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Time Shards #1
Time Shards
It's called "the Event." An unimaginable cataclysm in the 23rd century shatters 600 million years of the Earth's timeline into jumbled fragments. Our world is gone: instantly replaced by a new one made of shattered remnants of the past, present and future, all existing alongside one another in a nightmare patchwork of different time "shards"—some hundreds of miles long and others no more than a few feet across.
San Diego native Amber Richardson is stranded on a tiny fragment of 21st century Britain surrounded by a Pleistocene wilderness. She crosses paths with Cam, a young warrior of a tribe from Roman Brittania, and together they struggle to survive—only to be imprisoned by Cromwellian soldiers. One of their captives is a man who Amber calls "Merlin," and who claims to be the 23rd century scientist responsible for the Event. Together they must escape and locate Merlin's ship before the damage to the timeline is irreparable.
San Diego native Amber Richardson is stranded on a tiny fragment of 21st century Britain surrounded by a Pleistocene wilderness. She crosses paths with Cam, a young warrior of a tribe from Roman Brittania, and together they struggle to survive—only to be imprisoned by Cromwellian soldiers. One of their captives is a man who Amber calls "Merlin," and who claims to be the 23rd century scientist responsible for the Event. Together they must escape and locate Merlin's ship before the damage to the timeline is irreparable.
448 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 30, 2018
46 people are currently reading
581 people want to read
About the author
Dana Fredsti
35 books282 followersDana Fredsti is ex B-movie actress with a background in theatrical sword-fighting. Through seven plus years of volunteering at EFBC/FCC (Exotic Feline Breeding Facility/Feline Conservation Center), Dana's had a full-grown leopard sit on her feet, kissed by tigers, held baby jaguars and had her thumb sucked by an ocelot with nursing issues. She's addicted to bad movies and any book or film, good or bad, which include zombies. Her other hobbies include surfing (badly), collecting beach glass (obsessively), and wine tasting (happily).
Along with her best friend Maureen, Dana was co-producer/writer/director for a mystery-oriented theatrical troupe based in San Diego. While no actual murders occurred during their performances, there were times when the actors and clients made the idea very tempting. Somewhere in the mists of time she lost a grip on what happened in real life and what she made up for her book.
She's written numerous published articles, essays and shorts, including stories in Cat Fantastic IV, an anthology series edited by Andre Norton (Daw, 1997), Danger City (Contemporary Press, 2005), and Mondo Zombie (Cemetery Dance, 2006). Her essays can be seen in Morbid Curiosity, Issues 2-7. Additionally she's written several produced low-budget screenplays and currently has another script under option. Dana was also co-writer/associate producer on Urban Rescuers, a documentary on feral cats and TNR (Trap/Neuter/Return), which won Best Documentary at the 2003 Valley Film Festival in Los Angeles.
Dana is currently working on the second book in the Murder for Hire series, The Big Snooze and writing erotic romance under the pen name Inara LaVey for Ravenous Romance.
Along with her best friend Maureen, Dana was co-producer/writer/director for a mystery-oriented theatrical troupe based in San Diego. While no actual murders occurred during their performances, there were times when the actors and clients made the idea very tempting. Somewhere in the mists of time she lost a grip on what happened in real life and what she made up for her book.
She's written numerous published articles, essays and shorts, including stories in Cat Fantastic IV, an anthology series edited by Andre Norton (Daw, 1997), Danger City (Contemporary Press, 2005), and Mondo Zombie (Cemetery Dance, 2006). Her essays can be seen in Morbid Curiosity, Issues 2-7. Additionally she's written several produced low-budget screenplays and currently has another script under option. Dana was also co-writer/associate producer on Urban Rescuers, a documentary on feral cats and TNR (Trap/Neuter/Return), which won Best Documentary at the 2003 Valley Film Festival in Los Angeles.
Dana is currently working on the second book in the Murder for Hire series, The Big Snooze and writing erotic romance under the pen name Inara LaVey for Ravenous Romance.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 69 reviews
January 31, 2018
Time shards is technically accomplished, smart, visceral and is by far the most creative novel I've had the pleasure to read this year. This book had me tearing through the pages in the daytime and dreaming about being in Fitzgerald and Fredsti's kaleidoscopic world during my sleeping hours.
Forget what you think this book will be about, these are writers who defy all convention; displaying a reverence for pop-culture, tight plotting, excellent characterisation and throwing cross-genre elements around like confetti.
Written 3rd person, past tense throughout, the novel benefits from two writers who play to their strengths and compliment each other perfectly.
In the early stages of the novel, the division of labour is clear. Each of the main characters has their distinctive voice and 'feel'.
As the main characters, and plotlines, converge Fitzgerald and Fredsti seamlessly blend their narratives whilst losing none of the distinctiveness, guiding the reader skilfully to the climax. This isn't an easy thing to accomplish and demonstrates each writers' skill and ingenuity.
By the novel's close, the reader is given an unexpected and thrilling conclusion, and one hell of a hook into book 2.
An absolute monster of a novel by two accomplished writers who are as comfortable demonstrating their considerable skill, as they are trampling across genre and fucking with your expectations.
