Time and Chance

by Alan Brennert

A classic novel from the bestselling author of Moloka'i and Honolulu Before Alan Brennert became a bestselling author of historical novels, he wrote this lyrical fantasy in the vein of The Time Traveler’s Wife. Part love story, part deeply affecting character study, it is a literary tour de force chronicling the parallel lives of two men who were once the same man--until, as the poet Robert Frost wrote, “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood/And sorry I could not travel both/And be one traveler...” Thirteen years ago, Richard Cochrane left his small New England town to pursue his dreams of an acting career. But on some other level of reality there is also a Rick Cochrane, who chose instead to set aside his dreams, marry the woman he loved, and raise a family. Today, neither man is happy with the choice he made--but as their lives, once separated by time and chance, now draw closer together, Richard and Rick are offered another a last chance to discover “the road not taken.”

Genres: Fiction, Fantasy, Time Travel, Science Fiction, Contemporary, Alternate History, Theatre

338 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1990

About the author

Alan Brennert is the author of the historical novels Palisades Park, Honolulu (chosen one of the best books of 2009 by The Washington Post), and Moloka'i, which won the 2006 Bookies Award, sponsored by the Contra Costa Library, for the Book Club Book of the Year (and has sold over 600,000 copies since publication). It was also a 2012 One Book, One San Diego selection. He has won an Emmy Award and a People's Choice Award for his work as a writer-producer on the television series L.A. Law, and his short story "Ma Qui" was honored with a Nebula Award. His new novel, Daughter of Moloka'i, will be published by St. Martin's Press on February 19, 2019. Follow him on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/alan.brennert.

http://us.macmillan.com/palisadespark...

Reviews

[Vonia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is marketed as a time travel book. Which is not true at all. There is no time travel. Only the ability to swap lives in parallel universes/alternate history.

Luckily, I found these concepts far more intriguing than time travel. Because I have always been a "What if?" thinker, regretting choices I have made, from life changing ones like marrying or not, to miniscule ones like buying Frosted Flashes instead of Golden Grahams. I am the first to admit how ridiculous this sounds, silly and futile. After all, wiring, like a rocking chair, will give you something to do, but will get you nowhere . But, alas, a lifelong overanalyzed, I cannot seem to help myself. The nights I waste, obsessing....

Rick and Richard. 35 years old, they each made to drastically different decisions at a crossroads 13 years ago.

Rick decides to stay in his hometown, the small suburb of Appleton, New Hampshire- where everyone knows everyone else's business- to marry his high school sweetheart. Debra. They have two kids. Following in his footsteps, his daughter is perusing her passion for theater and has been cast as Juliet in her school's production of Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet". Bitter for giving up his dream of moving to New York in favor of family life, he finds in difficult to compliment or support her. Over the years, his marriage and devotion to Debra has waned. He has become so angry that on the night he meets Richard, he has hit his daughter for the first time. Divorce seems imminent.

Richard, on the other hand, pursued his dream to make it big in theater. Giving up marriage to Debra, he still loves you very much today, he moves to New York. His romantic relationship since then have been tumultuous and unfulfilling at best- most notably represented by a marriage to a cocaine-addicted, selfish ex-wife. Professionally, he had done well for himself, performing with for the most well-respected actors in the industry. He has a close friend in his agent, and friends that love him. Although not as angry as Rick, he does greatly regret his choice 13 years ago.

When the two meet, there is little hesitation for them to change lives.

By the end of their time in the parallel universes, if nothing else, both have learned a great deal about themselves. The opportunity comes for them to switch back into their original lives, but greatly altered. In some ways for the better, in others for the worse. What will they choose?

I would kill to have the opportunity to do this, to experience a what-if parallel universe. I wish I could say that I am confident that I would choose to return to my life today, because it seems like cheating to switch lives.

