What do you think?
Rate this book
Blue Skies
In modern day Manhattan, preservationist Susan Lennox saves history for a living. Her long-standing battle with developer Joe McGowan brings a fragile Bowery rowhouse to her attention, and she’s as determined to protect it as he is to tear it down. During an inspection, Susan discovers just how unique the property is when she comes across a frightened and apparently homeless man bearing a tale of time travel neither she nor her brother Neil believes—until they find they themselves have traveled three days into the future.
Professor Robin Winfield learns too late the mistake he made in agreeing to help Joe’s great-great-grandfather Victor McGowan decode a family journal connected to the rowhouse, a place once used as a laboratory for electrical experiments. When Robin is inadvertently transported one hundred and twenty-six years from home, Neil and Susan take him in, hoping to get him back where he belongs before anyone else learns of his presence. But Victor’s will has already spilled those beans and Joe thwarts the attempt to send Robin back—only to end up trapped with Susan in 1887.
Broke and homeless in the not-so-ideal past, Joe and Susan struggle to find common ground—and they aren’t the only ones, as Neil and Robin join forces in a desperate search to rescue Susan before Victor figures out the secret to time travel. But a secret Victor’s keeping is the one destined to change the future—Neil and Susan’s—for all time to come.
Professor Robin Winfield learns too late the mistake he made in agreeing to help Joe’s great-great-grandfather Victor McGowan decode a family journal connected to the rowhouse, a place once used as a laboratory for electrical experiments. When Robin is inadvertently transported one hundred and twenty-six years from home, Neil and Susan take him in, hoping to get him back where he belongs before anyone else learns of his presence. But Victor’s will has already spilled those beans and Joe thwarts the attempt to send Robin back—only to end up trapped with Susan in 1887.
Broke and homeless in the not-so-ideal past, Joe and Susan struggle to find common ground—and they aren’t the only ones, as Neil and Robin join forces in a desperate search to rescue Susan before Victor figures out the secret to time travel. But a secret Victor’s keeping is the one destined to change the future—Neil and Susan’s—for all time to come.
285 pages, Unknown Binding
First published February 27, 2014
31 people are currently reading
300 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
September 7, 2014
A fun time-travel adventure and two romances in one. (One gay, one het) So good. Recommended.
September 7, 2014
This book was amazing and I couldn't put it down. More than that - it was FREE. Proper review to come soon.
Oh...so I forgot to come back and review this!
It is a fabulous story. I loved the time travel,I loved the characters (male & female), I loved the story line, I LOVED the romances. I want more about these guys...all four of the mc's, please! I'm most definitely going to check out this authors other works.
Oh...so I forgot to come back and review this!
It is a fabulous story. I loved the time travel,I loved the characters (male & female), I loved the story line, I LOVED the romances. I want more about these guys...all four of the mc's, please! I'm most definitely going to check out this authors other works.
Want to read
March 22, 20203/21/20 Currently FREE
I adore Tamara Allen's stories! I urge all my GR pals who enjoy historical romance to check these out. Amazingly, Ms. Allen is currently offering most of her stories for FREE, so it is a great time to add these stories to your book treasure hoard.
Go, go, go and download these delightful treats!
https://www.smashwords.com/profile/vi...
I adore Tamara Allen's stories! I urge all my GR pals who enjoy historical romance to check these out. Amazingly, Ms. Allen is currently offering most of her stories for FREE, so it is a great time to add these stories to your book treasure hoard.
Go, go, go and download these delightful treats!
https://www.smashwords.com/profile/vi...
March 26, 2014
Tamara Allen is one of my favorite authors, but this book is a bit of a miss for me. I love her characters, as usual, and I love the setting of gilded age Manhattan. The relationships between Neil and Robin, and Joe and Susan, advanced at just the right pace. I didn't mind that there was an M/F relationship as well as the M/M, and the sex is primarily fade to black, which just seems right for these two couples.
The fact that I didn't like the book more was probably my own fault. I bought it instantly because it was Tamara Allen even though I am not a fan of time travel fiction, because it just gets messy. But I loved Downtime by this author, and that included time travel as well, though it was not central to the story. So I thought I would like it here too. In this book, though, the time travel is a principal part of the plot, with several trips backwards and forwards by multiple characters, and it just got too confusing. I lost track of what happened when, and who was involved with who, and if I feel like I have to take notes to keep everything straight with the plot, it just becomes too much work. So I enjoyed the relationship parts of the book, but never really clicked with the characters because the plot was too convoluted.
The descriptions of jail, asylums, and the treatment of women in this era were excellent, and made me thankful for living in the 21st century!
The fact that I didn't like the book more was probably my own fault. I bought it instantly because it was Tamara Allen even though I am not a fan of time travel fiction, because it just gets messy. But I loved Downtime by this author, and that included time travel as well, though it was not central to the story. So I thought I would like it here too. In this book, though, the time travel is a principal part of the plot, with several trips backwards and forwards by multiple characters, and it just got too confusing. I lost track of what happened when, and who was involved with who, and if I feel like I have to take notes to keep everything straight with the plot, it just becomes too much work. So I enjoyed the relationship parts of the book, but never really clicked with the characters because the plot was too convoluted.