Forget what you think this book will be about, these are writers who defy all convention; displaying a reverence for pop-culture, tight plotting, excellent characterisation and throwing cross-genre elements around like confetti.
Written 3rd person, past tense throughout, the novel benefits from two writers who play to their strengths and compliment each other perfectly.
In the early stages of the novel, the division of labour is clear. Each of the main characters has their distinctive voice and 'feel'.
As the main characters, and plotlines, converge Fitzgerald and Fredsti seamlessly blend their narratives whilst losing none of the distinctiveness, guiding the reader skilfully to the climax. This isn't an easy thing to accomplish and demonstrates each writers' skill and ingenuity.
By the novel's close, the reader is given an unexpected and thrilling conclusion, and one hell of a hook into book 2.
An absolute monster of a novel by two accomplished writers who are as comfortable demonstrating their considerable skill, as they are trampling across genre and fucking with your expectations.
July 22, 2021
I'll go three stars if we can agree that this is a lightweight book, ideal if you arrive at the airport and realize that the one book you brought is one you've already read.
Some of the stars are because there's a not-bad sense of "oh yeah, so what happens next?"
But.
First off, who's this FOR? It feels and reads like a YA, but it jumps right in with a bisected Gavin, spears and swords galore, then guns, and torture, and a serial killer. Is this actually a horror-adventure book?
The timeline shattered "like a jigsaw puzzle" ... this holds up OK if only time shattered, not space (leaving aside issues that the planet, solar system and galaxy are all moving quite fast and Sir Lancelot swapping with Trevor Noah is going to have some problems)
"Merlin" has more or less promised to undo all this, which will be interesting. What will happen to all the people and buildings that got cut in half, as we were so carefully shown in messy detail. Oh dear, he's going to have to do the "make it didn't happen" time travel thing. Like when Superman spun the Earth the wrong way that time. Yuck. Please don't have it end with Amber sitting in a punt with faint memories, like Alice Liddell waking up with her kitten.
I'm OK with the nods to George Washington and Caesar (although the Caesar scene was quite well done). Got a little concerned when Nellie Bly meets Lord Fairfax/Stearne, but so far we haven't strayed into P J Farmer's Riverworld, full of "Hi, I'm Mark Twain." "Pleased to meet you, I'm Henry VIII. Lucky we happened to meet, huh? I mean, the odds are that we'd both be grubby peasants ...."
That is balanced by a decent selection of who else got drawn into our little group: female cop, male soldier, primitive boy, nasty young man, ... but I deduct a huge point for the professor. That's just Dr. Smith from Lost In Space. And Stearne is a tad overdrawn, even though real people existed who were almost as fanatic and corrupt as that. Again, it's a bit melodramatic that THIS is who they met, rather than a grocers' convention from 1953 Iowa.
"Merlin" can regenerate. Uh huh. We'll see. I'm fine with autodocs etc., but in-the-field nanobot regeneration may be a stretch for the 23rd century. I reckon scientists that can screw up the way they have here would not be any more successful with nanobots, and we'd get the pink-goo scenario.
Reckon I'll just read the plot synopsis of #2. Your mileage may vary. Void where prohibited.
Some of the stars are because there's a not-bad sense of "oh yeah, so what happens next?"
But.
First off, who's this FOR? It feels and reads like a YA, but it jumps right in with a bisected Gavin, spears and swords galore, then guns, and torture, and a serial killer. Is this actually a horror-adventure book?
The timeline shattered "like a jigsaw puzzle" ... this holds up OK if only time shattered, not space (leaving aside issues that the planet, solar system and galaxy are all moving quite fast and Sir Lancelot swapping with Trevor Noah is going to have some problems)
"Merlin" has more or less promised to undo all this, which will be interesting. What will happen to all the people and buildings that got cut in half, as we were so carefully shown in messy detail. Oh dear, he's going to have to do the "make it didn't happen" time travel thing. Like when Superman spun the Earth the wrong way that time. Yuck. Please don't have it end with Amber sitting in a punt with faint memories, like Alice Liddell waking up with her kitten.
I'm OK with the nods to George Washington and Caesar (although the Caesar scene was quite well done). Got a little concerned when Nellie Bly meets Lord Fairfax/Stearne, but so far we haven't strayed into P J Farmer's Riverworld, full of "Hi, I'm Mark Twain." "Pleased to meet you, I'm Henry VIII. Lucky we happened to meet, huh? I mean, the odds are that we'd both be grubby peasants ...."
That is balanced by a decent selection of who else got drawn into our little group: female cop, male soldier, primitive boy, nasty young man, ... but I deduct a huge point for the professor. That's just Dr. Smith from Lost In Space. And Stearne is a tad overdrawn, even though real people existed who were almost as fanatic and corrupt as that. Again, it's a bit melodramatic that THIS is who they met, rather than a grocers' convention from 1953 Iowa.
"Merlin" can regenerate. Uh huh. We'll see. I'm fine with autodocs etc., but in-the-field nanobot regeneration may be a stretch for the 23rd century. I reckon scientists that can screw up the way they have here would not be any more successful with nanobots, and we'd get the pink-goo scenario.
