"The Ocean at the End of the Lane" by Neil Gaiman

This book is a spellbinding tale from a child’s point of view but written for adults. It spans worlds of fantasy and reality, giving a tantalising glimpse of the lives and existence of characters that are older than imagination, from the perspective of a young boy who finds himself drawn into an adventure within which he has very little power or control. The setting is a small country lane, but the scope is vast, with hints of worlds beyond our own.

The narrative is all 1st person - from the perspective of the 7 year old boy. The perspective of a 7 year old boy ought to be childish and unsophisticated, and I would normally avoid tales from a child’s point of view for this reason. But there is a depth and richness to the writing which is very satisfying. There is a maturity to the storytelling which makes it easy to read, while not undermining the image of a youthful and immature narrator.

The fantasy elements aren’t fully explained, and this is consistent with the point of view of the narrator, but the many small insights into the Hempstock family and the world from which they came are rewarding and enjoyable and left me wanting to know more. The story was engaging and the plot moved with a pace that kept drawing me on. I would love to read further stories from this world!

My rating: ★★★★★

"The Illusionist Brain: The Neuroscience of Magic" by Jordi Camí, Luis M. Martínez

For me, this book was a book of two halves, and a missed opportunity. About half of the book is about how the brain works, covering various aspects of cognition and memory; and about half the book is about magic. Sadly for me, the link between the two wasn't especially strong, and tended to be discussed in generalities, lacking details in specific examples. I also found the presentation quite dry, and the language unnecessarily verbose in many places (although this could have been due to the translation).

My rating: ★★☆☆☆

"A Second Chance for Yesterday" by R.A. Sinn

The story in A Second Chance for Yesterday is woven around an intriguing and novel twist on time travel. When Nev finds herself going back through time, one day at a time, she has to enlist the help of an old hacker acquaintance from her past to work out what is going on and how to fix it.

The small cast of characters are very well written, with Nev and Airin having a depth and real emotional presence. Their relationship is beautifully told, with the nuances and difficulties caused by the time travel handled in an satisfying and believable way. I was very invested in their relationship, and cried at one poingant point towards the end of the book. The minor characters of Maddy, Jared, Christina, and Kusuma are nicely distinct, and help support the plot - with some very gratifying moments of clarity for Nev in these relationship as she sees them develop in reverse.

I would have liked a little more detail around the parts that Kusuma and Jim Bone played in the background of why the time travel glitch happened, as these were left frustratingly vague - although this is a minor point, and the plot was richly described and had a good pace. The ending left room for a sequel (please?), and I would definitely enjoy learning more about this background if a sequel is written.

Thank you #NetGalley and Solaris for the free review copy of #ASecondChanceforYesterday in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

My rating: ★★★★☆

NetGalley Review