Lord Seventh is by no means for everyone. Centering around a man who's given a second chance to relive a life that initially ended in pain, torment, bLord Seventh is by no means for everyone. Centering around a man who's given a second chance to relive a life that initially ended in pain, torment, betrayal, and abandonment, it's largely about the messy machinations of those involved with court life and all that entails. If you enjoy that sort of thing, as well as a main character characterized by a mixture of scheming and lackadaisical cynicism, I encourage you to pick this up. If not, at least know that this is where the majority of this story's focus lies and that everything often feels bleak and meaningless. Maybe this isn't for you if you're looking for a story where the romantic development is the primary focus. (But if you're like me, that might be a selling point.)
That being said, Lord Seventh is extremely thematically coherent and effectively adheres to an internal logic about the almost senseless loop this story is caught it. It is incredibly appropriate that our lead, Jing Beiyuan, is living through this life a second time while resigning himself to the fact that he's probably not going to be able to change much of anything at all because of the finite options that court life gives him. He doesn't particularly want to get too intimately involved with the Crown Prince, Helian Yi, but he also acknowledges that he doesn't want him dead and that anyone else in power would likely spell greater misery for the common people. So he gets involved with him again while holding him at arm's length, because the more personal aspect of their relationship didn't end well the last time. But he still schemes and maneuvers on his behalf, trying to temper it with other schemes and maneuvers that will hopefully cause less bloodshed and limit the prince's power once he becomes emperor. As one can imagine, the results are often mixed and stained with blood of their own.
Throughout the course of this, Jing Beiyuan fully anticipates that he will once again die young, alone, misunderstood, and unfulfilled. Rather than mourning that his second chance will likely end the same as the first, he largely seems to find comfort in it. Anything he does, any mistakes he makes doesn't matter as long as he achieves what he needs to achieve before it comes back to bite him in the ass. He throws himself into laziness and simple pleasures whenever he can, because at least that's something he can do differently from last time. He finds his own cynicism strangely freeing, even as the reader can clearly see that it limits him in turn. It's a very interesting internal dynamic, and in many ways, it's the core of the reading experience.
Part of what he changes in this go-round is getting closer to a young heir of a conquered nation who's being kept hostage until he reaches adulthood. He hopes that getting close to Wu Xi will limit his people's aggressions toward the emperor and, if necessary, give Helian Yi a place to go if one of his older brothers ends up in power or trying to kill him in earnest. He's surprised to find himself fond of the young man as the blunt, earnest Wu Xi ends up incorporating himself more into his daily life as both a student and a friend.
Wu Xi is, interestingly, the light in the dark in this story. Jing Beiyuan very much befriends him for another scheming, cynical purpose, but that doesn't end up going quite to plan when he instead finds himself enjoying his friendship. Wu Xi is largely not involved in a lot of the main plot and the scheming until the very last chapters, which makes any scene with him incredibly refreshing. He's also more straight-forward and honest about his thoughts and intentions than any of the other characters, who are always neck-deep in three-layered lies and false smiles. It feels appropriate, then, that he is ultimately the one who can provide Jing Beiyuan a way out of this bleak, blood-stained cycle that he has come to accept as his life. It's so very, very appropriate that he doesn't feel directly involved in the main plot until the end, because in hindsight, it is incredibly clear that this was always going to be his narrative purpose.
All that in mind, Lord Seventh is exceptionally good at what it does, even if what it does often feels directionless and maddening and cynical. It's very clearly supposed to feel that way, and the sudden ending with it's lack of full resolution to the more politically-oriented plot points is the most appropriate ending it could have. Of course those aspects aren't going to be fully resolved: the whole point is that they're cyclical and unending, and the only way to fully free yourself from them is to walk away and accept that some of your goals are going to be incomplete. You did what you could, and after a certain point, you've got to be able to walk away or let someone else lead you away. The scene partway through where Jing Beiyuan almost finds a sense of relief in Wu Xi jokingly suggesting that he kidnap him and take him home with him is so very telling. It's not a perfect novel, and it drags in places, but it's good at what it does.
I also want to take a moment to give kudos to the translator for delivering an incredibly readable, informative, well-sourced experience. (As well as hilarious commentary at the end of the chapters!) Their presence was especially noted in the first half when Wu Xi is still young and doesn't have a full grasp on the language he's speaking. The stilted, unique, and almost over-literal speech patterns really shone through even through the novel itself being translated, and I have to imagine that took a considerable amount of mindfulness and care. Your hard work is seen and appreciated, and I'm definitely looking into the other works you've translated!...more
Continuing my tradition of reading these novellas on Thanksgiving! This was a cute little reconnect with Miranda and Nico, and it's sweet to get a gliContinuing my tradition of reading these novellas on Thanksgiving! This was a cute little reconnect with Miranda and Nico, and it's sweet to get a glimpse at the sort of adventures they've been up to. It's not my favorite of the holiday novellas, but it was still a nice little jaunt back into this beloved world with these beloved characters. ...more
Hello???? A YA graphic novel getting a five-star rating??? From ME??? Damn, this was good!!!