Reckon I'll just read the plot synopsis of #2. Your mileage may vary. Void where prohibited.
January 29, 2018
Wrapping up the newest available seasons of Flash and Legends Of Tomorrow on Netflix (LoT has gotten significantly better in this second season despite still having zero regard for science and physics, whereas Flash in the Savitar season is godawful,) I'm a little leery of time-travel shenanigans right now. But like Fox Mulder, I want to believe! Fortunately for me, Time Shards came along at the perfect moment to prevent me from giving up on the genre altogether.
Told from the point of view mainly of Amber, a modern young woman from California who was cosplaying as The Guild's Codex in England when catastrophe struck, Time Shards follows a band of explorers as they fight for survival in a world fractured by chronology. Any given step can take you from modern day to prehistoric times or any point in between. I really liked how much space was given to said prehistoric times, given what a huge portion they make of Earth's history in comparison to humanity's brief sojourn. I also really liked how well-researched everything felt, from the history to the science: when the guy who maybe possibly caused all this explains what he's done and what the consequences still might be, I totally went with it. I'm not the kind of person who demands absolute scientific accuracy and realism in my fiction, but I do have some standards, and Time Shards delivers.
Oddly, the only thing I somewhat disliked was Amber, and it was less to do with the character, who is essentially inoffensive, than with the way the character is written. I much, much preferred Nell and Alex, as far as the female characters went, for being resourceful and capable. I think it has to do with how the writers clearly expect me to like Amber more than she's shown herself worthy of being liked. I keep being told she's awesome, but I'm not really seeing it: she feels like a supporting character, at best, and not like the heroine. Hopefully, that's something that gets sorted out in the next two books of the trilogy, as I'm really quite excited to see where this goes next!
FYI, Titan Press sent this to me for review.
Told from the point of view mainly of Amber, a modern young woman from California who was cosplaying as The Guild's Codex in England when catastrophe struck, Time Shards follows a band of explorers as they fight for survival in a world fractured by chronology. Any given step can take you from modern day to prehistoric times or any point in between. I really liked how much space was given to said prehistoric times, given what a huge portion they make of Earth's history in comparison to humanity's brief sojourn. I also really liked how well-researched everything felt, from the history to the science: when the guy who maybe possibly caused all this explains what he's done and what the consequences still might be, I totally went with it. I'm not the kind of person who demands absolute scientific accuracy and realism in my fiction, but I do have some standards, and Time Shards delivers.
Oddly, the only thing I somewhat disliked was Amber, and it was less to do with the character, who is essentially inoffensive, than with the way the character is written. I much, much preferred Nell and Alex, as far as the female characters went, for being resourceful and capable. I think it has to do with how the writers clearly expect me to like Amber more than she's shown herself worthy of being liked. I keep being told she's awesome, but I'm not really seeing it: she feels like a supporting character, at best, and not like the heroine. Hopefully, that's something that gets sorted out in the next two books of the trilogy, as I'm really quite excited to see where this goes next!
FYI, Titan Press sent this to me for review.
September 10, 2018
What a whimsical, imaginative, holy mess of a book! It made absolutely no sense. I loved it!
November 17, 2018
I came across this book while perusing the shelves at my local library. It was the title that caught my attention; the word "time" on any book shelved in the science fiction section will always attract my interest. After giving it a quick scan, I decided to give it a try.
Two hours later, I find myself wondering what better use I might have made of that time.
To be fair, Dana Fredsti and David Fitzgerald's book isn't the worst book that I've ever read. It is, however, incredibly derivative, tossing together elements from two or three different (and better) sci-fi novels and rushing the reader through with nonstop action in the hope that if the pacing is fast enough said reader won't ask too many questions. Given the dual authors, this is probably the first book I have ever read with a Mary Sue and a Gary Stu in it, the latter of which isn't well disguised by the clumsy red herring thrown into the narrative. The whole thing ends up feeling like a treatment for a movie made for the SyFy channel, with every plot point hitting its sadly predictable beat. The closer I got to the end, the more I found myself thinking, "Please don't be the first book in a series. Please don't be the first book in a series. please don't be the first book in a series."
Then I got to the end and, sure enough, it's the first book in a series.
Oh, well, at least it proved a quick read.
Two hours later, I find myself wondering what better use I might have made of that time.
To be fair, Dana Fredsti and David Fitzgerald's book isn't the worst book that I've ever read. It is, however, incredibly derivative, tossing together elements from two or three different (and better) sci-fi novels and rushing the reader through with nonstop action in the hope that if the pacing is fast enough said reader won't ask too many questions. Given the dual authors, this is probably the first book I have ever read with a Mary Sue and a Gary Stu in it, the latter of which isn't well disguised by the clumsy red herring thrown into the narrative. The whole thing ends up feeling like a treatment for a movie made for the SyFy channel, with every plot point hitting its sadly predictable beat. The closer I got to the end, the more I found myself thinking, "Please don't be the first book in a series. Please don't be the first book in a series. please don't be the first book in a series."
Then I got to the end and, sure enough, it's the first book in a series.
Oh, well, at least it proved a quick read.