But, if I am honest with myself right now (and openly exposing myself to vulnerability), I am not happy with so many things in my life. I suppose I could experience the same thing Richard and Rick did, the well evidenced "grass is greener on the other side" effect, but I am pretty sure that this will not be the case with me. Without going into too many details, I am very depressed, as a result of some mental health issues that very likely would be alleviated had I taken a different turn at a crossroads many years ago. And things could not be too much worse than they are now.

Alas, this was science fiction and therefore a fantasy for me. Not to end this on such a depressing note, there is always hope that I will eventually be given enough new crossroads in life that I will no longer feel this painful regret.

**** Spoilers ****

Both of them choose to return to their original lives, although less immediately certain than the first time they switched. Good for them. I would have done the same. What they each learned through their experiences made both of them better prepared and more appreciative to continue their lives.

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

This an early work of the author's before he started writing historical fiction. Enjoyed this story of the exploring the path not taken. I don't know if this was a case of parallel universes or alternate reality. There was no portal crossing, obvious door opening etc. The catalyst for the opportunity for Richard/Rick to exchange lives seemed to be their mother. Just prior to Richard's mother's death, he started having flashes of being somewhere else, and when he eventually comes face to face with his other self, we know that Rick has also had these flashes into Richard's life.
It was interesting to see how each was able to pass themselves off as the other, when their lives were so different. Careers, friends, family etc. There were definitely lessons to be learned by both iterations of Richard Cochrane, and their new lives presented the opportunity if they were willing to make it happen. So do they like the other's life better, or do they appreciate their old lives more? Do they stay where they are or do they go back?

[Maja · Rating 3 out of 5]

I feel like I didn't give this book the attention it deserved. Because of that I may have missed some deeper messages and was instead bit bored.

I bought this book at the annual book sale maybe seven years ago. I bought it because the synopsis at the back compared it with The Time Traveler's Wife, a book I at the time had not read nor watched the movie adaption of. Still haven't read the book but have seen the movie a couple of times.

This book is about a man, or two versions of the same man, who at one point in his life took different directions. In one life he's Richard, a very talented actor but not much going on other aspect in his life. Some friends and failed romantic relationships. In another life he's Rick, married with kids and stuck with a job he hates (something boring with insurance I think). Both versions are very unhappy, and Rick letting it go over his family. He's got so much pent up anger and frustration he's taking it out on his family: his marriage is failing to the point where divorce is around the corner and he can't even keep his jealousy of his daughter for going for an acting career hidden. His frustration and anger also boils over in physical violence.

Both men meet and decide upon changing life. What if Richard could see what his life would have been if he had stayed with Debra, and what if Rick had pursued his acting dream? The book pretty much explore that, and what challenges each of the man meet in their new lifestyle, and about self discovery. Not going to discuss what they face and how they deal with it because I think it's better to discover for yourself if you decide to read this book.

[John Loyd · Rating 4 out of 5]

A parallel worlds novel. Until they were twenty-three Rick and Richard lived the same life. Thirteen years later Rick feels stifled in his home town married to his high school sweetheart and he is full of rage. Richard is a moderately successful actor living in New York, the run of his current play just ended when he gets a message that his mother died. He is guilt ridden that he didn't spend enough time with his mother or his friend, Finney, who got in a car accident and became a paraplegic.

Richard goes back to his home town to make funeral arrangements. After the funeral he's walking through town and notices a house where a couple is in a heated argument. The woman is Debra who he just saw at the funeral, but the man isn't her husband. It's him!

They switch places. Richard knows Debra, but not the years of marriage or their daughter or how to do the Rick's job. Rick has a whole new set of friends. It is presented as a one time switch with no further communication between them. The question now is how they handle life in their new lives.

Fast and except for a cringe moment or two fun read. The characters, especially Rick, had to battle their inner demons leading to the behavior that made me cringe. I was delighted at the interaction between Richard and Paige. 4.5 stars.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Time and Chance is about the journey rather than the destination. It’s a book filled with conflict, love, tenderness and confusion all propped up by an intense emotional thread that seems to compliment the book well, without ever being overdone. If, at points, the plot did seem to lag, it does pick up and recover, especially during the last third of the book. Time and Chance is an impressive character study, which manages to hook the reader while also forcing them to examine their own lives, and choices.

