What do you think?
Rate this book
Three Years with the Rat
A young man's quest to find his missing sister will catapult him into a dangerous labyrinth of secrets in this provocative, genre-bending, and page-turning debut.
After several years of drifting between school and go-nowhere jobs, a young man is drawn back into the big city of his youth. The magnet is his beloved older sister, Grace: always smart and charismatic even when she was rebelling, and always his hero. Now she is a promising graduate student in psychophysics and the centre of a group of friends who take "Little Brother" into their fold, where he finds camaraderie, romance, and even a decent job.
But it soon becomes clear that things are not well with Grace. Always acerbic, she now veers into sudden rages that are increasingly directed at her adoring boyfriend, John, who is also her fellow researcher. When Grace disappears, and John shortly thereafter, the narrator makes an astonishing discovery in their apartment: a box big enough to crawl inside, a lab rat, and a note that says This is the only way back for us. Soon he embarks on a mission to discover the truth, a pursuit that forces him to question time and space itself, and ultimately toward a perilous confrontation at the very limits of imagination.
This kinetic novel catapults the classic noir plot of a woman gone missing into the 21st century city, where so-called reality crashes into speculative science in a novel reminiscent of Danielewski's House of Leaves. Three Years with the Rat is simultaneously a mind-twisting mystery that plays with the very nature of time and the story of a young man who must face the dangerously destructive forces we all carry within ourselves.
After several years of drifting between school and go-nowhere jobs, a young man is drawn back into the big city of his youth. The magnet is his beloved older sister, Grace: always smart and charismatic even when she was rebelling, and always his hero. Now she is a promising graduate student in psychophysics and the centre of a group of friends who take "Little Brother" into their fold, where he finds camaraderie, romance, and even a decent job.
But it soon becomes clear that things are not well with Grace. Always acerbic, she now veers into sudden rages that are increasingly directed at her adoring boyfriend, John, who is also her fellow researcher. When Grace disappears, and John shortly thereafter, the narrator makes an astonishing discovery in their apartment: a box big enough to crawl inside, a lab rat, and a note that says This is the only way back for us. Soon he embarks on a mission to discover the truth, a pursuit that forces him to question time and space itself, and ultimately toward a perilous confrontation at the very limits of imagination.
This kinetic novel catapults the classic noir plot of a woman gone missing into the 21st century city, where so-called reality crashes into speculative science in a novel reminiscent of Danielewski's House of Leaves. Three Years with the Rat is simultaneously a mind-twisting mystery that plays with the very nature of time and the story of a young man who must face the dangerously destructive forces we all carry within ourselves.
288 pages, Hardcover
First published January 24, 2017
33 people are currently reading
2540 people want to read
About the author
Jay Hosking
1 book50 followersJay Hosking obtained his neuroscience Ph.D. at the University of British Columbia, teaching rats how to gamble and studying the neurobiological basis of choice.
At the same time, he also completed a creative writing M.F.A. His short stories have appeared in The Dalhousie Review and Little Fiction, been long-listed for the CBC Canada Writes short story competition, and received an editor's special mention in the Pushcart Prize anthology.
He is currently a postdoctoral fellow at Harvard University, where he researches decision-making and the human brain. The author lives in Vancouver, B.C..
At the same time, he also completed a creative writing M.F.A. His short stories have appeared in The Dalhousie Review and Little Fiction, been long-listed for the CBC Canada Writes short story competition, and received an editor's special mention in the Pushcart Prize anthology.
He is currently a postdoctoral fellow at Harvard University, where he researches decision-making and the human brain. The author lives in Vancouver, B.C..
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 177 reviews
October 30, 2017
This is what I call a delicious read.A Sci mystery, twists, conflicts and self-arguments. This book is full of them.
Story is about a young brother who comes back to the city after some years and start hanging out with his sister, her boyfriend and their friends. His sister goes missing one day and after a year the boyfriend goes missing too. To try to search and find these two the young brother steps in the crazy path those two already passed through.
Never in the story have learn about the young brother name despite the fact that he is the main character. He’s always called by names given to him by others Danger,Little Brother,Scruffy and it seems that actually he is being shaped by others. Always looking up to his sister he is confused when she disappears. As he proceed in solving the mystery of their research and disappearance he finds himself too.
Totally recommended if you enjoy mental games.
Story is about a young brother who comes back to the city after some years and start hanging out with his sister, her boyfriend and their friends. His sister goes missing one day and after a year the boyfriend goes missing too. To try to search and find these two the young brother steps in the crazy path those two already passed through.