The descriptions of jail, asylums, and the treatment of women in this era were excellent, and made me thankful for living in the 21st century!
December 24, 2023
3.5 stars
Tamara Allen has a way of making the past come alive and it's no different here than in previous works of hers I've read. Readers hoping for lots of M/M and lots of sex, you won't find that here. There is some m/m as well as some m/f, no sex for either (not an issue for me but may be for others), as the story follows Neil and Susan, a pair of siblings, on their romantic and historical follies through the 19th and 21st century.
The attention to detail is stellar, and they're modern sensibilities aren't always met with understanding in the past. I really liked all of the characters, and enjoyed seeing them grow and struggle as they worked towards their HEAs with their respective beaus. Some quibbles over the use of language being a bit too formal for the contemporary time period where the story begins, and the time travel here is a giant case of "suspend disbelief" - more so than with other time travel stories. The ending also goes on a bit too long as plot twists are reused a few too many times just to complicate things for our heroes and heroine, and the story started to drag a little in the last couple of chapters.
Tamara Allen has a way of making the past come alive and it's no different here than in previous works of hers I've read. Readers hoping for lots of M/M and lots of sex, you won't find that here. There is some m/m as well as some m/f, no sex for either (not an issue for me but may be for others), as the story follows Neil and Susan, a pair of siblings, on their romantic and historical follies through the 19th and 21st century.
The attention to detail is stellar, and they're modern sensibilities aren't always met with understanding in the past. I really liked all of the characters, and enjoyed seeing them grow and struggle as they worked towards their HEAs with their respective beaus. Some quibbles over the use of language being a bit too formal for the contemporary time period where the story begins, and the time travel here is a giant case of "suspend disbelief" - more so than with other time travel stories. The ending also goes on a bit too long as plot twists are reused a few too many times just to complicate things for our heroes and heroine, and the story started to drag a little in the last couple of chapters.
June 15, 2015
5 stars! 5 stars! 5 stars!
I had a hard time putting this book down, and would literally have to force myself to turn off my NOOK and go to bed. Time travel? Ding! One of my favorites. Strong female MC? Ding! Ding! A wonderful m/m couple? Ding! Ding! Ding! I’m kicking myself for not reading this earlier.
Tamara Allen is one of my favorite – if not favorite – historical authors of m/m romance. If she writes it, I will buy. For some reason, this book escaped my attention. Maybe it was because of the m/f romance in it. I’m very cautious of what m/f romance I read because, frankly, I am usually dissatisfied with the female MCs in most of them. If they are wimpy and subservient to the male MCs, I’m out of there.
But I should know better about a story in Ms. Allen’s capable hands. Her female MC, Susan, is strong-willed, competent and doesn’t take crap from anyone, a character trait that lands her into some very precarious situations.
Susan is a preservationist, who is working hard to save a 100-year old house in Manhattan. Her older brother Neil, a history teacher, is called upon by Susan’s employer to go to the house to urge her to vacate the premises so that the current owner, Joe McGowan, another MC and rich real estate developer and frequent adversary, doesn’t have her thrown in jail. While they are there, a thunderstorm with lightning roars through, bringing a most unlikely character into their midst: Robin, the 4th MC, who is not from their time.
The three of them have to work to try to get Robin back to his time. With unlucky quirk of fate, Susan and Joe get thrown back in time to the 19th century, leaving Robin and Neil in the 21st. A time not so forgiving to a confident, 21st century woman. What Susan, and many other females, endured in the 19th century had me yelling at my NOOK. (Fortunately, my family is used to this and didn’t even give me a second glance.) My stomach was wrapped up in knots, wondering how she was going to get out of her predicament.
Then, let’s talk about what gay men had to endure back then, what had been a fact of life for Robin. Pain, ostracism, prison and sometimes death. It was an eye-opening experience for him in the 21st century, seeing what it was like for gay men here and now, compared to the secrecy and danger of the 19th century. I swear I was telling them all to let him stay most of the book.
There were twists and turns throughout this story, past and future wrapped around like a pretzel at times, which just made my time-traveling heart happy as a clam. I swear my heart rate was elevated the last third of the book, worried as to how it was going to turn out for them without any irreparable damage to the present. This was a wonderful, tense and satisfying ride through time, and I know that I will be re-reading this book time and time again.
I had a hard time putting this book down, and would literally have to force myself to turn off my NOOK and go to bed. Time travel? Ding! One of my favorites. Strong female MC? Ding! Ding! A wonderful m/m couple? Ding! Ding! Ding! I’m kicking myself for not reading this earlier.
Tamara Allen is one of my favorite – if not favorite – historical authors of m/m romance. If she writes it, I will buy. For some reason, this book escaped my attention. Maybe it was because of the m/f romance in it. I’m very cautious of what m/f romance I read because, frankly, I am usually dissatisfied with the female MCs in most of them. If they are wimpy and subservient to the male MCs, I’m out of there.
But I should know better about a story in Ms. Allen’s capable hands. Her female MC, Susan, is strong-willed, competent and doesn’t take crap from anyone, a character trait that lands her into some very precarious situations.
