a story of Aina and Whitney's "present" they wouldn't be reflect on a past that they haven't interacted with, the fact that the story is told in the third person means that there is scope there in the writing to include it. It seemed very much that Watson wanted to keep the narrative focused solely on Aina and Whitney though with mixed success. The flashbacks of telling how they came to be parents and came to face their exile were engaging, as was the wedge that started to drive itself between Aina and Whitney as the end of their twelve years came and no warden appeared to end their exile. The plot started to get lost somewhere around the middle though and only really regained its footing in the final third only to end with such disappointing ambiguity. It was almost like Watson didn't have the confidence to commit to an ending and left it in the hands of the reader.
My main take away though is wondering how such an undoubtedly HUGE supply of pills (3x a day for 2 people) was stored on the island and how it never occurred to either of them that they could probably find/break their way into what must have been a pretty sizeable storage unit.
January 21, 2024
3.5 stars. Aina and Whitney have been living in exile on a remote island for the last twelve years. There is no chance of escape, their survival relies on the dispensing of a tablet every twelve hours which keeps them alive. As their parole approaches they begin to prepare for their future and freedom. But will this really come?
A stark dystopian novel, harsh and bleak. While I enjoyed it, I never managed to feel that drawn to the characters, their stilted nature kept them at arm’s length so I couldn’t feel too invested in their future. I also felt like I still needed to know more, the book finishes with an ambiguous ending that I wasn’t keen on and I did feel that the last part of the story was rather rushed. The story plodded along for the first two thirds then wham, everything seemed to happen at once.
A great concept, well written with a eerie and frightening premise, but overall I felt like there could have been more to this story.
A stark dystopian novel, harsh and bleak. While I enjoyed it, I never managed to feel that drawn to the characters, their stilted nature kept them at arm’s length so I couldn’t feel too invested in their future. I also felt like I still needed to know more, the book finishes with an ambiguous ending that I wasn’t keen on and I did feel that the last part of the story was rather rushed. The story plodded along for the first two thirds then wham, everything seemed to happen at once.
A great concept, well written with a eerie and frightening premise, but overall I felt like there could have been more to this story.
February 15, 2023
An atmospheric and tense story with dystopian, Atwood-esque undertones: just my kind of book.
Watson writes masterfully, drip-feeding just the right amount of plot and story throughout to keep you tantalised. The ambience of the setting was impeccably created and perfect for establishing a tone of mystery. This, with the dynamic presence of the sea - almost a character in and of itself in the way it influences the main characters - makes the novel feel restless and unsettled.
The relationship between Aina and Whitney is murky and imbalanced, with Aina not fully trusting Whitney. In all, Watson has created an addicting, page-turning mystery-thriller which excites all the way to the very sudden ending.
Watson writes masterfully, drip-feeding just the right amount of plot and story throughout to keep you tantalised. The ambience of the setting was impeccably created and perfect for establishing a tone of mystery. This, with the dynamic presence of the sea - almost a character in and of itself in the way it influences the main characters - makes the novel feel restless and unsettled.
The relationship between Aina and Whitney is murky and imbalanced, with Aina not fully trusting Whitney. In all, Watson has created an addicting, page-turning mystery-thriller which excites all the way to the very sudden ending.
March 9, 2022
Metronome by Tom Watson is the debut novel about Aina and Whitney, two individuals who were in exile for a crime they committed. These two must take pills to survive every eight hours but suddenly weird things start happening. Aina and Whitney must deal with big choices regarding their peninsula prison.
This was an easy ready that was finished fairly quickly however the premise was confusing and the dynamic between the characters kept shifting which left it feeling dull and less enthusiastic.
The feeling and relationship of these characters was portrayed well. We saw the beauty in the world they had created but the story felt very limited.
This was an easy ready that was finished fairly quickly however the premise was confusing and the dynamic between the characters kept shifting which left it feeling dull and less enthusiastic.
The feeling and relationship of these characters was portrayed well. We saw the beauty in the world they had created but the story felt very limited.
August 28, 2022
Had high hopes for this book, but for me the premise outweighed the plot. Nothing is really explained and there’s a lot of reading between the lines. Also had an issue with a dystopian society that would exile prisoners to remote islands, but then send them supply drops and use of a radio for communication?? And the pill clock, how had this got an endless supply??
An unsatisfying, ambiguous ending that left me as cold as reading about the landscape.
An unsatisfying, ambiguous ending that left me as cold as reading about the landscape.
June 8, 2022
The writing style was very boring the characters were an interesting I couldn't get the feel of this book I didn't click with this book at all
September 25, 2022
What a good book. Maybe it should have five stars. Tense, claustrophobic, gripping. I could chart it by my emotions: there’s a line in it that made me closer to feeling sick than any other for years and years. Another brought my hand involuntarily to my mouth. I chuckled out loud in a cafe. I gasped alone on the bed. It’s great.
