This is how you lose the Time War by Al Mohatar and Max Gladstone Book Review

 This is how you lose the time war 

By Max Gladstone and Al Mohatar 

Published Year: 2019

Page Count: 170 pages 

Medium Used: Kindle PW 

Genre : Science Fiction, Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Adventure, Multiverse, Time Travel, Shape Shifters, 2024-read. 

Rating : 5/5 👏👏👏👏👏

Amazing. Brilliant work. Did a magic play with words. Weaved a tale that is mesmerizing while keeping it short! 

Although I didn't understand it fully - despite reading it in two iterations - I loved the vivid imagery, cinematic prose and wonderful narration style. In my first attempt to read this book, I went fast in my perusal and understood very little. Then I quit that attempt and started new. I read the paragraphs real slow and made myself some mental notes as the plot unfurled. It is an amazing experience - walking in the shoes of the main characters, Blue and Red. 

So, first of all, my question is - what are they? They are definitely not human beings. While I came to the conclusion that Red is some type of a AI agent, Blue is a garden tumbleweed. They can travel through time and space and assume any shape/form they want. They belong to opposite factions at war with each other - in a time race, manipulating histories and major events of the universes they step into - thereby creating a perfect braid that works for them respectively. What one group makes, the other can unmake and vice versa. This seems an endless journey. They are also looking to infiltrate into the other's domain and take them down - but they just don't know how. 

Blue and Red make a random contact through time and start writing surreptitious letters to each other. They gradually fall in love with each other. They know it is dangerous and they will be punished with death if they are caught. But their love becomes something very consuming for both and they brave the odds of death to keep in touch. Red's boss suggests that they poison Blue and undo her strands and  historical braid. Red figures not only how to save Blue but also how to get into Blue's domain and get back safe. This knowledge and her bravado make her truly unique and despite the number and severity of punishments to extract this knowledge, she persists and prevails. This is a highly addictive read and has some amazing world building. The interstellar space and the plant, vine analogies with the rocky planets are phenomenal! 

Remarkable read. :)