Susan is a preservationist, who is working hard to save a 100-year old house in Manhattan. Her older brother Neil, a history teacher, is called upon by Susan’s employer to go to the house to urge her to vacate the premises so that the current owner, Joe McGowan, another MC and rich real estate developer and frequent adversary, doesn’t have her thrown in jail. While they are there, a thunderstorm with lightning roars through, bringing a most unlikely character into their midst: Robin, the 4th MC, who is not from their time.
The three of them have to work to try to get Robin back to his time. With unlucky quirk of fate, Susan and Joe get thrown back in time to the 19th century, leaving Robin and Neil in the 21st. A time not so forgiving to a confident, 21st century woman. What Susan, and many other females, endured in the 19th century had me yelling at my NOOK. (Fortunately, my family is used to this and didn’t even give me a second glance.) My stomach was wrapped up in knots, wondering how she was going to get out of her predicament.
Then, let’s talk about what gay men had to endure back then, what had been a fact of life for Robin. Pain, ostracism, prison and sometimes death. It was an eye-opening experience for him in the 21st century, seeing what it was like for gay men here and now, compared to the secrecy and danger of the 19th century. I swear I was telling them all to let him stay most of the book.
There were twists and turns throughout this story, past and future wrapped around like a pretzel at times, which just made my time-traveling heart happy as a clam. I swear my heart rate was elevated the last third of the book, worried as to how it was going to turn out for them without any irreparable damage to the present. This was a wonderful, tense and satisfying ride through time, and I know that I will be re-reading this book time and time again.
March 6, 2014
This was long, complicated and engaging. I liked the two pairs - Robyn and Neil were just geeky enough, just rumpled enough to be adorable, but they also went through a lot with the time travel and all. So they showed bravey and courage (in a rumnpled, geeky kind of way).
Susan and Joe were cute too. I wish we could have got to know Joe a bit more. His progression from real estate mogual to top notch bloke should have provided readers with the most heart, and yet, I felt the most distanced from him.
I didn't look too deeply into the conundrums of the time travel thing although one thing bothered me.
Anyway, really enjoyed reading the highs and lows of this time travelling family.
Susan and Joe were cute too. I wish we could have got to know Joe a bit more. His progression from real estate mogual to top notch bloke should have provided readers with the most heart, and yet, I felt the most distanced from him.
I didn't look too deeply into the conundrums of the time travel thing although one thing bothered me.
Anyway, really enjoyed reading the highs and lows of this time travelling family.
February 13, 2019
DNF at 35%
Not feeling this at all and have loved other Tamara Allen stories. Time-travel as a genre I generally avoid, and from the beginning this didn't quite work for me so in fairness could be a case of 'me not you'.
But beyond that the story follows two couples, one that have been separated splitting the story further to have three focuses within two time periods. It was too much. There didn't seem to be enough time with any one character to get a coherent view of their personality.
The main story focus appears to be the sister Susan and her experiences read a lot like a history lesson - full credit to Allen for her research and writing but 'fraid I'm more superficial and it's not what I'm reading for!
I may return to this, but in truth it's unlikely.
Not feeling this at all and have loved other Tamara Allen stories. Time-travel as a genre I generally avoid, and from the beginning this didn't quite work for me so in fairness could be a case of 'me not you'.
But beyond that the story follows two couples, one that have been separated splitting the story further to have three focuses within two time periods. It was too much. There didn't seem to be enough time with any one character to get a coherent view of their personality.
The main story focus appears to be the sister Susan and her experiences read a lot like a history lesson - full credit to Allen for her research and writing but 'fraid I'm more superficial and it's not what I'm reading for!
I may return to this, but in truth it's unlikely.
September 12, 2014
Entrancing time travel.
This book is very well written. Itkept me riveted the whole time with its twists and turns. A truly wonderful book.
This book is very well written. Itkept me riveted the whole time with its twists and turns. A truly wonderful book.
March 25, 2014
Uncharacteristically disjointed for this writer
Warning: This review might contain what some people consider SPOILERS.
Rating: 6/10
PROS:
- I always enjoy stories in which characters from the past find themselves in present times and must navigate a world that is foreign to them, but Allen seems to write this situation particularly well. Robin is confused by the present without seeming stupid, and Neil is exasperated by Robin’s confusion without coming across as a total jerk.
- As is always the case with this author, her attention to detail in the historical settings is incredible.
- I enjoy Allen’s writing style. Her prose is easy to follow but not simplistic, and her characters are full without being dizzyingly complex or confusing.
CONS:
- The book is strangely disjointed. (I say “strangely” because I’ve read other works by this author and they have all been much more tightly constructed than this.) I found small plot holes on several occasions, I lost track of who was…when…sometimes, and the details and artifacts and such didn’t quite all line up in my head. And both of the romances (Robin/Neil and Joe/Susan) made leaps on different occasions that I felt either were out of place or had been described but I had somehow missed them.
- Half of the book is devoted to the adventures and romance of Neil’s sister. (I read m/f romance occasionally in addition to m/m, so this didn’t bother me, but I know some readers want absolutely no hetero romance in their m/m.) What DID bother me about the chapters devoted to Susan is that they are largely so unpleasant. She goes through a rather horrifying ordeal, and the author does not scrimp on details.