Never in the story have learn about the young brother name despite the fact that he is the main character. He’s always called by names given to him by others Danger,Little Brother,Scruffy and it seems that actually he is being shaped by others. Always looking up to his sister he is confused when she disappears. As he proceed in solving the mystery of their research and disappearance he finds himself too.
Totally recommended if you enjoy mental games.
September 10, 2016
A mind-warping thriller that will make you question reality as you conceive of it. One of the most assured and haunting debuts I've read in recent memory.
February 9, 2017
Scientist writes book about temporal conundrums and existential meaning. Heady, trippy stuff. I found it somewhat pretentious, with a number of unfortunate sentences, a strangely sidelined central quest, an unmanageable climactic reveal, and an overall tonal drabness. Rats. I generally love these sorts of books, and I do give Hosking credit for taking on such an ambitious project, but perhaps it's too early in his career to do so. He has an MFA in Creative Writing, as well as various other degrees such as Ph.D. in neuroscience, and he’s currently a postdoctoral fellow at Harvard doing research on cognitive decision-making and the human brain. Can't deny he's a smarty pants! Maybe that's why there's so much posturing intellect in this work, but little heart. If he writes another book, I hope he'll relax a little and not try so darn hard to be brilliant. The strain shows and this reader found it stressful.
May 2, 2017
Im sorry but this book had the bad luck to be the one I read before ACOWAR came out so I went through it pretty fast, but from what I can tell ,t his story was pretty much all over the place, maybe is one of those books that you need to sit down and calmly read.... The story meddles with physic aspects, philosophical question and weak characters... not a good mixture. But there were glimpses where the story shines and the intricacies of the story are actually a plus. Maybe I didn't like it as much because it reminded me too much of "house of leaves" which I didn't like, but if you did then this book is for you.
October 6, 2016
A very impressive debut novel by Jay Hosking, with a mind-bending and compelling story that's not afraid to tackle science, science-fiction, philosophy and... I don't know, magical realism? To be honest, I'm not sure I fully understood what happened in the end...
There are several buts, though. First of all, the characters felt flat and lifeless for the most part- the one character I was rooting for was actually Buddy the rat!!! Secondly, the non-linear approach to describing the events, constantly changing from 2008 to 2006 in no apparent logical order (that I could grasp anyway) made it very confusing to follow the plot. I wasn't sure most of the time *when* things were taking place and it was annoying, to be honest.
The premise is very intriguing, the questions it poses are very interesting and exciting but the overall execution leaves quite a bit to be desired.
It's not a long read so give it a shot, maybe you will be able to make more sense of what actually happened. Then come and tell me, please.
There are several buts, though. First of all, the characters felt flat and lifeless for the most part- the one character I was rooting for was actually Buddy the rat!!! Secondly, the non-linear approach to describing the events, constantly changing from 2008 to 2006 in no apparent logical order (that I could grasp anyway) made it very confusing to follow the plot. I wasn't sure most of the time *when* things were taking place and it was annoying, to be honest.
The premise is very intriguing, the questions it poses are very interesting and exciting but the overall execution leaves quite a bit to be desired.
It's not a long read so give it a shot, maybe you will be able to make more sense of what actually happened. Then come and tell me, please.
October 17, 2016
This is an intriguing read and yet I never really was too taken with it. It's a short book but a slow read even though it kept me interested. Really, nothing much happens and there is no discernable climax. A strange book filled with science and yet probably best classified as magical realism. The plot concerns time and a woman scientist who wants to discover how time can be experienced objectively rather than subjectively. In simplistic terms she wants to stop time so she can experience life on her own terms, to spend time alone without the constraints of real world time. The book covers a three-year time span in a non-linear manner with each chapter taking place during one of those three years. We follow her life and how she drags her boyfriend and brother into this experiment with her. I can't say much more but overall the book was easy to read but meandering and I never got involved or liked any of the characters making the read just ok for me.
May 11, 2017
Father Time. Time is weird. It dilates, sometimes creating chasms, other times seeming to defy a gulf of years. Jay Hosking's novel reminds us that if it's "not nice to fool with Mother Nature " then it's positively dangerous to mess with Father Time.
Our main character is pretty much a regular guy just trying to have a life and put his difficult upbringing into the past. He is at a crossroads of sorts, a time when many paths are possible.