Project Nought is about a boy from the 1990s being broughtHello???? A YA graphic novel getting a five-star rating??? From ME??? Damn, this was good!!!
Project Nought is about a boy from the 1990s being brought to the future to participate in a time travel exchange program... Except is it really an exchange program when the kids from the past are just going to get their minds wiped at the end of the ordeal?
It's admittedly a really, really messed up notion. The future kids are all so excited to meet the past kids and ask questions about their lives and their times, and here are these poor, poor teenagers who got brought here without their permission to further someone else's education and then get plopped back into the timeline with nothing to show for it. What. The. Fuck. (Which is code for: "Hell yeah you've got my attention ...more
Yes, this was my Thanksgiving read. Yes, I stand by that decision. The characters from A Stitch in Time will always own my heart and make me cry with Yes, this was my Thanksgiving read. Yes, I stand by that decision. The characters from A Stitch in Time will always own my heart and make me cry with their endearing cuteness. This novella very clearly serves as both an epilogue to A Twist of Fate and a lead-in to A Turn of the Tide, and it has me itching to get my hands on a book that doesn't come out until October 2022. Boo, I love these dorks and wanna meet more....more
I know I was just complaining this morning about wanting more, so uhhh.... I guess it didn't take me long to find more??? Turns out, while my library I know I was just complaining this morning about wanting more, so uhhh.... I guess it didn't take me long to find more??? Turns out, while my library doesn't have this particular novella on its own, it does have it as part of an anthology. So naturally, I leapt on the chance to spend a bit more time with Bronwyn and William.
A very sweet, very satisfying little epilogue A Stitch in Time. Filing it away for future Christmas reads, although it kept me cool while out in the sun today....more
This was over altogether too soon, and I'm just so sad about it! I wanted more time with these characters, I love them so much!!!
A Stitch in Time is aThis was over altogether too soon, and I'm just so sad about it! I wanted more time with these characters, I love them so much!!!
A Stitch in Time is about a woman returning to the home where she saw her uncle die at the hands of a... well, her memories say "ghost," but everyone's pretty sure it was a mental break. Only, when she returns, there are ghosts still there, not to mention the a time stitch leading to the Victorian home of her old "imaginary" friend. Bronwyn must discover the truth about the ghosts in order to send them away, even as she and William rebuild their lost relationship.
It's so simple. It's such a simple premise, and yet this book is memorably fun. The main and side characters alike feel so real that you're sure you know them from somewhere. Bronwyn and William have such a fun, tooth-rotting dynamic full of banter, teasing, and genuine love and concern. There were so many times when I had to put the book down because I was too busy grinning like a loon to actually keep reading. Everything about them together is just so endearing, and I absolutely adore them as a couple, which is so rare for me lately. I'm usually just like "haha, yeah, kinda nice" but I thoroughly love these two.
The mystery took a little while to really get going, but honestly, I didn't mind. Especially since the truth managed to catch me off guard. I was kind of expecting the mystery to be a little more straight-forward than that, but nope! Armstrong managed to genuinely surprise me.
I'm so sad it's over, I just want to spend more time with all these delightful people.
A Stitch in Time is a delightful romance-mystery novel where the romance and the mystery alike cross the boundaries of time. The romance is delightful, the mystery is shocking, and the characters are so endearing that you'll be sad to see them go. It really is an absolute gem of a book....more
An honest heads up: this book felt a lot like a four during this read-through, but I know myself enough May 2023 Reread: Guess who cried again????
An honest heads up: this book felt a lot like a four during this read-through, but I know myself enough to know that if I had the chance to savor it a little more and read it in larger chunks, it would be a sure five.
So five stars it is! Because sometimes it's an issue of life and opportunity, and not the book itself. And when I reread this (because I will reread this), I'll be sure to drop in and confirm that five-star instinct.
This is How You Lose the Time War reads like a lullaby. You drift in and out of the world and the experiences of the characters with the help of whimsical prose that just bursts with Melancholy and Love and Yearning. (Yes, those capitals are entirely necessary.) It's not a book to read if plot is your first priority, but if you like beautiful writing that inspires deep-seated emotions or relationship-centric stories, definitely give it a go. It's one of the best in that regard.
I love how everything falls to the wayside except the dynamic between Red and Blue. That sounds ridiculous, I know, but that relationship is the story's axis. The world and the characters individually fall to the wayside, forcing our attention to a love that defies upbringing, intended purpose, and time itself. It's incredibly emotion-inducing and hard not to love. And it comes full-circle so nicely, too.
Also: I'd like to advise reading this in one or a few extended sittings rather than a little at a time. It killed me to have to turn away from the emotional build and start from scratch with each read, but needs must when the devil drives. It's relatively short - only about 200 pages - so it shouldn't be too hard to do. That's how I'm going to try to read it next time.
This is How You Lose the Time War is a masterpiece of prose and emotionality. The central relationship is engaging and heart-wrenching, inducing investment on the part of the reader at every turn. Truly a thing of beauty....more
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