October 5, 2019
Loved this book! The only thing wrong with it is that it just came out so now I have to WAIT for the next installment!! The characters were very well done, with flashbacks to their own times so you have a good understanding of where/when they came from and why they react in the ways that they do to the world they find themselves stranded in. The world is....fascinatingly broken. A giant jigsaw puzzle made up of pieces from many, many different puzzles, forced together to make a new, disturbing world. This book really has a little bit of everything -- adventure, battles, magic-like science, cosplay (The Guild!!!), dinosaurs, witchfinders, serial killers, dire wolves, nerd-references (what would Captain Mal do), big-ass scorpions....what more could you ask for?! I loved the world, loved the idea and loved, LOVED the characters (well, most of them and I loved to hate the rest!). Now I have to go sulk for awhile and wait for word on how long I have to wait for the next installment.
January 20, 2019
Right from the very first page, I was engaged with the concept of this book. The storyline was obviously fantasy, but was told in a way that made you wonder - could it happen? Let's hope it doesn't! Getting to know the characters just gave you one more reason to buy into the story. It was exciting to find out which piece of history I would learn about next and then what would happen to the characters as they encountered new timelines. It was an adventure that I didn't want to see end as quickly as it did. A quick and easy read that left me wanting for more. I'm very much looking forward to the next book in this series!
March 31, 2018
I was fortunate enough to read this early and can honestly say, it's a fun, fast-paced and highly original read that kept me up far too late -- an honest page-turner. And I mean, SMALL SPOILER AHEAD:
Nellie Bly!
Nellie Bly!
June 22, 2018
I'm a sucker for ecclectic crews from different worlds and timelines.
But I still demand interesting stories.
The first character we are introduced to is an ingenue refusing to think. Mmmmmh, fair enough, that could make for an interesting character development
The next character is a "warrior", According to the blurb at least, from the bronze age.
I'd continue but this is a BIG ensemble cast and i feel like that since the book starts as it means to go on I don't need to belabor the point.
The story is nothing but a pelle melle of cliches and scenes that would have resolved better if the MC had NOT been involved.
Skip.
But I still demand interesting stories.
The first character we are introduced to is an ingenue refusing to think. Mmmmmh, fair enough, that could make for an interesting character development
The next character is a "warrior", According to the blurb at least, from the bronze age.
I'd continue but this is a BIG ensemble cast and i feel like that since the book starts as it means to go on I don't need to belabor the point.
The story is nothing but a pelle melle of cliches and scenes that would have resolved better if the MC had NOT been involved.
Skip.
August 25, 2018
Awesome! Even though I have liked everything that I've read of Dana Fredsti's, I was hesitant to read this, because I thought it was dealing with time travel, which I don't usually like. However, I was thrilled to discover that I was mistaken! I really liked it - loved the characters, and it had a couple of twists that I didn't see coming. Also, my favorite genre of books is apocalyptic (Swan Song and the Stand are my two favorites), and while I don't know if others would consider this apocalyptic, I did. Good apocalyptic books are few and far between, in my opinion, (while I think dystopian is over-done, and post-apocalyptic is hit or miss for me), so it made me really happy to read this one!
My only complaint is that it was a little cliff-hangery . I will read the next one no matter what, but I would have liked a little more information to hold me over in my wait for the next in the series!
My only complaint is that it was a little cliff-hangery . I will read the next one no matter what, but I would have liked a little more information to hold me over in my wait for the next in the series!
November 5, 2021
DNF. I got through 52% before throwing in the towel.
The ramp up is entirely too long, the prose isn't all that engaging, and the Mary Sue protagonist reads like a YA heroine. (Yes, I know she's probably a teenager. She doesn't have to be written FOR teenagers.)
The ramp up is entirely too long, the prose isn't all that engaging, and the Mary Sue protagonist reads like a YA heroine. (Yes, I know she's probably a teenager. She doesn't have to be written FOR teenagers.)
January 27, 2018
Nooooo I wasn't ready for it to end I need more.
This was freaking amazing
Full review to come
This was freaking amazing
Full review to come
May 8, 2021
Wow, that was a lot of fun and I'm looking forward to the next installment.
April 24, 2020
Entertaining story! Time travel, dinosaurs, neanderthals, and modern man all stuck together in one timeline!
May 5, 2018
Time is crazy, I mean to even try to think about this. Mind blown. Time shattered. This took place int the future. And now that future is gone and everything that has been has been thrown together like a patchwork quilt. Everything else...who knows. Gone? Never existed? Tiny fragments, bigger fragments. A coffee shop from 1993. A town from 1662. A swamp from the Jurassic Era. Woven together. So you might walk down a road and you are actually walking through different eras, but now they all exist at once. Like father time took things from here and there and made a new world.
Amber attended a Con and is now stuck and has no idea what the F happened. She is a nerd (love that), she is resourceful, kind and well just wants to get the h out of here. I liked her.
We meet a few others on the way too. Cam, a Celtic warrior, who just wants to get home to his village. Poor guy, everyone he meets does not speak his language.