Overall comments: Sending modern characters into the past and bringing historical characters into the present is a clever way of writing a story that’s both historical and contemporary. I loved the idea here, but it didn’t quite work for me. It’s a fun mix of past and present, but it’s not always a very comprehensible mix.
Warning: This review might contain what some people consider SPOILERS.
Rating: 6/10
PROS:
- I always enjoy stories in which characters from the past find themselves in present times and must navigate a world that is foreign to them, but Allen seems to write this situation particularly well. Robin is confused by the present without seeming stupid, and Neil is exasperated by Robin’s confusion without coming across as a total jerk.
- As is always the case with this author, her attention to detail in the historical settings is incredible.
- I enjoy Allen’s writing style. Her prose is easy to follow but not simplistic, and her characters are full without being dizzyingly complex or confusing.
CONS:
- The book is strangely disjointed. (I say “strangely” because I’ve read other works by this author and they have all been much more tightly constructed than this.) I found small plot holes on several occasions, I lost track of who was…when…sometimes, and the details and artifacts and such didn’t quite all line up in my head. And both of the romances (Robin/Neil and Joe/Susan) made leaps on different occasions that I felt either were out of place or had been described but I had somehow missed them.
- Half of the book is devoted to the adventures and romance of Neil’s sister. (I read m/f romance occasionally in addition to m/m, so this didn’t bother me, but I know some readers want absolutely no hetero romance in their m/m.) What DID bother me about the chapters devoted to Susan is that they are largely so unpleasant. She goes through a rather horrifying ordeal, and the author does not scrimp on details.
Overall comments: Sending modern characters into the past and bringing historical characters into the present is a clever way of writing a story that’s both historical and contemporary. I loved the idea here, but it didn’t quite work for me. It’s a fun mix of past and present, but it’s not always a very comprehensible mix.
January 30, 2016
3.5
At times I was biting my nails while reading this one. The asylum scenes were so real. I felt very nervous at how that would play out.
But I also spent a lot of time questioning things. Mainly the responses of the people travelling through time. There was little to no disbelief. Just a calm acceptance. The uncontrolled time span to the leaps I accepted as part of the fantasy, although it kind of bugged me that again it was pretty much accepted they would leap to exactly when they wanted.
The romance I'm afraid fell flat. Neither couple really grabbed me and at times I felt the whole story dragged in places.
But it was still an entertaining and well crafted read.
At times I was biting my nails while reading this one. The asylum scenes were so real. I felt very nervous at how that would play out.
But I also spent a lot of time questioning things. Mainly the responses of the people travelling through time. There was little to no disbelief. Just a calm acceptance. The uncontrolled time span to the leaps I accepted as part of the fantasy, although it kind of bugged me that again it was pretty much accepted they would leap to exactly when they wanted.
The romance I'm afraid fell flat. Neither couple really grabbed me and at times I felt the whole story dragged in places.
But it was still an entertaining and well crafted read.
November 12, 2014
I very much liked this book. It was an easy time travel book with no technical garbage. I loved that the main characters traveled back in time and got up to all sorts of trouble - including jail and a stint in an insane assilym. I loved it even more that they were able to meet up with some of thier relatives.
I enjoyed Allen's writing style - there was plenty of detail but not so very much that the story was weighted down.
I enjoyed Allen's writing style - there was plenty of detail but not so very much that the story was weighted down.
Want to read
March 3, 2014A new Tamara Allen book (who wrote Downtime and The Only Gold!) Yay!
Want to read
May 17, 2014Amazon freebie 5.17.14
tbr-later
November 10, 201525 November 2014: $0.00 FREE on Kindle
August 3, 2016
Very good story line but I did worry they were all going to miss each other between the jumps.
August 11, 2021
In Blue Skies, Tamara Allen writes a love letter to Manhattan.
Susan and Neil Lennox are a set of tight-knit siblings, but they're both still dealing with the grief of losing their father. Susan remembers her father by fighting the city of New York on any old site it tries to demolish, butting heads with real estate developer Joe McGowan at every step. Neil, a high-school teacher, spends his time keeping Susan out of jail after her enthusiastic protests. When Susan and Joe battle over a Bowery rowhouse, matters are made complicated when Robin Winfield arrives from the 19th century to the middle of a stormy night in present-day 2014.
The story follows the two pairs: Susan and Joe, Neil and Robin as they travel back and forth through time, get arrested and imprisoned, meet unexpected figures from the past, and fall in love. There are a few big reveals along the way. The book kept me on the edge of my seat for the most part.
Allen has brought up social evils in the 19th-century in previous books, like Downtime and Whistling in the Dark, but she really dives into those with a vengeance in Blue Skies. Susan's preservationist views seem to be a mouthpiece for Allen, who creates an ode to the past in this book. It sounds contrary, for the author to both celebrate the past while condemning parts of it, but that's what makes it good. This book transports you to another time, with all its beauties and horrors, before bringing you safely and gratefully back to the present.