Read my full review here:

http://bookwormblues.blogspot.com/201...

[Margaret · Rating 4 out of 5]

One man who becomes two men, Rick and Richard, take 2 paths 13 years before. One man left his sweetheart to persue his acting dreams in NYC. The other married the sweetheart and they built a life with her. Neither man ends up happy with the path they took and wonders "what if". This was an interesting idea and I liked it to the end. Fun summer read.

[Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first thing I ever read by Alan Brennert was "The Third Sex", from The Best of Pulphouse. It was about just that, a person who was neither male nor female. It was a story about love, identity, and relationships, and it lingered with me long after I finished the story. I had actually been exposed to Brennert before then through Weird Romance, which featured another of his stories, but this was the first fiction of his I read, and from that moment forward, I knew he was a writer to read.

Fast forward a few years, when I chance upon a historical novel he wrote about a leper colony on Hawaii called Moloka'i. I took a chance on it, since I knew Brennert could evoke complex emotion in a short story, even though it didn't sound like my kind of story. It's still one of only two books that made me cry (the other being The Book Thief), and if I hadn't already made a mental note to read everything this author writes, Moloka'i would have done it.

Time and Chance is an earlier novel of Brennert's, though it still has that emotional resonance I've associated with his previous works. It's about a man named Richard Cochrane who, thirteen years ago, made a decision to give up the woman he loved in order to go to New York to become an actor. It's also about a man named Richard Cochrane who, thirteen years ago, made a decision to give up on his dreams to become an actor in order to stay with the woman he loved to raise a family. Neither Richard is entirely happy with his decision and the life he's led since then, but time and chance have somehow conspired to allow them to swap places. The story is how they adapt to their new, alternate lives.

What I really liked about this novel is how Brennert took one character and made two characters out of him. Each have the same backstory, the same histories. Their divergence allowed him to examine their lives in different ways, and see how it affected them in their later years. He doesn't make it easy for either Richard to step into the other's life, which is as it should be. Thirteen years after making a difficult decision affects one's personality. The bitter, angry man who resents having given up a chance to become an actor isn't the same person as the melancholy, morose man who regrets having given up a chance at a family. Each character has a challenge stepping into the other's shoes, but Brennert does make it easier for one than the other.

Brennert's talent is in his people, and their relationships. I've noticed also that in many of his stories -- "The Third Sex", Her Pilgrim Soul (as much as I know about it from Weird Romance, at least), and Time and Chance, at least -- he features a troubled relationship, and the ways that those relationships can mend. They're very hopeful affairs, which is a nice antidote to the other kinds of fiction I often read.

Alan Brennert is a treat, and a gem. I haven't read anything of his that I wouldn't recommend without hesitation.

[Missy J · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this book, because I wanted to read a book written by Alan Brennert. His book Moloka'i has been highly praised. Unfortunately the public library in my area, doesn't have this book in its shelves. So I opted to read another book by this author, namely "Time and Chance." This book was written before Moloka'i, so my disappointment isn't too great. His writing could've only gotten better since "Time and Chance."

The story sounds interesting; the protagonist could've lived two different lives: either choose to move to New York and become a Broadway star (acting is his passion) or marry his college-sweetheart (whom he also got pregnant), raise a family and work a daytime job in an office. Both end up not really satisfied with their lives, and the chance to live the other "if only"-life seems like an excellent solution to their problems. However, I thought the story was a bit cheesy and overall, too unrealistic, that I didn't enjoy reading it.

The only thing which was fairly interesting was the description of how a play gets started from scratch before hitting the stage. That was written very passionately and I could understand it: on the one side, putting all your effort to the play, bringing yourself to be the role you have to play, stage production, make up and on the other side, the feeling of loneliness which comes, after the very last show, and deprivation, when parting with your co-workers with whom you had to work to create something so meaningful to you.