A scientist who says he has answers. A soldier who wants to do good. And a whole lot of Cornwellian soldiers with a zealot in their midst. I say that this new world would have been much much better without them!!! And more that I wont spoil. But think about it, not many made it, we as a race are young. A lot more came before.
Dinosaurs, pre historic monsters, there are dangers lurking everywhere.
And the book was intense! At one time I was all, I hope this will not give me nightmares! What a hellscape to be stuck in. And you can think that there was a lot of action since so much is out to get you.
A good book with one crazy new world
Narrator.
Aaron Shedlock
I really enjoyed his voice. He was perfect for this and he made this one guy sooo creepy. Shivers ran down my spine. In a good way.
A nice range and he kept the up the speed
Amber attended a Con and is now stuck and has no idea what the F happened. She is a nerd (love that), she is resourceful, kind and well just wants to get the h out of here. I liked her.
We meet a few others on the way too. Cam, a Celtic warrior, who just wants to get home to his village. Poor guy, everyone he meets does not speak his language.
A scientist who says he has answers. A soldier who wants to do good. And a whole lot of Cornwellian soldiers with a zealot in their midst. I say that this new world would have been much much better without them!!! And more that I wont spoil. But think about it, not many made it, we as a race are young. A lot more came before.
Dinosaurs, pre historic monsters, there are dangers lurking everywhere.
And the book was intense! At one time I was all, I hope this will not give me nightmares! What a hellscape to be stuck in. And you can think that there was a lot of action since so much is out to get you.
A good book with one crazy new world
Narrator.
Aaron Shedlock
I really enjoyed his voice. He was perfect for this and he made this one guy sooo creepy. Shivers ran down my spine. In a good way.
A nice range and he kept the up the speed
July 14, 2023
2.5 stars rounded to 3.
This book was a perfectly fine easy scifi, about as complex as a Doctor Who two-parter.
Some of my complaints stem from a poor blurb that isn't quite accurate to the story inside. Another is cringy fandom lingo, which only ever came up when the audience needed to be reminded that the protagonist was a 21st century Nerd girl yaknow. I found the protagonist pretty bland overall, and potentially interesting characters pretty one note and without much distinction.
There were a few chapters in here that added nothing, were the only instance of certain characters at all, and that never came up again. There was also a bit of an instant romance-esque connection between characters that came from nothing, but the rest of the relationship interactions were solid and didn't feel rushed.
The extent of the gory descriptions and deaths took me by surprise, purely because the writing didn't strike me as particularly mature. Some bits overstayed their welcome, but there wasn't a lot that felt like gore for the sake of gore. The threat of sexual violence to the main woman however....
Overall it was fine. I might continue the series if it crosses my path, but it's not one I'm intent on adding to my collection.
This book was a perfectly fine easy scifi, about as complex as a Doctor Who two-parter.
Some of my complaints stem from a poor blurb that isn't quite accurate to the story inside. Another is cringy fandom lingo, which only ever came up when the audience needed to be reminded that the protagonist was a 21st century Nerd girl yaknow. I found the protagonist pretty bland overall, and potentially interesting characters pretty one note and without much distinction.
There were a few chapters in here that added nothing, were the only instance of certain characters at all, and that never came up again. There was also a bit of an instant romance-esque connection between characters that came from nothing, but the rest of the relationship interactions were solid and didn't feel rushed.
The extent of the gory descriptions and deaths took me by surprise, purely because the writing didn't strike me as particularly mature. Some bits overstayed their welcome, but there wasn't a lot that felt like gore for the sake of gore. The threat of sexual violence to the main woman however....
Overall it was fine. I might continue the series if it crosses my path, but it's not one I'm intent on adding to my collection.
August 12, 2024
"Time Shards" is more of a prologue than a book. But it's an interesting one, I'll give it that.
Plot: Time has become fractured into "shards." This meaning you could be walking along in 2016, then be in prehistoric times, then the Spanish Inquisition, you get the idea. We follow a group of survivors who mostly battle dinosaurs and religious zealots and then...the book ends. This is the first book of a trilogy and I might return to it but who knows.
Plot: Time has become fractured into "shards." This meaning you could be walking along in 2016, then be in prehistoric times, then the Spanish Inquisition, you get the idea. We follow a group of survivors who mostly battle dinosaurs and religious zealots and then...the book ends. This is the first book of a trilogy and I might return to it but who knows.
April 1, 2018
It’s called “the Event.” An unimaginable cataclysm in the 23rd century shatters 600 years of the Earth’s timeline into jumbled fragments. Our world is gone: instantly replaced by a new one made of shattered remnants of the past, present and future, all existing alongside one another in a nightmare patchwork of different time “shards”—some hundreds of miles long and others no more than a few feet across.
San Diego native Amber Richardson is stranded on a tiny fragment of 21st century Britain surrounded by a Pleistocene wilderness. She crosses paths with Cam, a young warrior of a tribe from Roman Brittania, and together they struggle to survive—only to be imprisoned by Cromwellian soldiers. One of their captives is a man who Amber calls “Merlin, and who claims to be the 23rd century scientist responsible for the Event. Together they must escape and locate Merlin’s ship before the damage to the timeline is irreparable.