We have all heard about the implications coming from quantum physics that suggest the possibility of multiple universes. If a subatomic particle conceivably exists in more than one place at one time, then it's possible that big collections of such particles like us might have similar possibilities. Our character is buffeted by these ideas but is just trying to make his way through. He reminds me of a noir character who isn't as concerned so much with solving the mystery as he is with just surviving. In this way Hosking presents fascinating ideas without ever getting bogged down.
The format of the book cleverly enhances the ideas in it. This is a well thought out in this beautifully realized book.
Our main character is pretty much a regular guy just trying to have a life and put his difficult upbringing into the past. He is at a crossroads of sorts, a time when many paths are possible.
We have all heard about the implications coming from quantum physics that suggest the possibility of multiple universes. If a subatomic particle conceivably exists in more than one place at one time, then it's possible that big collections of such particles like us might have similar possibilities. Our character is buffeted by these ideas but is just trying to make his way through. He reminds me of a noir character who isn't as concerned so much with solving the mystery as he is with just surviving. In this way Hosking presents fascinating ideas without ever getting bogged down.
The format of the book cleverly enhances the ideas in it. This is a well thought out in this beautifully realized book.
February 7, 2017
(Reprinted from the Chicago Center for Literature and Photography [cclapcenter.com]. I am the original author of this essay, as well as the owner of CCLaP; it is not being reprinted illegally.)
The promotional material for Jay Hosking's Three Years with the Rat claims that the novel is "reminiscent of Mark Danielewski's House of Leaves," but as typical with this kind of stuff, that's simply a lie; in fact the one and only thing the two books have in common is that they both feature a space that's bigger on the inside than on the outside. Other than that, this book consists of not much more than a fairly pedestrian coming-of-age tale, plotted with the immaturity of a Young Adult novel and featuring dialogue that badly suffers from Joss Whedon Syndrome*, a book that hits all the notes you would expect from such a story (boy moves to Big City, boy makes new group of friends, boy gets into first serious romantic relationship, boy breaks up from first serious romantic relationship), only with a metafictional element holding the story spine together, in that it's the boy's older sister who convinces him to move there, and she and her boyfriend are both scientists who are working on some kind of shadowy project that supposedly supersedes the normal laws of space and time.
That's led St. Martin's Press to unwisely market this as a science-fiction novel, or at least a literary novel with strongly science-fictional overtones (thus the House of Leaves comparison on the dust jacket); but actual SF fans like myself will be disappointed by Three Years with the Rat, not only because the science part is dished out in such a poorly paced, haphazard way (smart readers can essentially glean everything they're trying to do in chapter 1, then the rest of the novel is a series of flashbacks where Hosking tries to slowly reveal the very information he fully showed in the first chapter), but because the eventual "science" that's revealed sounds literally like something a stoned undergraduate would come up with after a bullshit session in the dorm with their buddy**, then afterwards decide would make for a good subject off which to base an entire novel.
That's a huge problem here, because there's nothing compelling left once you discount the disappointing concept at the center of the book; and when combined with the immature writing style that's clearly being presented as something for grown-ups, that makes for a book that's hard to recommend and kind of a slog to actually read. I'm tacking on a few extra points to its score today anyway, as an acknowledgement that teens and Whedon fans will undoubtedly like this more than I did; but make no mistake, despite what St. Martin's is trying to peddle here, Primer this ain't.
Out of 10: 7.3
*Joss Whedon Syndrome: When dialogue supposedly meant for grown-ups is written in an overly twee and flippant style, which some people apparently like for some unfathomable reason, but for me is like fingernails down a chalkboard.
**"Dude, you know how, like, time seems to stand still when you're waiting in line at the grocery store? What if it actually does?" "Awww, duuuude." "And what if, like, you could control that time speed by putting six mirrors together directly across from each other in a cube, so that they're, like, all infinitely mirroring each other?" "Awww, duuuuuddde!" "And what if, like, what if you sat in the middle of that mirror cube, and like your entire past ceased to exist because of it, so then you could go back to your ex-girlfriend and undo all the dick moves that made her break up with you the first time?" "Stop, dude, stop! YOU'RE FREAKING ME OUT, DUDE!!!"