The book features two pairings, and I was surprised to find myself liking Joe and Susan's love story more than the one between Robin and Neil. Robin reminded me a lot of Downtime's Ezra, if Ezra was more hardened and had comebacks at the ready for his partner. Prickly, protective Neil, however, wasn't Morgan Nash.
There wasn't much of a found family theme in this book, perhaps because regular family did just fine. Susan and Neil were endearing to read about. They had fun, sibling banter with a strong undercurrent of love and warmth.
The plot was exciting, filled with one adventure after another. Blue Skies might not be the signature slow-burn gay romance Allen usually differs, but this was an entertaining and heartwarming read all the same. It had family, love, an appreciation for the past, and witty dialogue: what more could I ask for?
Susan and Neil Lennox are a set of tight-knit siblings, but they're both still dealing with the grief of losing their father. Susan remembers her father by fighting the city of New York on any old site it tries to demolish, butting heads with real estate developer Joe McGowan at every step. Neil, a high-school teacher, spends his time keeping Susan out of jail after her enthusiastic protests. When Susan and Joe battle over a Bowery rowhouse, matters are made complicated when Robin Winfield arrives from the 19th century to the middle of a stormy night in present-day 2014.
The story follows the two pairs: Susan and Joe, Neil and Robin as they travel back and forth through time, get arrested and imprisoned, meet unexpected figures from the past, and fall in love. There are a few big reveals along the way. The book kept me on the edge of my seat for the most part.
Allen has brought up social evils in the 19th-century in previous books, like Downtime and Whistling in the Dark, but she really dives into those with a vengeance in Blue Skies. Susan's preservationist views seem to be a mouthpiece for Allen, who creates an ode to the past in this book. It sounds contrary, for the author to both celebrate the past while condemning parts of it, but that's what makes it good. This book transports you to another time, with all its beauties and horrors, before bringing you safely and gratefully back to the present.
The book features two pairings, and I was surprised to find myself liking Joe and Susan's love story more than the one between Robin and Neil. Robin reminded me a lot of Downtime's Ezra, if Ezra was more hardened and had comebacks at the ready for his partner. Prickly, protective Neil, however, wasn't Morgan Nash.
There wasn't much of a found family theme in this book, perhaps because regular family did just fine. Susan and Neil were endearing to read about. They had fun, sibling banter with a strong undercurrent of love and warmth.
The plot was exciting, filled with one adventure after another. Blue Skies might not be the signature slow-burn gay romance Allen usually differs, but this was an entertaining and heartwarming read all the same. It had family, love, an appreciation for the past, and witty dialogue: what more could I ask for?
September 11, 2018
I was hoping I would like this as much as I liked "Downtime" because that book was brilliant!
Unfortunately, while this was good I didn't enjoy it as much.
I did like Neil and Robin. I had a harder time with Susan and Joe. I never quite warmed to either of them.
The jumping back and forth in time and between characters was jarring. It also made me feel like the author sometimes mixed up what happened to the couples and who they had met. I'm sure it was just my mind reeling. Any way it got a bit too back and forth for me to be able to keep all the threads separate.
Still the writing was good and most characters were likable!
Unfortunately, while this was good I didn't enjoy it as much.
I did like Neil and Robin. I had a harder time with Susan and Joe. I never quite warmed to either of them.
The jumping back and forth in time and between characters was jarring. It also made me feel like the author sometimes mixed up what happened to the couples and who they had met. I'm sure it was just my mind reeling. Any way it got a bit too back and forth for me to be able to keep all the threads separate.
Still the writing was good and most characters were likable!
September 6, 2022
Time-travel mm and mf romance set mostly in 1887 Manhattan with some scenes in 2014 Manhattan.
Four points of view are three too many for me. The plot was too complex for my taste. I'm still unsure of the business and family relationships of all of the characters.
I only managed to get through to the HFN ending by skimming more and more.
Typo on page 55 Kindle edition:" ....she asked, loathe to use the word..."
Loathe is a verb meaning hate. Loath without a final E is an adjective meaning reluctant, as intended here.
Four points of view are three too many for me. The plot was too complex for my taste. I'm still unsure of the business and family relationships of all of the characters.
I only managed to get through to the HFN ending by skimming more and more.
Typo on page 55 Kindle edition:" ....she asked, loathe to use the word..."
Loathe is a verb meaning hate. Loath without a final E is an adjective meaning reluctant, as intended here.
April 2, 2014
While arcane magic was the means for time travel in Tamara Allen's DOWNTIME, science is most definitely the tool used in this novel. Historical preservationist Susan Lennox and her teacher brother Neil find what amounts to a copper Faraday cage in a room in an old dilapidated house in the Bowery that greedy developer Joe McGowan wants to tear down to build condos. When Professor Robin Winfield pops in from 1889 during a thunderstorm they have more than preservation on their minds when they must fight to keep the portal open so he can return.
When Susan and Joe take the time train back to more or less Robin's time they go to Joe's great-great-grandfather for help, which proves to be a mistake. The villainous elder McGowan has Susan committed to an infamous insane asylum. In the meantime Neil and Robin take passage in the same time transport attempting to rescue Susan from being trapped in a place and time that has obsessed her all her life, an inheritance from her historian father. As they say in the stories, various and chilling high jinks ensue.