Out January 30, 2018
MY THOUGHTS:
I received this book in exchange for my honest review.
Oh. My. Goodness!
Fan-freakin-tastic!
This team of authors did a wonderful job, each applying their individual skills into the characters and plot to create a genuine work of art. They’re bloody genius! The plot was definitive and strong, each twist and turn necessary to its success while the pace drove the story forward idealizing an innovative style of writing with pop-culture references, strong motivations and building tension that didn’t let up.
The world, the world, the world! So intricately pieced together in both a fascinating complexity, and a provocative paradox, the world these two created was bound seamlessly to the characters’ goals which were constantly being tested and driven to an exhilarating conclusion and succession. The characters were so intricately created, intertwined together out of necessity for the stories success, yet, perfectly faulted, flawed and bordered on the insane for what they were forced to endure. Each pivotal moment of their development was strife with struggle, angst and tension.
Although the book flashed through different times from past to present, this was done carefully and fleshed out to the tiniest detail. It has everything you want in a book like this and the only issue I had was when I turned the last page and the story was over.
If I could give a rating out of ten for technical set-up, I would give eleven stars… It was that good! There wasn’t anything I could find wrong with pace, plot, arc development, style, POVs, etc. Everything was done excellently!
I highly recommend this book to all.
San Diego native Amber Richardson is stranded on a tiny fragment of 21st century Britain surrounded by a Pleistocene wilderness. She crosses paths with Cam, a young warrior of a tribe from Roman Brittania, and together they struggle to survive—only to be imprisoned by Cromwellian soldiers. One of their captives is a man who Amber calls “Merlin, and who claims to be the 23rd century scientist responsible for the Event. Together they must escape and locate Merlin’s ship before the damage to the timeline is irreparable.
Out January 30, 2018
MY THOUGHTS:
I received this book in exchange for my honest review.
Oh. My. Goodness!
Fan-freakin-tastic!
This team of authors did a wonderful job, each applying their individual skills into the characters and plot to create a genuine work of art. They’re bloody genius! The plot was definitive and strong, each twist and turn necessary to its success while the pace drove the story forward idealizing an innovative style of writing with pop-culture references, strong motivations and building tension that didn’t let up.
The world, the world, the world! So intricately pieced together in both a fascinating complexity, and a provocative paradox, the world these two created was bound seamlessly to the characters’ goals which were constantly being tested and driven to an exhilarating conclusion and succession. The characters were so intricately created, intertwined together out of necessity for the stories success, yet, perfectly faulted, flawed and bordered on the insane for what they were forced to endure. Each pivotal moment of their development was strife with struggle, angst and tension.
Although the book flashed through different times from past to present, this was done carefully and fleshed out to the tiniest detail. It has everything you want in a book like this and the only issue I had was when I turned the last page and the story was over.
If I could give a rating out of ten for technical set-up, I would give eleven stars… It was that good! There wasn’t anything I could find wrong with pace, plot, arc development, style, POVs, etc. Everything was done excellently!
I highly recommend this book to all.
February 9, 2018
(Warning: Spoiler alert!) Time Shards By Dana Fredsti and David Fitzgerald (Titan Books, February 2018) is the fast-paced kind of rip-roaring sf adventure Doctor Who fans will love. It’s set in England and includes a time-traveling doctor of astrophysics called Merlin capable of regeneration when killed and whose companions this episode are a present-day American college-age girl named Amber, an American journalist from the 1890s who calls herself Nellie Bly, a British WWII-era SAS commando named Blake, a bumbling Oxford professor who’s both a coward and a fraud, and a displaced Celtic Druid named Cam who speaks only archaic Welsh or Gaelic, plus a smattering of imperial Latin.
Amber, attending a cosplay convention in England, is ill-prepared to survive the cataclysmic event that first shatters earth’s time-line and then jams broken pieces back together in random order. Now dinosaurs roam the English countryside, Cromwell’s roundheads burn witches at the stake, and giant scorpions prowl the woods.
Amber stumbles from one horror into another, only to be saved at the last possible moment by Blake or Nellie or Cam or Merlin. Cam thinks Amber’s a faery queen when they first meet because of her cosplay costume. Although he’s technically two thousand years older than her, they appear to be the same age and he becomes enamored of her charms. Stearne, a 17th-century roundhead witch-finder, believes her a witch because of her costume. He spends half the book trying to torture her or pursuing Amber and her companions to tie them all to stakes and burn them as witches.
The story is a wonderful blend of adventure and history lesson that’s a joy to read. My only disappointment came during the final pages when it was evident I would need to buy at least one more book in the series to learn all the answers and find resolution. Can Doctor Merlin restore the time-line? Will technology be the savior of mankind or its destroyer? Inquiring minds want to know, and I will buy the next book because I love the characters and care about what happens next.
Amber, attending a cosplay convention in England, is ill-prepared to survive the cataclysmic event that first shatters earth’s time-line and then jams broken pieces back together in random order. Now dinosaurs roam the English countryside, Cromwell’s roundheads burn witches at the stake, and giant scorpions prowl the woods.
Amber stumbles from one horror into another, only to be saved at the last possible moment by Blake or Nellie or Cam or Merlin. Cam thinks Amber’s a faery queen when they first meet because of her cosplay costume. Although he’s technically two thousand years older than her, they appear to be the same age and he becomes enamored of her charms. Stearne, a 17th-century roundhead witch-finder, believes her a witch because of her costume. He spends half the book trying to torture her or pursuing Amber and her companions to tie them all to stakes and burn them as witches.
The story is a wonderful blend of adventure and history lesson that’s a joy to read. My only disappointment came during the final pages when it was evident I would need to buy at least one more book in the series to learn all the answers and find resolution. Can Doctor Merlin restore the time-line? Will technology be the savior of mankind or its destroyer? Inquiring minds want to know, and I will buy the next book because I love the characters and care about what happens next.
November 3, 2019
This is time travelling, time displacement, and dinosaurs all in one heck of a book that made want to read on.
This is, if not, THE BEST book EVER. I mean that in every possible sense. I WANTED MORE! MORE! Heck, LET THE TIMELINE BE DAMNED! Ha, but seriously this is the amount of excitement I had when reading this book. It went so fast that the writing, the dialogue, the prose was fantastic.
If you’re wondering why a group of Cromwell’s soliders are charging a Celt, an Englishman, an American lady, with witchcraft, you’re in for a treat. The dinosaurs. BBC! This is the NEW Doctor Who. If you want a time travelling show just look at this GEM! Honestly, you SHOULD read this FIRST before reading Shatter war. It has such a wild imagination, and Cem! Literally the wildest, badass, and most respectable man on the planet. I LOVE his views, his intepretation of the world, and in a way I think we need to return to that. Poor Amber, she was on a date and well….I won’t say anything more than that. Amber and Cem make a very good couple.
At Titan Books, for the 3rd book, you must say and literally say: Time travelling with dinosaurs in a fractured timeline. I’ve enjoyed this so much I think it’s the British version of Baen’s 1636 series, in where a 21st century American State is time-dropped into 1636. This is wilder, this has beasts, this has dinosaurs, damn it! Honestly this is a rather under-rated gem. All the characters are great, everything about this novel is great. If it was 448 pages, it felt like 250. That’s how good it was.
It is a rather short review, but what more can I say that this is amazing. Read this book first, then Shatter war! Cannot wait for the third now.
Solid 5/5. BUY IT NOW!
This is, if not, THE BEST book EVER. I mean that in every possible sense. I WANTED MORE! MORE! Heck, LET THE TIMELINE BE DAMNED! Ha, but seriously this is the amount of excitement I had when reading this book. It went so fast that the writing, the dialogue, the prose was fantastic.
If you’re wondering why a group of Cromwell’s soliders are charging a Celt, an Englishman, an American lady, with witchcraft, you’re in for a treat. The dinosaurs. BBC! This is the NEW Doctor Who. If you want a time travelling show just look at this GEM! Honestly, you SHOULD read this FIRST before reading Shatter war. It has such a wild imagination, and Cem! Literally the wildest, badass, and most respectable man on the planet. I LOVE his views, his intepretation of the world, and in a way I think we need to return to that. Poor Amber, she was on a date and well….I won’t say anything more than that. Amber and Cem make a very good couple.
At Titan Books, for the 3rd book, you must say and literally say: Time travelling with dinosaurs in a fractured timeline. I’ve enjoyed this so much I think it’s the British version of Baen’s 1636 series, in where a 21st century American State is time-dropped into 1636. This is wilder, this has beasts, this has dinosaurs, damn it! Honestly this is a rather under-rated gem. All the characters are great, everything about this novel is great. If it was 448 pages, it felt like 250. That’s how good it was.
It is a rather short review, but what more can I say that this is amazing. Read this book first, then Shatter war! Cannot wait for the third now.
Solid 5/5. BUY IT NOW!
April 12, 2019
I give this book a low five stars. It was pretty great! Sure, the time shattering effect is ludicrous, but aside from that, this is reminds me of a high concept, low budget BBC sci-fi. It's full of Dr Whovian style encounters across centuries and geological epochs, danger, blood, terror, some laughs, a hint of romance, and bonus points for the main character being a con-going, cosplaying geekess. There is also a very sweet Post-Roman invasion Celt, a witch-pricker, advanced technology, dire wolves and much more.
I was not expecting this to be a series, and as I was listening to the audiobook rather than reading a physical copy, the end arrived as a surprise. It at least wasn't a cliffhanger, but I am definitely left wanting the sequel, which I'm not sure is available yet! It certainly wasn't when I listened to this book a couple of months ago.
I was not expecting this to be a series, and as I was listening to the audiobook rather than reading a physical copy, the end arrived as a surprise. It at least wasn't a cliffhanger, but I am definitely left wanting the sequel, which I'm not sure is available yet! It certainly wasn't when I listened to this book a couple of months ago.