This book does a couple of things that I think are really impressive.
First, it’s very readable. The character list is sparse but the two protagonists are so well realised and at times both oddly quite relatable, despite their extraordinary circumstances. The book is called ‘metronome’ and that could apply to the plotting style as well, it’s expertly paced, the momentum in the final third is unrelenting.
Second, it’s also a dystopian vision of the world that seems somehow really plausible. I’ve read a lot of near-future dystopias in the last few years. A lot feed on our anxieties about climate change in some way. This does so too, but less obviously, and it doesn’t over explain how we got to this place. We’re just there.
Third, it satisfyingly solved the ‘doctor who’ problem I often encounter. When I read a book with a high concept mystery I find myself thinking of most episodes of doctor who, where they create a brilliant otherworldly monster, villain, threat, etc. but then the solution to the problem is ‘eh, magic, innit.’ Here the ‘problem’ is brilliant and viscerally realised. A couple are stranded on a island, serving a punishment for a crime we aren’t immediately privy to. They are trapped by geography, and by an apparently poisoned environment: they each have to take a pill every eight hours that is only dispensed from a physical, unmovable, unfathomable structure in their crofting cottage. They are free to build a life, but prisoners of their setting. As the book unfolds, different possibilities appear on the horizon. At various points I could see very different scenarios, and I worried that the back half: the explanation and possible resolution, would underwhelm or disappoint. This really didn’t: the level of explanation is well maintained, the resolution shocked and gripped me (while also being somehow predictable from the first few pages). It’s a tricky task to pull that off and this book did it so well.
Hugely enjoyable, really might give it five stars.
This book does a couple of things that I think are really impressive.
First, it’s very readable. The character list is sparse but the two protagonists are so well realised and at times both oddly quite relatable, despite their extraordinary circumstances. The book is called ‘metronome’ and that could apply to the plotting style as well, it’s expertly paced, the momentum in the final third is unrelenting.
Second, it’s also a dystopian vision of the world that seems somehow really plausible. I’ve read a lot of near-future dystopias in the last few years. A lot feed on our anxieties about climate change in some way. This does so too, but less obviously, and it doesn’t over explain how we got to this place. We’re just there.
Third, it satisfyingly solved the ‘doctor who’ problem I often encounter. When I read a book with a high concept mystery I find myself thinking of most episodes of doctor who, where they create a brilliant otherworldly monster, villain, threat, etc. but then the solution to the problem is ‘eh, magic, innit.’ Here the ‘problem’ is brilliant and viscerally realised. A couple are stranded on a island, serving a punishment for a crime we aren’t immediately privy to. They are trapped by geography, and by an apparently poisoned environment: they each have to take a pill every eight hours that is only dispensed from a physical, unmovable, unfathomable structure in their crofting cottage. They are free to build a life, but prisoners of their setting. As the book unfolds, different possibilities appear on the horizon. At various points I could see very different scenarios, and I worried that the back half: the explanation and possible resolution, would underwhelm or disappoint. This really didn’t: the level of explanation is well maintained, the resolution shocked and gripped me (while also being somehow predictable from the first few pages). It’s a tricky task to pull that off and this book did it so well.
Hugely enjoyable, really might give it five stars.
March 14, 2022
I love dystopian thrillers and Metronome was a really intriguing book which stayed with me long after I put it down. Aina and Whitney have been exiled onto an island due to breaking their home’s fertility laws. As a condition of their stay, they must take a pill that is dispensed every 8 hours or they die, however their date of parole is coming up and they will soon be free – or will they?
The book is short and very pacy, with a lot in it to hold my interest and I finished it in two sessions on a particularly long train journey. I enjoyed the story and was really intrigued with it although I would have liked a little more world building to tell me about the world outside the island. The plot is very character-focussed, told from the perspective of Aina, and we are rooting for her throughout the story, with occasional chapters dedicated to (vaguely) explaining what happened before to cause them to have been exiled. I would have liked a little more explanation as to why these rules had come into existence and also how the punishment system was supposed to work, as well as a little more information about the pills. When a later event regarding the mainland is introduced, this is also skimmed over and I would have liked a little more speculation from the characters as to what had happened as well.
The ending is going to be the thing that most divides readers of Metronome. It is deliberately left ambiguous and I personally think this worked rather well. I enjoyed puzzling what happened next and imagining the possible endings however, I can also see that this will frustrate some readers that want a black and white conclusion.
Overall, Metronome is an interesting story with a great premise that sucked me right in to its island setting, however I would have preferred a little more explanation and world building at times. Thank you to NetGalley & Bloomsbury Publishing for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
For more of my reviews check out www.kindig.co.uk
The book is short and very pacy, with a lot in it to hold my interest and I finished it in two sessions on a particularly long train journey. I enjoyed the story and was really intrigued with it although I would have liked a little more world building to tell me about the world outside the island. The plot is very character-focussed, told from the perspective of Aina, and we are rooting for her throughout the story, with occasional chapters dedicated to (vaguely) explaining what happened before to cause them to have been exiled. I would have liked a little more explanation as to why these rules had come into existence and also how the punishment system was supposed to work, as well as a little more information about the pills. When a later event regarding the mainland is introduced, this is also skimmed over and I would have liked a little more speculation from the characters as to what had happened as well.
The ending is going to be the thing that most divides readers of Metronome. It is deliberately left ambiguous and I personally think this worked rather well. I enjoyed puzzling what happened next and imagining the possible endings however, I can also see that this will frustrate some readers that want a black and white conclusion.
Overall, Metronome is an interesting story with a great premise that sucked me right in to its island setting, however I would have preferred a little more explanation and world building at times. Thank you to NetGalley & Bloomsbury Publishing for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
For more of my reviews check out www.kindig.co.uk
January 16, 2022
"The body's the only real prison there is'.
Whitney and Aina were sent to remote island to carry out a prison sentence for raising a child without governmental consent. The warden promises he will return at the end of their sentence to give them parole and allow them to return to the mainland, with their child, when the twelve years are up. But he doesn't.
This book is SO slow. I wanted to love it and the philosophical elements are banging - who can we ever really trust? How powerful is the element of hope when faced with adversity? What is real and what isn't? But the actual story had so many holes and was just too long for what actually happened.
The prose was gorgeous, filled with ideas around human feelings and capabilities, but ultimately, the book sucked.
"Yes, she is intimate with hope. Knows the fickleness of its tides."
Thank you to NetGalley for the Arc.
Whitney and Aina were sent to remote island to carry out a prison sentence for raising a child without governmental consent. The warden promises he will return at the end of their sentence to give them parole and allow them to return to the mainland, with their child, when the twelve years are up. But he doesn't.
This book is SO slow. I wanted to love it and the philosophical elements are banging - who can we ever really trust? How powerful is the element of hope when faced with adversity? What is real and what isn't? But the actual story had so many holes and was just too long for what actually happened.
The prose was gorgeous, filled with ideas around human feelings and capabilities, but ultimately, the book sucked.
"Yes, she is intimate with hope. Knows the fickleness of its tides."
Thank you to NetGalley for the Arc.
March 20, 2022
I seem to be in the minority in my opininon of this book; I found it really hard to get into and the characters really frustrating and uninteresting. Islands are always good places to set thrillers on, dystopian or otherwise but I never really felt I understood the geography and must admit I was pleased to get to the end of the book.
As I said I was obviously in the minority and maybe it was as much to do with my frame of mind whilst reading as the writing itself!
Thank you to netgalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for an advance copy of this book
As I said I was obviously in the minority and maybe it was as much to do with my frame of mind whilst reading as the writing itself!
Thank you to netgalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for an advance copy of this book
September 27, 2022
Not worth the effort. Intriguing at first, and I do like the way Mr Watson writes, but ultimately the story was frustrating and pointless. Unless I'm missing something of course, which is totally possible as I found the books plot very (and needlessly) ambiguous.
May 8, 2023
Aina and Whitney are in exile on an island because of a crime they committed 12yrs ago, kept alive by a machine that dispenses a pill every 8 hours they are nearing parole. But the warden hasn’t contacted them for years and it feels like they might be truly alone.
This is literary fiction and an interesting idea, the world they come from is told in recollections and seems bleak and controlled. What are the pills for? What crime did they commit? These are the questions that keep you reading. They have been alone, fending for themselves, they are married but the love and trust they once had is now replaced with doubt and paranoia. There are hints of a changed world, will they choose to leave and find out what’s out there, is there anything?
This is a compelling read, very wordy but beautifully descriptive. The final third I felt lost its way a little and seemed rushed but the story lingers long after you’ve finished.
This is literary fiction and an interesting idea, the world they come from is told in recollections and seems bleak and controlled. What are the pills for? What crime did they commit? These are the questions that keep you reading. They have been alone, fending for themselves, they are married but the love and trust they once had is now replaced with doubt and paranoia. There are hints of a changed world, will they choose to leave and find out what’s out there, is there anything?
This is a compelling read, very wordy but beautifully descriptive. The final third I felt lost its way a little and seemed rushed but the story lingers long after you’ve finished.
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