The promotional material for Jay Hosking's Three Years with the Rat claims that the novel is "reminiscent of Mark Danielewski's House of Leaves," but as typical with this kind of stuff, that's simply a lie; in fact the one and only thing the two books have in common is that they both feature a space that's bigger on the inside than on the outside. Other than that, this book consists of not much more than a fairly pedestrian coming-of-age tale, plotted with the immaturity of a Young Adult novel and featuring dialogue that badly suffers from Joss Whedon Syndrome*, a book that hits all the notes you would expect from such a story (boy moves to Big City, boy makes new group of friends, boy gets into first serious romantic relationship, boy breaks up from first serious romantic relationship), only with a metafictional element holding the story spine together, in that it's the boy's older sister who convinces him to move there, and she and her boyfriend are both scientists who are working on some kind of shadowy project that supposedly supersedes the normal laws of space and time.
That's led St. Martin's Press to unwisely market this as a science-fiction novel, or at least a literary novel with strongly science-fictional overtones (thus the House of Leaves comparison on the dust jacket); but actual SF fans like myself will be disappointed by Three Years with the Rat, not only because the science part is dished out in such a poorly paced, haphazard way (smart readers can essentially glean everything they're trying to do in chapter 1, then the rest of the novel is a series of flashbacks where Hosking tries to slowly reveal the very information he fully showed in the first chapter), but because the eventual "science" that's revealed sounds literally like something a stoned undergraduate would come up with after a bullshit session in the dorm with their buddy**, then afterwards decide would make for a good subject off which to base an entire novel.
That's a huge problem here, because there's nothing compelling left once you discount the disappointing concept at the center of the book; and when combined with the immature writing style that's clearly being presented as something for grown-ups, that makes for a book that's hard to recommend and kind of a slog to actually read. I'm tacking on a few extra points to its score today anyway, as an acknowledgement that teens and Whedon fans will undoubtedly like this more than I did; but make no mistake, despite what St. Martin's is trying to peddle here, Primer this ain't.
Out of 10: 7.3
*Joss Whedon Syndrome: When dialogue supposedly meant for grown-ups is written in an overly twee and flippant style, which some people apparently like for some unfathomable reason, but for me is like fingernails down a chalkboard.
**"Dude, you know how, like, time seems to stand still when you're waiting in line at the grocery store? What if it actually does?" "Awww, duuuude." "And what if, like, you could control that time speed by putting six mirrors together directly across from each other in a cube, so that they're, like, all infinitely mirroring each other?" "Awww, duuuuuddde!" "And what if, like, what if you sat in the middle of that mirror cube, and like your entire past ceased to exist because of it, so then you could go back to your ex-girlfriend and undo all the dick moves that made her break up with you the first time?" "Stop, dude, stop! YOU'RE FREAKING ME OUT, DUDE!!!"
March 13, 2017
Three Years with the Rat is a very cool book. It's really well written, brilliantly conceived, and elegantly constructed. It's the kind of story you want to get to the heart of, and it delivers on all counts. Jay Hosking is an exciting, innovative writer.
Three Years with the Rat is told by a nameless narrator, an aimless young man who moves to Toronto to start a new life close to his brilliant sister Grace. Grace and her boyfriend, John, are psychophysics grad students who are working in a lab on a complicated experiment involving lab rats. Our narrator falls in with their friends, gets a girlfriend, and gets a new job. But just as his life is looking up, his sister begins to have a nervous breakdown. She disappears. John has a troubling breakdown of his own and then also disappears. All that's left-behind are some mysterious boxes, one of the lab rats, and some other inexplicable elements of their experiment. Along with a note from John for the narrator, which reads: This is the only way back for us. The narrator must figure it all out if he ever wants to see Grace and John again—or even just discover what happened to them.
If you like the movie Memento—or any Christopher Nolan movie—the format of this novel will appeal to you. Each part is divided into three chapters, with the first set in 2008, the second in 2007, and the third in 2006. Seeing events unfold chronologically backwards makes it a thrill to connect the dots and piece together how things ended up the way they did. The characters are well-developed and compelling, especially the main trio of Grace, John, and the narrator. The narrator is ignorant when it comes to all the science, which is good for the reader: we can see things through his eyes and get the explanations along with him when they come.
This is a cool, trippy novel. Hosking deals with themes of science, time, mental health, relationships, and reality gracefully. He handles all the different topics with equal aplomb. Three Years with the Rat is a real treat to read, and I highly recommend it. And the title is perfect! Read it and see for yourself!
Three Years with the Rat is told by a nameless narrator, an aimless young man who moves to Toronto to start a new life close to his brilliant sister Grace. Grace and her boyfriend, John, are psychophysics grad students who are working in a lab on a complicated experiment involving lab rats. Our narrator falls in with their friends, gets a girlfriend, and gets a new job. But just as his life is looking up, his sister begins to have a nervous breakdown. She disappears. John has a troubling breakdown of his own and then also disappears. All that's left-behind are some mysterious boxes, one of the lab rats, and some other inexplicable elements of their experiment. Along with a note from John for the narrator, which reads: This is the only way back for us. The narrator must figure it all out if he ever wants to see Grace and John again—or even just discover what happened to them.
If you like the movie Memento—or any Christopher Nolan movie—the format of this novel will appeal to you. Each part is divided into three chapters, with the first set in 2008, the second in 2007, and the third in 2006. Seeing events unfold chronologically backwards makes it a thrill to connect the dots and piece together how things ended up the way they did. The characters are well-developed and compelling, especially the main trio of Grace, John, and the narrator. The narrator is ignorant when it comes to all the science, which is good for the reader: we can see things through his eyes and get the explanations along with him when they come.
This is a cool, trippy novel. Hosking deals with themes of science, time, mental health, relationships, and reality gracefully. He handles all the different topics with equal aplomb. Three Years with the Rat is a real treat to read, and I highly recommend it. And the title is perfect! Read it and see for yourself!
April 15, 2017
Didn't enjoy this one.
The main character was just... really boring. The writing was very plodding as well. Everything that happened was described in a very tedious manner. There was very little emotion in the entire book.
At the beginning, the main character discovers that his friend, who was trying to find his sister who disappeared, himself disappeared, leaving a weird person-sized box behind, a rat, and a weird rat sized box.
The box proved to be filled with mirrors and weird dirt! The main character went inside and was transported to a dark realm, where something walked up behind him and sliced his back open with a knife!
Angry, he dismantled it and took it home, along with the rat and the little box. Except that the rat went into the box and never came out! Main character's mind blown! Except, you know, that had just happened to him, and his friend, and his sister.
After that, the book started to get into lame flashbacks... and I knew. I knew that this book was going to have a bunch of vapid crap happen for most of the book until the climax finally happened!
So I skipped ahead, and was rewarded by being proved right! The middle proved to be mostly the main character meeting people and slowly noticing people weren't recognizing him because he was in parallel dimensions.
At the end, the main character finally makes the box again and hops inside again! This time, he forces himself to think of happy, patronus-y thoughts, and the monster doesn't slash him this time. He wanders into a forest, and it's a parallel universe version of his home city that's all forest! He meets someone he saw in the middle of the book, and it's an alien! She reveals that she's an energy being that likes to take human form to study humanity. She then says some cryptic stuff, and shows him where his friend and sister are.
Unfortunately, the monster chasing him was himself all along! Or a evil version of himself, the only difference being his violent nature and inability to hop worlds. That makes him realize that his friend was trapped there because he had fought with his own evil twin and lost, and he was actually speaking with the evil one (this never comes up again, I guess he's fine now). Also, his sister was addicted to getting herself caught in time loops because she only liked talking to herself. The main character brought his friend home though, by letting his monster self beat him nearly to death and saying a magic password (maybe just try the magic password first next time, you know?). He went home and got on with his life. He brought his friend's evil twin along (for some reason), and tried to bring his sister, but she didn't want to come, and eventually committed suicide.
Not very enjoyable.
The main character was just... really boring. The writing was very plodding as well. Everything that happened was described in a very tedious manner. There was very little emotion in the entire book.
At the beginning, the main character discovers that his friend, who was trying to find his sister who disappeared, himself disappeared, leaving a weird person-sized box behind, a rat, and a weird rat sized box.
The box proved to be filled with mirrors and weird dirt! The main character went inside and was transported to a dark realm, where something walked up behind him and sliced his back open with a knife!
Angry, he dismantled it and took it home, along with the rat and the little box. Except that the rat went into the box and never came out! Main character's mind blown! Except, you know, that had just happened to him, and his friend, and his sister.
After that, the book started to get into lame flashbacks... and I knew. I knew that this book was going to have a bunch of vapid crap happen for most of the book until the climax finally happened!
So I skipped ahead, and was rewarded by being proved right! The middle proved to be mostly the main character meeting people and slowly noticing people weren't recognizing him because he was in parallel dimensions.
At the end, the main character finally makes the box again and hops inside again! This time, he forces himself to think of happy, patronus-y thoughts, and the monster doesn't slash him this time. He wanders into a forest, and it's a parallel universe version of his home city that's all forest! He meets someone he saw in the middle of the book, and it's an alien! She reveals that she's an energy being that likes to take human form to study humanity. She then says some cryptic stuff, and shows him where his friend and sister are.