February 25, 2018
Loved this book! I could SOO see this as a movie or TV series. The characters were very well done and I really enjoyed seeing how there world was and who they were BEFORE it went to hell. It's like, as one character puts it, "a giant jigsaw puzzle" made up of pieces from many, many different puzzles, forced together to make a new, disturbing puzzle (world). This book has it all. Adventure, fisticuffs, magic (well science disguised as magic), dinosaurs, 'olde worlde' Brits, serial killers, and giant killer scorpions. I loved the world, loved the idea, loved the characters. Loved some of the little twists and surprises. Now I have to go WAIT for the next book. It's like I binged a whole season on Netflix and now have to wait another year. Ugh!
March 9, 2018
Imagine time as an infinite line, connecting past, present and future. Then think of that line being fractured into pieces and reconnected in a patchwork quilt containing shards from different parts of the infinite line.
That is the clever concept at the root of "Time Shards," a very creative approach to time travel.
After a 23rd Century "event" shatters the time line, we find dinosaurs, ancient armies and futuristic robots sharing the same space.
A 21st Century California woman, a young Celtic warrior, a British policewoman from 1985, a World War Two soldier and a serial killer find themselves thrown togethe3r as refugees in this strange mash-up.
The result is a very entertaining, different approach that is the first in a fascinating new series. Can't wait for the next installment.
That is the clever concept at the root of "Time Shards," a very creative approach to time travel.
After a 23rd Century "event" shatters the time line, we find dinosaurs, ancient armies and futuristic robots sharing the same space.
A 21st Century California woman, a young Celtic warrior, a British policewoman from 1985, a World War Two soldier and a serial killer find themselves thrown togethe3r as refugees in this strange mash-up.
The result is a very entertaining, different approach that is the first in a fascinating new series. Can't wait for the next installment.
June 15, 2018
I really liked this book. It has an amazing premise (time gets shattered, leaving the Earth full of areas from all timeframes). This concept has tons of potential and could easily support dozens of other books written in it's universe.
It focuses on just a few characters in the beginning but more characters keep getting added in until it has enough characters that it feels like a fantasy quest / adventure story.
It has a quick pace and the audio book narration is great.
My biggest complaint is the heavy use of deus ex dinosaur. Also, I want it to deal a little grander in scope.
I will definitely continue the series when the next one comes out.
It focuses on just a few characters in the beginning but more characters keep getting added in until it has enough characters that it feels like a fantasy quest / adventure story.
It has a quick pace and the audio book narration is great.
My biggest complaint is the heavy use of deus ex dinosaur. Also, I want it to deal a little grander in scope.
I will definitely continue the series when the next one comes out.
February 19, 2018
Fascinating concept
The concept that the book is based on is fascinating. And the characters that are thrown into the mix together are great. The story is entertaining and I was totally entertained. I actually wish that the book dealt more with the science behind it and the complications of time than it did. It focused more on the story of the characters, which I admit, is usually what you want. But I just found myself wanting to know more about what happened. It’s a fun read though.
The concept that the book is based on is fascinating. And the characters that are thrown into the mix together are great. The story is entertaining and I was totally entertained. I actually wish that the book dealt more with the science behind it and the complications of time than it did. It focused more on the story of the characters, which I admit, is usually what you want. But I just found myself wanting to know more about what happened. It’s a fun read though.
March 21, 2018
Entertaining character driven sci-fi novel. Granted it is an idea which has been done before and will be used again but this is one of the better examples in this field. Particularly enjoyed the chapter as seen from the Moon. Not afraid to have deaths amongst the main characters and this is only the first in a trilogy. What has happened is explained. Why is not answered, but it is only part one of three. Looking forward to finding out what happens next.
Ray Smillie
Ray Smillie
June 14, 2018
There were so many things about this book that could have bothered me. So many ridiculously improbable things, so many historical/scientific/continuity errors, so many cringe-worthy moments. So I guess it's a credit to the authors that none of them really bothered me that much. That being said, I'm not sure I'll read any future books in this series. I mean, how many deus-ex-machina moments to save you from the clutches of someone you just realized was a serial killer can one person take?
May 16, 2018
Loved it! Crazy concept and interesting characters. And a nice little confusing twist I completely fell for. You got me.
Anyway, this is the set up, our heroes have found each other, been pursued by dinosaurs and Roundheads. This book makes sure you learn a little bit about history, and then makes some future stuff up. Super entertaining! Can't wait for the next one. Write faster!
Anyway, this is the set up, our heroes have found each other, been pursued by dinosaurs and Roundheads. This book makes sure you learn a little bit about history, and then makes some future stuff up. Super entertaining! Can't wait for the next one. Write faster!
November 27, 2018
Short review, I may come back to flesh it out... but this is a great start to this series. Easily I could recommend this to just about anyone. I love the Cam/Amber sub plot and of course the time breaking up part was overall great. Such a neat take on time travel instead of the usual (not that I'm tired of the usual by any means)
December 13, 2018
All I ask for in a story is to keep my interest to a degree that I don't want to put the book down, and Time Shards delivered on that request.
Is the book perfect? No, not at all, but it's well written and the concept of the story is intriguing and original.
The second book comes out in 2019, and eagerly wait to be thoroughly entertained.
Is the book perfect? No, not at all, but it's well written and the concept of the story is intriguing and original.
The second book comes out in 2019, and eagerly wait to be thoroughly entertained.
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