It's no secret I am nuts about Allen's books. In particular I like how thoroughly she researches important elements behind her stories. The depth of her understanding of banking demonstrated in THE ONLY GOLD, for instance, is staggering. In BLUE SKIES the topic is the historical buildings of Manhattan, depicted lovingly and appropriately. Allen also subtly injects some of the not-so-nostalgic aspects of the past, the nearly powerless role of women, the criminality of homosexuality, and the savage "advances" in the treatment of mental illness. I love historical fiction that keeps you rooted in the human relationships but also leaves you with new understanding of the totality of the past.
As for the writing, it is, after a rather weak introduction of the fact of time travel, Allen's usual smooth, insightful and compelling storytelling. Her characterizations go far beyond the convenient traits of everyday people to explore the complexities of relationships and the joy and pain they cause and the results in how we learn to trust and love.
A commonplace of time travel stories is the existence of what you could call a "prime directive", that you must not change the past or you may disrupt the present, even cause the logical contradiction of your own birth and life. Allen walks the narrow path of having her characters trip on the prohibition but shows how the changes made as a result of breaking the rules can still end up favorably. Shades of a Star Trek episode, fitting for a concept of prime directive they also averred.
One odd thing about this book is the description on Amazon. From it you would have no idea that both Nil and Robin are gay and slated to attraction to each other. The existence of this review on this site should clue readers in to the substantial weight this subplot carries. But Susan's conflicted feelings for Joe are every bit as important. Might this book be a "Missing Link"?
That's All I Read http://kitmossreviews.blogspot.com
When Susan and Joe take the time train back to more or less Robin's time they go to Joe's great-great-grandfather for help, which proves to be a mistake. The villainous elder McGowan has Susan committed to an infamous insane asylum. In the meantime Neil and Robin take passage in the same time transport attempting to rescue Susan from being trapped in a place and time that has obsessed her all her life, an inheritance from her historian father. As they say in the stories, various and chilling high jinks ensue.
It's no secret I am nuts about Allen's books. In particular I like how thoroughly she researches important elements behind her stories. The depth of her understanding of banking demonstrated in THE ONLY GOLD, for instance, is staggering. In BLUE SKIES the topic is the historical buildings of Manhattan, depicted lovingly and appropriately. Allen also subtly injects some of the not-so-nostalgic aspects of the past, the nearly powerless role of women, the criminality of homosexuality, and the savage "advances" in the treatment of mental illness. I love historical fiction that keeps you rooted in the human relationships but also leaves you with new understanding of the totality of the past.
As for the writing, it is, after a rather weak introduction of the fact of time travel, Allen's usual smooth, insightful and compelling storytelling. Her characterizations go far beyond the convenient traits of everyday people to explore the complexities of relationships and the joy and pain they cause and the results in how we learn to trust and love.
A commonplace of time travel stories is the existence of what you could call a "prime directive", that you must not change the past or you may disrupt the present, even cause the logical contradiction of your own birth and life. Allen walks the narrow path of having her characters trip on the prohibition but shows how the changes made as a result of breaking the rules can still end up favorably. Shades of a Star Trek episode, fitting for a concept of prime directive they also averred.
One odd thing about this book is the description on Amazon. From it you would have no idea that both Nil and Robin are gay and slated to attraction to each other. The existence of this review on this site should clue readers in to the substantial weight this subplot carries. But Susan's conflicted feelings for Joe are every bit as important. Might this book be a "Missing Link"?
That's All I Read http://kitmossreviews.blogspot.com
February 26, 2017
This was a good story but it focused more on Neil's sister Susan and her time spent incarcerated in Bellevue than it did on Neil and Robin's story. Susan even gets her own romance with her adversary Joe McGowan. I did like the story but would have liked for Neil and Robin to have more on-page time together.
December 7, 2014
A superior kindle freebie.
I've got to admit that at times I found the plot a little confusing and I'm not entirely sure that the blurb on Amazon is entirely accurate (it mixes things up but maybe that's because of the time travelling LOL).
Susan is a building preservationist, she comes into almost daily contact with her nemesis Joe, a developer who tears down old buildings. Whilst looking over a building scheduled for demolition Susan and her brother Neil meet a man who appears to have travelled in time from 1888. The man, Robin, has deciphered a coded journal for Joe's distant relative Victor [this is where I started being confused as to who is related to whom and how]. They take Robin home and I enjoyed the way the author had thought through some physical issues for Robin - eg he would get sick in a car or would have trouble eating processed foods.
Going back to the house they encounter Joe and as events unfold Susan and Joe travel back in time. Unlike other time travel stories, things do not go well for Susan. The book is a scary insight into the way women could be locked up in hospitals (aka asylums/prisons) at the whim of men - be they husbands, male relatives or just doctors - for speaking out.
Meantime, Robin and Neil are in present day New York trying to get back to 1888.
I really enjoyed this book but I would be hard pressed to determine what the author intended. Is it intended to open our eyes to the way in which society treated the different and mentally disturbed - then it succeeded. But it isn't really a romance, that is quite muted. And the time travel itself is also kind of muted.
