Time and Tithe

Changeling's Choice #2

by L.J. Cohen

Only months after her victory over Oberon and Titania, everything Lydia thought she'd accomplished is Faerie is falling into decay, the Fae are restless, and Taylor—the baby sister she sacrificed everything for—has grown up without her.

When Taylor tumbles out of the ordinary world and into Faerie, she discovers that Aeon, her imaginary childhood friend, is all too real. He is a powerful Fae, trapped in a maze of vengeance, memory, and madness. His unleashed power threatens to free Oberon and Titania and reignite the war Lydia ended.

The sisters, now nearly strangers to one another, must figure out how to keep Aeon from destroying Faerie while safeguarding the mortal world, all without sacrificing the Fae who was once friend to them both.

362 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 10, 2015

About the author

LJ Cohen is the author of eight novels across the science fiction and fantasy genres and was among the first wave of indie writers to qualify for SFWA membership. DERELICT, the first book in her Halcyone Space series, was named a Library Journal self-e select title and book of the year in 2014. Her ninth novel, LITANY FOR A BROKEN WORLD will be published in February of 2025.

A retired physical therapist, LJ now uses her clinical knowledge and skills to injure characters. She serves on the board of Broad Universe as well as several local non-profits in her community. In addition to her creative work as a writer and role as a community organizer, she is also a potter and fiber artist. She lives on a homestead farm in central MA and is extremely proud of her tractor riding and tree pruning skills.

Reviews

[Kat Gadoury · Rating 4 out of 5]

The ending was very good and satisfying, but it took a lot to get there. I didn’t like Lydia as much in this book as in the previous because she became very frustrating. However, I loved Taylor and Aileen here. I’m really happy with this sequel as it gave a good conclusion to the events of the last book and would recommend it to people who’ve read The Between and want a better ending.

[Nightwing Whitehead · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lydia, the girl from LJ Cohen's book The Between is back! Lydia was the girl who, with the help of a group of outcasts, overthrew the rulers of both the Dark and the Bright Faerie Courts, and then refused to rule over either Court. This has caused the Fey world to dissolve into chaos. And so the story begins, in Time and Tithe. Enter Lydia's little sister, Taylor, who is brought from the Mortal world by her imaginary childhood friend, Aeon, to rule in Lydia's place. Aeon was the close friend Lydia saw die, except he's not actually dead, is not imaginary, and is not the friend either girl thought he was. To make things even more dire, the changeling Lydia that grew up in the Mortal world is also brought into the war, along with her son and daughter. Lydia and Taylor, both now the same age and strangers to one another, have to save Faerie, as well as their "sister", her children, and the rest of the Mortal world. They do not have to do it alone, there are those whose loyalty cannot be questioned and many who choose to help for their own reasons. But, in the end, it still all rests with them. Or, does it? Help comes from some of the most unperceived areas in this stay-up-all-night-reading story. The twists and turns in this story will keep you enthralled until the very last word, and beyond.

And now, once again, I have to fill empty hours as I await yet the next book by Ms. Cohen.

[Mike · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a difficult review to write, since I know the author on social media and like her, but I didn't particularly like this book.

I enjoyed the previous book in the series, and felt that it was a fresh and interesting take on the fae. I've since seen similar things from a couple of other authors: the fae as one-percenters (or the post-Occupy public idea of one-percenters), superficial, concerned only with their own power and not at all with its cost to everyone else, selfish and self-involved, with no insight into the family values of Ordinary Decent Folks and how those values make Ordinary Decent Folks stronger and better than them. (By "family values", incidentally, I mean here the value accorded to the ties of family.)

Now, there's nothing wrong with that as a premise at all, and that isn't what I didn't enjoy. The problem I had is that, to me, this book lacked light and shade.

With the exception of a few brief moments of mild modern American sarcasm from the modern American characters, the whole of the book seemed stuck in a mood I want to describe as "portentious, and a bit angsty". Stakes are high, emotions are high, conflict levels are high, everyone is pitted against everyone else or forming apparently doomed alliances, one thing after another is going horribly wrong, and there's never a moment to breathe.