Unfortunately, the monster chasing him was himself all along! Or a evil version of himself, the only difference being his violent nature and inability to hop worlds. That makes him realize that his friend was trapped there because he had fought with his own evil twin and lost, and he was actually speaking with the evil one (this never comes up again, I guess he's fine now). Also, his sister was addicted to getting herself caught in time loops because she only liked talking to herself. The main character brought his friend home though, by letting his monster self beat him nearly to death and saying a magic password (maybe just try the magic password first next time, you know?). He went home and got on with his life. He brought his friend's evil twin along (for some reason), and tried to bring his sister, but she didn't want to come, and eventually committed suicide.
Not very enjoyable.
August 22, 2017
I can't believe this book got a green light to be published.
January 31, 2021
I recognize I gave this book 3 stars, but the first thing I have to say about it is Yikes. My Yikes is multifaceted, but I realize can kinda be summarized by my review of
Radiant Cool
: it's a (needlessly?..) complicated ~experimental novel, written by a white guy who has a lot of grad school experience but isn't a great writer, with the apparent purpose of putting their pet theory into action. The most annoying part of Three Years With the Rat is the unrealistic writing, including gems like "I want to bed you right now"; ridiculous couple-pet-names like "Trouble" and "Danger"; endless repetition of Grace telling everyone else how stupid they are (like, we get it, oh my god). And I'm sure anyone who doesn't live in Toronto would also find the incessant referral to street names super fucking annoying, but I'm still excited to be living here so I loved it :D
Overall, it's a clumsy book, but to focus on the clumsiness of the writing style & characterization would be to miss some of the cool things happening with the structure and plot (what there is of it). Say what you will about convenient authorial planning, but it's actually quite artfully crafted: each of the 5 sections covers a respective month of the titular three years, but also centres on a particular location or object of import. It's subtle enough, and it works really well to echo the 'theory' of subjective time that Hosking's putting forward throughout the book: time all happens at once, but is still lynchpinned on space, and any individual will experience their time uniquely.
As for plot -- I don't really understand what happens at the end and I don't think I care enough to reread the last section (which pulls us into an alternate universe too abruptly and awkwardly for the reader to actually buy what's happening). So my general feel is like, it's interesting to try to put the pieces together although nothing is particularly original or surprising, but it's not challenging until the very end when it becomes impossible. I'm sure you could write a great essay on time loops, but it shall not be me doing so.
P.S. I also think it important to note the last part deals almost overtly with Indigeneity to space, which...I was going to bitch about but in trying to type out why I didn't like it, I'm actually starting to wonder if all of Section 5 is a subtle/covert metaphor for the danger of settler logic. In which case, COOL. Somebody else read this and lmk if you see this 2
Overall, it's a clumsy book, but to focus on the clumsiness of the writing style & characterization would be to miss some of the cool things happening with the structure and plot (what there is of it). Say what you will about convenient authorial planning, but it's actually quite artfully crafted: each of the 5 sections covers a respective month of the titular three years, but also centres on a particular location or object of import. It's subtle enough, and it works really well to echo the 'theory' of subjective time that Hosking's putting forward throughout the book: time all happens at once, but is still lynchpinned on space, and any individual will experience their time uniquely.
As for plot -- I don't really understand what happens at the end and I don't think I care enough to reread the last section (which pulls us into an alternate universe too abruptly and awkwardly for the reader to actually buy what's happening). So my general feel is like, it's interesting to try to put the pieces together although nothing is particularly original or surprising, but it's not challenging until the very end when it becomes impossible. I'm sure you could write a great essay on time loops, but it shall not be me doing so.
P.S. I also think it important to note the last part deals almost overtly with Indigeneity to space, which...I was going to bitch about but in trying to type out why I didn't like it, I'm actually starting to wonder if all of Section 5 is a subtle/covert metaphor for the danger of settler logic. In which case, COOL. Somebody else read this and lmk if you see this 2
May 20, 2021
I have no idea what happened in the last chapter
March 8, 2017
"This is the only way back for us."
Although it says I read, "Three Years with the Rat" in three days, I basically read it in one day total. This book had me hooked from the moment I opened it. Reason why you ask? I didn't have a clue what was going on. Therefore, I kept reading just so I could try and figure it out. I loved that aspect of it! This book takes you on a crazy journey that has you questioning time itself. The narrator (who's real name is never really told but is called other things like, "dead beat brother," "little brother," "danger," and "scruffy") is on a mission to figure out whether his sister and her boyfriend are dead or maybe they are still alive? I'm not exactly sure if in the end I truly understood what happened. I had to reread several parts because it jumps back and forth between the years of 2006 and 2008,and I did get a little lost at times. But did that really matter since, "There are just some things that are outside of comprehension, even if we can quantify them. At some point, science becomes magic." If you like trippy stories that have you questioning reality then I recommend this book.
Although it says I read, "Three Years with the Rat" in three days, I basically read it in one day total. This book had me hooked from the moment I opened it. Reason why you ask? I didn't have a clue what was going on. Therefore, I kept reading just so I could try and figure it out. I loved that aspect of it! This book takes you on a crazy journey that has you questioning time itself. The narrator (who's real name is never really told but is called other things like, "dead beat brother," "little brother," "danger," and "scruffy") is on a mission to figure out whether his sister and her boyfriend are dead or maybe they are still alive? I'm not exactly sure if in the end I truly understood what happened. I had to reread several parts because it jumps back and forth between the years of 2006 and 2008,and I did get a little lost at times. But did that really matter since, "There are just some things that are outside of comprehension, even if we can quantify them. At some point, science becomes magic." If you like trippy stories that have you questioning reality then I recommend this book.
December 12, 2017
There's the shell of something good here. Hoskings' ideas are interesting and intellectually stimulating in that speculative fiction mindfuck kind of way, but they're just not fully developed enough to be satisfying. I don't mind being confounded by a book of this nature—typically when time travel and multiple universes are involved that's to be expected—but I need to be able to make some sense out of it. The writing isn't bad for a debut. It's a quick, engaging read. But the pacing and character development leave a lot to be desired.
I get what the author was going for with this. I appreciate it for its melancholy, for its meditations on solipsism. The execution just didn't do justice to the concept.
I get what the author was going for with this. I appreciate it for its melancholy, for its meditations on solipsism. The execution just didn't do justice to the concept.
May 23, 2017
I had the idea from reading about the author's PhD and neuroscience work that this would be an intelligent literary thriller; instead, it's a colloquially-written story that's greatest drama (for me) was hoping Buddy the Rat would be ok.
The main character is unlikeable and hard to believe. He drinks constantly, even after taking medications and pain killers, and somehow, this is all fine. (No!) He also speaks with an extremely casual tone, and yet is quick-to-learn complicated scientific experiments and decoding practices. I don't know, this book just didn't come together the way I wanted to. Not the T.S Eliot-esque thriller it was sold to me as.
The main character is unlikeable and hard to believe. He drinks constantly, even after taking medications and pain killers, and somehow, this is all fine. (No!) He also speaks with an extremely casual tone, and yet is quick-to-learn complicated scientific experiments and decoding practices. I don't know, this book just didn't come together the way I wanted to. Not the T.S Eliot-esque thriller it was sold to me as.
February 7, 2017
When Blake Crouch calls your work "mind-warping" you are probably doing something right. A neuroscience P.h.D (this really pays off with his attention to detail and love of lab rats), Jay Hosking's fiction debut finds a college drop out, his scientist sister, and their doomed romantic partners, in an increasingly complex Toronto. For fans of: "hey wait what?" Sibling strife, and tenacious, unnamed , largely incompetent protagonists.
---
Thanks to NetGalley and publisher for free ebook!in exchange for honest opinion.
---
Thanks to NetGalley and publisher for free ebook!in exchange for honest opinion.
February 8, 2018
The story is interesting but it’s hard to relate to the characters as they are mean spirited losers.
May 10, 2024
mind numbingly boring- no plot line or character development and extremely predictable
June 29, 2018
Știți genul acela de filme din care dacă te duci 2 minute până la baie și te întorci nu mai înțelegi nimic? Sau genul acela de seriale din care dacă pierzi un episod, de asemenea nu mai înțelegi nimic? Ei bine, există și genul acesta de cărți, care îți solicită atenția și concentrarea la maximum și care te obligă să le citești cap coadă neîntrerupt sau să recitești anumite fraze sau fragmente ca să nu pierzi firul acțiunii. Exact genul acesta de carte este Trei ani în labirint. Ai clipit și-ai pierdut faza, ai sărit un rând și ai căzut în gol. La propriu. Pentru că în această carte timpul și spațiul sunt alunecoase. Te întorci de la un an la altul de atâtea ori încât nu mai știi pe ce lume ești, în care an, în care realitate, cine e nebun, cine e real, cine ascunde secretul. Am ținut foarte greu pasul, în primul rând pentru că am fost nevoită să citesc fracționat. De multe ori am întors paginile și m-am dus înapoi să văd în ce an sunt și să înțeleg de ce nu se mai leagă evenimentele. M-a "furat" deseori "peisajul" și m-a dus cu gândul la Lost, la Fringe sau la Shutter Island. Cunoscătorii vor știi la ce mă refer. Sau poate că nu. Eu încă analizez și tot îmi dă puțin cu virgulă.
A fost puțin ciudat. Altfel decât ceea ce citesc de obicei, dar nu mi-a displăcut. Mi-a plăcut conceptul. Cred că mă atrage de fapt ideea de univers paralel, de alte vieți de care habar n-avem, dar la care ni se oferă acces la un moment dat. Trei ani în labirint e o poveste despre căutare și regăsire, despre un pic de nebunie și despre "cealaltă parte"-o buclă temporală în care te poți reinventa de un infinit de ori.
Recomand pasionaților genului.
Recenzia completa:
http://momenteinviata.ro/trei-ani-in-...
A fost puțin ciudat. Altfel decât ceea ce citesc de obicei, dar nu mi-a displăcut. Mi-a plăcut conceptul. Cred că mă atrage de fapt ideea de univers paralel, de alte vieți de care habar n-avem, dar la care ni se oferă acces la un moment dat. Trei ani în labirint e o poveste despre căutare și regăsire, despre un pic de nebunie și despre "cealaltă parte"-o buclă temporală în care te poți reinventa de un infinit de ori.
Recomand pasionaților genului.
Recenzia completa:
http://momenteinviata.ro/trei-ani-in-...
June 6, 2022
SO weird and I hated how cryptic and self righteous it was at first but it kind of grew on me by the end?? If you asked me to list five things about the main character though I literally couldn't I don't even know his name lmao
July 18, 2017
i really liked this book and i tore through it but also the ending REALLY confused me
November 7, 2023
Boy oh boy do I have a headache. Three Years With The Rat plays with some high level science concepts, and the sequencing keeps you off balance, making the high level science feel even more….sciency? Couldn’t tell you the last time I read a fiction book and came away confused. Like, I understood what was going on, but it felt like understanding with a little asterisk on the side. Really makes me wonder if I *actually* understood everything. Fascinating. Quite a debut novel.
January 24, 2024
This book was …. So crazy… if it had a better ending I’d give it 4 stars but alas.
February 26, 2017
Quite an impressive debut novel! What starts as a good story that jumps back and forth between three years in the narrator's life, takes a impressive jump into the surreal as the explanation for his sister's disappearance becomes apparent.
March 14, 2017
I really really really wanted to like this story. But I didn't. I was able to follow along for the most part but there were times when I really felt like I missed the point. This book had an interesting idea but I think it failed when it came to execution. There was really nothing I loved about this novel - other than the reference to different places in Toronto, of course. I didn't like any of the characters. They fell flat and had a one dimensional personality that was hard to love. I simply had no connection and that led me to not care about the story at all. There were times when the story was moving along but I had no clue what was going on; it made me wish the author would explain his thoughts a bit more so that I could follow along. It was slow-paced and not much really happened in the novel. Unfortunately, this story left me feeling quite disappointed. Unless you are really into space and time paradoxes, I wouldn't recommend this novel.
For more reviews, visit: www.veereading.wordpress.com
For more reviews, visit: www.veereading.wordpress.com
Read
February 25, 2021This book was very good, it was mysterious and kind of confusing at first, but then slowly as the book progressed everything came together and it made sense.
February 14, 2018
The book is told through three interlacing timelines. From our point of view, everything is set into motion when the protagonist is telephoned by an angry landlord who demands that he come clear out the stuff left behind by his sister (Grace) and her boyfriend (John). Grace, we learn rather quickly, has been gone for some time — and it's presumed that she has died by suicide. John, apparently, believes she is simply missing, fallen victim to an experiment they have been running.
http://pussreboots.com/blog/2018/comm...
http://pussreboots.com/blog/2018/comm...
Read
November 20, 2025Fun, although this guy really wanted to write The Toronto Novel. I laughed out loud at "I writhed around [her] like the vines on the old Annex houses."
Read
May 27, 2022As the novel progresses, it builds curiosity by frequently inviting the reader to connect the dots with their own imagination to determine what force is present in the very real downtown Toronto landscape.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 177 reviews