Joe was a bit of a cardboard cut-out compared to the other three main characters. Victor was also a bit of a stock villain. But generally I enjoyed
the novel and look forward to reading other books by this author.
I have now read some reviews on Amazon which indicate that Tamara Allen normally writes m/m novels - interesting, not something I would have thought.
I've got to admit that at times I found the plot a little confusing and I'm not entirely sure that the blurb on Amazon is entirely accurate (it mixes things up but maybe that's because of the time travelling LOL).
Susan is a building preservationist, she comes into almost daily contact with her nemesis Joe, a developer who tears down old buildings. Whilst looking over a building scheduled for demolition Susan and her brother Neil meet a man who appears to have travelled in time from 1888. The man, Robin, has deciphered a coded journal for Joe's distant relative Victor [this is where I started being confused as to who is related to whom and how]. They take Robin home and I enjoyed the way the author had thought through some physical issues for Robin - eg he would get sick in a car or would have trouble eating processed foods.
Going back to the house they encounter Joe and as events unfold Susan and Joe travel back in time. Unlike other time travel stories, things do not go well for Susan. The book is a scary insight into the way women could be locked up in hospitals (aka asylums/prisons) at the whim of men - be they husbands, male relatives or just doctors - for speaking out.
Meantime, Robin and Neil are in present day New York trying to get back to 1888.
I really enjoyed this book but I would be hard pressed to determine what the author intended. Is it intended to open our eyes to the way in which society treated the different and mentally disturbed - then it succeeded. But it isn't really a romance, that is quite muted. And the time travel itself is also kind of muted.
Joe was a bit of a cardboard cut-out compared to the other three main characters. Victor was also a bit of a stock villain. But generally I enjoyed
the novel and look forward to reading other books by this author.
I have now read some reviews on Amazon which indicate that Tamara Allen normally writes m/m novels - interesting, not something I would have thought.
May 2, 2014
I liked the characters of Neil and Robin, and I enjoyed the growing romance between them. Susan and Joe, when they finally got together, were also a good couple.
The time travel part of the book was a bit confusing, but since I've read science fiction for forty years I've learned to do the hand-wavy thing when things get confusing--especially with time travel. Suffice it to say people traveled in time, both forward and backwards, and various hijinks ensued.
Thanks to Charly's review, I knew there was a long section with Susan by herself in a mental institution. So I'll be honest and say I just skipped it except for a bit of skimming for plot. Susan was by herself for pages and pages, stuck in horrible conditions. When Joe finally rescued her is when the book got interesting again. In romance stories I read I prefer the romantic characters should be together for a large part of the tale and not off by themselves somewhere. Because I skipped this large section, I know I enjoyed the story a lot more.
The characters did grow and change because of their adventures. They realized the lives they'd been living were okay, but that things could be even better. And as it turns out, some of the changes they made in the past did have long term consequences. Minor spoiler: Generally, a satisfying ending for all.
The time travel part of the book was a bit confusing, but since I've read science fiction for forty years I've learned to do the hand-wavy thing when things get confusing--especially with time travel. Suffice it to say people traveled in time, both forward and backwards, and various hijinks ensued.
Thanks to Charly's review, I knew there was a long section with Susan by herself in a mental institution. So I'll be honest and say I just skipped it except for a bit of skimming for plot. Susan was by herself for pages and pages, stuck in horrible conditions. When Joe finally rescued her is when the book got interesting again. In romance stories I read I prefer the romantic characters should be together for a large part of the tale and not off by themselves somewhere. Because I skipped this large section, I know I enjoyed the story a lot more.
The characters did grow and change because of their adventures. They realized the lives they'd been living were okay, but that things could be even better. And as it turns out, some of the changes they made in the past did have long term consequences. Minor spoiler: Generally, a satisfying ending for all.
September 8, 2014
I am a fan of the author's work. She writes late-19th and early 20th century soooo well. Her MCs are warm and likeable - I always end up caring deeply about what happens to them. And thus in this book, what works best are the settings and the MCs. I don't really mind that there is a brother-sister pair in this book and that therefore they each get a romance development arc. Their back history with each other and their conservationist father also grabbed my interest but I wish more was done with this in the book.
What did NOT work was the sci-fi time-travel aspects. The jumping back and forth was confusing and I could not follow the logic regarding changing history. Things the characters did and said should HAVE affected history but made not much of an impact. The MCs are quite clear of the dangers of making revelations of the future to inhabitants of the past - and yet go ahead and do so anyways with seeming disregard for the consequences. Paradox Lost does a better job with these.
Overall it was a good adventure read with some moving moments; I remain a fan of Ms Allen's despite the sci-fi elements. This is not her finest work though.
What did NOT work was the sci-fi time-travel aspects. The jumping back and forth was confusing and I could not follow the logic regarding changing history. Things the characters did and said should HAVE affected history but made not much of an impact. The MCs are quite clear of the dangers of making revelations of the future to inhabitants of the past - and yet go ahead and do so anyways with seeming disregard for the consequences. Paradox Lost does a better job with these.
Overall it was a good adventure read with some moving moments; I remain a fan of Ms Allen's despite the sci-fi elements. This is not her finest work though.