I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone. Unless you're interested in the plot, but the story lacks something "surprising." I can only pray Moloka'i is better than this.

[Reinette · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Kathryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the book I read on my Nook for my Third Tuesday Book Club meeting tomorrow night (October 21, 2o14). I found it to be an interesting exploration of both alternative universes and second chances, with a good dose of circumstances and consequences tossed in. I do not think it a great book, but it is an interesting read.


Richard Cochrane is thirty-five, and has one divorce and several failed relationships behind him, and no children. He grew up in Appleton, New Hampshire, but broke up with his pregnant girlfriend thirteen years ago to seek his fame and fortune as an actor in New York City, and has been quite successful in doing so, but regrets never having a family. Rick Cochrane is thirty-five, married, with two children. Thirteen years ago he gave up his dream of acting and married his pregnant girlfriend, remaining in his home town of Appleton, New Hampshire, and working at an insurance company. If these two men sound similar, it is because they are the same man, in different universes that are running concurrently; one in which he became New York Richard, and one in which he became Small-Town Rick, with the split occurring with his decision to leave / stay with his pregnant girlfriend thirteen years ago.

The two men meet at a joint crux point: Richard has come home to Appleton to bury his widowed mother, and Rick is deeply angry at his job, his marriage, and his life. The two men figure that their universes have converged for a reason, and after some discussion, New York Richard steps into life in the Small Town with Rick’s family, and Small Town Rick steps into the acting world of New York Richard. Most of the book alternates between the two characters, exploring how they cope and manage (or not) in the different universes they now inhabit.

I found this book quite interesting; at its heart are themes of second chances, of seeking one’s dreams, and of dealing with the consequences of actions or inactions. I did not find it a great book, but I think it will be a good book to discuss at our book club meeting tomorrow night.

[Tien · Rating 2 out of 5]

Richard has made a considerably good name of himself on Broadway and yet, he is alone with a string of failed relationships behind him. When his mum died, he felt more alone than ever and regrets of not being there with him took him on a path he never knew existed...

Rick chose to stay with Debra and now works at a job he disliked but needed for his family's sake. He loves his family but his anger at all the past what-ifs are driving him out of his mind...

These alternate selves swapped lives to see their own what-ifs realised only to find that no matter what, they are still the same person though it took some hard lessons for them to learn.

A fascinating read even if not a unique trope though I realised this was published in 1990 and wondered if it was a first then? While I mostly enjoyed the story and the lesson they learnt, there was one thing I found crucial for which I found no answer...

One character's reflection found that he would never have hit a particular female character and that's fine and good. BUT what about the other female character he actually hit?! 😠

[Sue · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an earlier work by Alan Brennert, the same author of my current FAVORITE book, Moloka'i. This is the sole reason I bought the book. Halfway through it, I was ready to give it only 2 stars. It had an interesting premise (a semi-famous actor switches places with his alter-ego who opted to marry his high school sweetheart instead of pursuing acting), but it just wasn't keeping my interest as the two men sorted through each other's lives. But the last third of the book picked up, and I found myself "pulled in". So, I upped the rating to 3 stars. I think Alan Brennert is a very talented writer. I'm hoping he writes something else soon.

[Shannon Appelcline · Rating 5 out of 5]

A brilliant book about roads not walked, guilt, and second chances. Brennert does a magnificent job of creating a deeply emotional story and imbuing its characters with real life. Despite its science fiction trope, this is a book about people and the lives they live.

[Lucas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful. The magical element of the novel is that it retains its power whether the fantastical parts are taken literally or not. It is a surprisingly quick read, with very little filler at all. A nice change of pace from some of the less focused works I have run across lately.

[John Neal · Rating 5 out of 5]

A truly wonderful book -- beautifully written, insightful, meaningful. I plan to read it again (a rare occurrence).

[Kerilynne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Once a year I read a sci-fi novel. Alan Brennert is an author that I love - Molokai and Honolulu. This, his first novel, does not resemble those at all. It’s about parallel universes/alternate plains of reality. Richard and Rick share one self until thirteen years ago when one decides to pursue a career on Broadway and the other stays in his hometown to start a family. As in all sci-fi, there’s a suspension of disbelief. The beginning was a little confusing, but once the premise was established, I loved this book. The writing is provocative. I hated Rick and wanted to know every wrong turn he was going to make. On the flip side, Richard made me sigh with relief and feel the love. This a great backlist pick of Brennert’s. I enjoyed it so much and it’s a solid 4.0-4.5 stars.

[Nancy Haddock · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well over a year ago, a friend gave me this book to read. I put it aside to get to when I could focus on it. At first scan, it seemed a literary work - which I don't normally read much of - so I put it aside until I was in the right place to focus on it.

The last few days were those days, and once I got into the book, I got deep into it. It's a parallel universe story in which Richard and Rick - same guy, different lives - step into each other's lives. This is not a surprise switch triggered by a paranormal event. It's deliberate, and their assumed lives hold extra troubles and triumphs as the story unfolds told in both Richard's and Rick's points of view.

This book I've had on my shelf for so long is now a book I won't forget. Thanks, D!

[May-Ling · Rating 3 out of 5]

i had to buckle down to finish this one - partially due to the very dated font and older style of the book. how things have changed!

the narration feels decidedly male. my takeaways were mostly around learning and thinking about acting as a craft. i know just about nothing on the subject, and felt enlightened about it.

is this a sci-fi book? maybe. it felt more like a drama and wrapped up the plot in a hot second, so it didn't offer a lot of reflection, which is what i'm seeking in sci-fi. maybe pick it up if you're interested in thinking about what a life in theater feels like or want to ponder what would happen if you took another path in life.

[Fraser Sherman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Writing various movie-reference books, I've seen too many films like this: character who hates their life gets a chance to replace their parallel world counterpart who took a different road. In this case, the protagonist is a)a successful actor, guilty he wasn't back in his home town when his mother and his former best friend died; b)the same man if he gave up his acting dream to marry his childhood sweetheart and never left town. They trade lives before ultimately discovering they were better off where they started out.
Despite being too familiar, I think it was well done. If you aren't as burned out on this sort of thing, you might like it a lot better.

[Caroline M · Rating 2 out of 5]

To me it seemed like only one characters life actually improved while the other character got the short end of the stick. I didn’t like the direction the author went and I felt there was more potential with the storyline.

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5. Dark Matter meets Time Travelers Wife - not as good as either but I still enjoy this kind of premise.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed his writing style. He gave each character thier own voice. Such a talent. More, please!

[Maurya · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book had many stars, was hoping to love it. It was a bit too much like Freaky Friday to me - and that has been done a number of times. Could not get into it, but gave it the old college try.

[Liz · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you liked Time Travelers Wife, try this one! Great Read!

[Jeff Rosen · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you love this, then go to Dark Matter, a more intense, violent depiction of alternative worlds. This is very good, a good I love to read over and over, what if you had chosen door A instead of B

[Applehillcottage · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've not read Brennert's more famous book -- Moloka'i -- which most everyone on Good Reads prefers. (But it's on my to-read list now). I'm just saying that up front to let you know I have no comparison books. But I really enjoyed Time and Chance. The book literally showed up on a table all by itself where I work. As I was reading the back page, someone compared it to Time and Again by Jack Finney. That was all I needed, because if you haven't read Time and Again, go get it right now and leave yourself a couple of days to read it straight through.

Back to Time and Chance: It has an intriguing hook. The main characters, Rick and Richard, are really the same person, but he came to a diverging path in his life after college and took the one that stayed in his hometown and married his pregnant girlfriend. Brennert then introduces us to Richard who took the other path -- he moved to New York City for the theater and left his girlfriend behind. Now, twenty years later, neither is happy and they both look with regret at their choices. As Richard returns to his hometown for his mother's funeral, the two meet and change lives.

It's not a perfect book and several reviewers complained that they had to suspend belief. Well, yes. It's a novel that plays with time. (I stayed up all night to finish it.) But that said, much of this book has stayed with me. What it said to me is that yes, we all have regrets, but when we live our lives in the present and take responsibility for our choices and actions, we are better for it. There are consequences for every action, and we need to take bad with good and not blame, not accuse, not wallow in self-pity or guilt. Don't look back with longing because there is no perfect life in this imperfect world, and the sooner we understand that, the happier and more well-adjusted we will be... Of course, all that is not said in the novel; it isn't preachy at all. But we get to live out Rick and Richard's second chances and discover with them, that our choices make us who we are, and when we learn that, it's all good.

[Andrea · Rating 5 out of 5]

I very much enjoyed both the premise of this book and the actual reading of it. It takes the idea that when we make those pivotal moments in our lives...perhaps the moments that we replay what if over and over and over again...in another reality you actually make that other choice and your life plays out from there. What happens if your two selves from those two separate decisions (but one deciding event) meet. That is what happens in this book.

When I read the blurb, I was actually expecting a time travel book. It was more freaky Friday than time travel, but was utterly captivating to me. (I read the book throughout one long day of travel in the airport and on the plane.). It was interesting to see two lives that ended up so different with both so incomplete. Who I liked one version of Richard and despised the other one, yet wanted both of them to succeed in their journeys. I half expected it to end with the two selves coming back together into one self....but it didn't and I'm glad it didn't.

This book has a lot of mixed reviews, but I found it entertaining and interesting. This is my second book that I've read by this author (and both are on my favorite shelf). I plan to read many more!

[Pam · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am very accustomed to reading young adult novels. This was not a young adult novel. This was very adult and I am not entirely comfortable with what I just read.


So what did I think about this book? Well, the premise of this book is that there are two entities, one man, living parallel lives. It is supposed to be a "what-if" scenario. What if you had made a different choice after college and married the woman you loved and gave up your acting career? What if Debra had never aborted Paige? What if Richard lived the life of Rick? Would they destroy each others lives or build them?


At the start, I thought Rick and Richard were assholes, lost in the choices they chose. Then there is static into the alternate lives that they could be living. Then Rick and Richard meet and switch identities while actually being the same person, but with different memories.


I marked this 2/5 stars and not a 1 because I will never re-read this book, but I thought Alan Brennert was a great writer. However, just because you are a good writer does not mean that I will or should read your books. Regardless, this book had a lot of character development (at the end of the book they weren't the same assholes they were before), and it gave me a lot to think about.

[Mandi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I just finished this book and am planning to add my full review later, but for now I just wanted to say a few things. I love the premise of this book. I found it a little slow for about the first third and had a little trouble getting into it. After that, I became absorbed really quickly in the choices each of the main characters started making. That said, I flew through that last half of the book, desperate to know how the whole story would be resolved, and ended up extremely disappointed. The development of characters was wonderful, and I had a really good idea of how Rick and Richard were the same yet different, but Rick was just so unlikeable for me, and I became so attached to Richard that I just couldn't deal with the ending as is. Overall, I enjoyed the process of reading the book and the whole concept. I just was hoping for a different ending.

[Jenay · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was okay from beginning to end. Many have commented on how this idea of getting to live out your parallel life from the path not taken is so original, but it's been done quite a few times and this was not one of the finest examples. Many of the characters were unlikable and some of the choices the main character, Rick, made seemed drastic and didn't make sense. It had good moments, but there were too many points in the book where I was bored at how predictable the story was.

I literally put down the book when Caitlin said the line about burying the ducks and running their heads over with a lawnmower and spent the rest of the story wanting to punch Rick in the neck after he decided to pursue a relationship with her immediately afterwords.