This might have worked if there hadn't also been such a prevailing mood of confusion and helplessness, in which nobody knew how to resolve the situation. Characters were thrashing round, reacting without a plan, or angsting about how they didn't know what to do (and therefore doing nothing), right up to the end. It was probably inevitable, therefore, that the final resolution seemed a bit contrived and unconvincing to me (especially since aspects of it bore strong similarities to the resolution of the first book).

I'm not suggesting that the book wasn't well done. It may also have set out to achieve exactly what I didn't enjoy. But I didn't enjoy it.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a fan of Ms. Cohen's work, I was thrilled to get an ARC of Time and Tithe in exchange for an honest review. I have purchased, read, and enjoyed her other novels The Between and Derelict, and looked forward to seeing what else was in store for Lydia Hawthorne after her battle with the Fae in The Between.

TIME AND TITHE was a further exploration of Faerie and the politics of the Fae that live there. This time, we get to see it from multiple points of view and for many different reasons. It felt like looking through a kaleidoscope. Many of the descriptions are wonderfully surreal and play around with how you might imagine a magical realm to work. I won't offer any spoilers at all, but I'll just say that there are some great characters at play in this world -- great at being evil and great at being good, sometimes both in the same day. This is a story about politics, power, and intrigue, and at its heart are two teenage sisters trying to do their best.

The beginning felt slow, but I fell in love with Taylor. We get multiple points-of-view in this one, and it shifts throughout the chapters. Of all the voices that told the story, I liked Taylor the best and looked forward to the sections when we saw things from her point-of-view. Lydia had some serious trauma to overcome, and most of the beginning from her view was bordering on depressing. I'm glad I stuck with her, though, because her adventures go to unexpected places.

The story was written much like the maze that features so prominently in its pages. There were many wonderful and unexpected twists and turns here! I don't consider myself an expert of faerie lore, but I imagine if you have any interest in A Midsummer Night's Dream or related lore and politics (if the names Titania and Oberon ring a bell), this book would be right up your alley. Have you ever wondered what happened to your favorite imaginary friends when you were a child? Time and Tithe might help you meet some of them again.

[Jon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've struggled a lot with this review. We'll get the obligatory I know the author on social media and received a free copy of this book (though not necessarily in the exchange for a review - she's just awesome like that) out of the way.

While there might be some minor spoilers in the review, I'll avoid specific plot points and such.

I wish there was a way to have a multi-tier rating, or even a half-star designation. This isn't a three-star book. But I don't know that, for me, it goes fully to four. And that has little do with the writing itself. That's great. As the Goodread's star tool tip suggests, "I liked it."

So I suppose that means this review is more about my expectations and thoughts on the story.

I came crashing into this book just days after finishing the first (The Between). One of the first things I noticed was a definite change in mood/atmosphere. Which given the plot is to be expected. But the feeling never really let up for me throughout the book. It's heavy and brooding in ways. The book very much feels like a completely different world from the first to me.

I think this book does one thing really well. It offers a glimpse into a darker mindset--at least if any of my personal fights with depression and such are any indicator of the norm. Some of the new POVs let you come up for air from time to time, but it's very much a battle of emotions and thoughts even in the best of times.

That said, if you loved the first, this one is well worth the price of admission.

[Adriel Wiggins · Rating 4 out of 5]

*I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.*

LJ Cohen's _Time and Tithe_ is the sequel to _The Between._ I loved _The Between._ It fired my imagination and whispered to that quiet part of my heart that revels in fairy tales.
I had a harder time getting into _Time and Tithe._ I blame this primarily on the fact that I had the flu for the majority of the time that I was reading it. Because once I was well again, I read the last half of the book in less than a day.
There is nothing different about the second book from the first, in terms of writing style, pacing, technical ability, plotting, characterization, or anything else. As ever, LJ Cohen is an incredible author who crafts exciting and adventuresome books.
Perhaps, if a third installment comes out, I'll re-read through both _The Between_ and _Time and Tithe_ and find that I have no problem devouring it like I typically do Cohen's books. For now, this isn't my favorite.