March 28, 2015
I liked this book way more than I thought I would, considering I'm not a fan of time travel. But Allen does a great job in that she doesn't try to get fancy and "explain" the mechanisms or repercussions of time travel. It's treated more like a magical anomaly and its left at that.
I LOVED LOVED LOVED the setting. The late 19th century on the East Coast (as opposed to the Wild West) is a period and place most often ignored in literature. The historical accuracy and details were noticeable and remarkable. The plight of women consigned to asylums when they became inconvenient or didn't have a man to vouch for them was a great theme to explore. And Susan's geeky love of historical buildings was adorable.
There are two romances in this book: the m/m "present" story of Neil and Robin and the het "past" story of Susan and Joe. Surprisingly (for me), I could have done without Neil and Robin's story entirely. I was so in love with the dynamics between Susan and Joe! Great chemistry.
To be fair, it could probably have used a little more editing/streamlining in parts. I wasn't completely hooked until about halfway through. But once the ball got rolling I couldn't put it down.
Good book, good author. I've liked 4/5 books I've read by her.
I LOVED LOVED LOVED the setting. The late 19th century on the East Coast (as opposed to the Wild West) is a period and place most often ignored in literature. The historical accuracy and details were noticeable and remarkable. The plight of women consigned to asylums when they became inconvenient or didn't have a man to vouch for them was a great theme to explore. And Susan's geeky love of historical buildings was adorable.
There are two romances in this book: the m/m "present" story of Neil and Robin and the het "past" story of Susan and Joe. Surprisingly (for me), I could have done without Neil and Robin's story entirely. I was so in love with the dynamics between Susan and Joe! Great chemistry.
To be fair, it could probably have used a little more editing/streamlining in parts. I wasn't completely hooked until about halfway through. But once the ball got rolling I couldn't put it down.
Good book, good author. I've liked 4/5 books I've read by her.
December 5, 2014
I love time travel books and I thought this one was really good. The story was really exciting and Susan's ordeal in the past was truly distressing. I got a real appreciation for what it must have been like to be a woman in the 1880s.
I had one real problem with this book (THIS IS THE SPOILER FOLLOWING) There was a lot of drama in the last 15% or so about whether Neil would stay in the past with Robin or Robin would go into the future with Neil. Robin had to leave no matter what because he came to the future from 1888 but went back to 1887. He said himself that his 1887 self was out of town which was why they could stay in his rooms. Robin couldn't stay in 1887 because there would be two of him! At the very least he needed to travel a little ways into the future to skip ahead of when he left. That fact was conveniently forgotten in the wrapping up of the story.
Other than that, this book was really great. I would have given it 5 stars but the time travel got pretty sloppy at the end what with Robin's timing and some of the stuff with Neil and Susan's dad and the convenient changes to their timeline.
I had one real problem with this book (THIS IS THE SPOILER FOLLOWING) There was a lot of drama in the last 15% or so about whether Neil would stay in the past with Robin or Robin would go into the future with Neil. Robin had to leave no matter what because he came to the future from 1888 but went back to 1887. He said himself that his 1887 self was out of town which was why they could stay in his rooms. Robin couldn't stay in 1887 because there would be two of him! At the very least he needed to travel a little ways into the future to skip ahead of when he left. That fact was conveniently forgotten in the wrapping up of the story.
Other than that, this book was really great. I would have given it 5 stars but the time travel got pretty sloppy at the end what with Robin's timing and some of the stuff with Neil and Susan's dad and the convenient changes to their timeline.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 27, 2016
Time travel romance with a m/f and a m/m couple.
It was okay, not Allen's best by any means. I was super unhappy at how the female character, when timetraveling to 1880-whatever, was immediately shuffled off to Bellevue/Blackwell's (I mean, yes, that's one possible outcome, but one, it's a huge squick of mine, and two, I don't think it's the only way that story could have gone).
Also: the character from the 1880s coming forward surely would have been amazed by 2014's technology, but not *that* confused: there were a lot of modern things beginning by then.
Meh.
It was okay, not Allen's best by any means. I was super unhappy at how the female character, when timetraveling to 1880-whatever, was immediately shuffled off to Bellevue/Blackwell's (I mean, yes, that's one possible outcome, but one, it's a huge squick of mine, and two, I don't think it's the only way that story could have gone).
Also: the character from the 1880s coming forward surely would have been amazed by 2014's technology, but not *that* confused: there were a lot of modern things beginning by then.
Meh.
September 13, 2014
I gave this two and a half stars, because I was interested enough to want to see what happened at the end. Unfortunately, I found it all very confusing, and didn't have any emotional attachment to the characters.
Read
April 9, 2015Bummer because I usually love Tamara Allen's stories. This was just all over the place, hard to follow, hard to care about, somewhat disjointed. I made it about halfway through, tried to skim the rest, but just couldn't.
June 24, 2020
Not quite as good as Tamara Allen's other stories, but still a cracking good read. The sections in the nineteenth century are harrowing — Susan's adventures in various prisons and asylums were genuinely frightening to read — and both love stories are very, very sweet indeed. 3.5 stars.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews