This Is How You Lose the Time War

Hovering around a 3.75-4 stars for me.

I listened to the entirety of this audiobook while driving for work. This was another one I went into without reading anything about it except for the blurb. I am stealing and reusing one of my own descriptors that I made in my review of The Last Days of New Paris, but I feel like it describes what I felt when listening to this book as well. I felt this story wasn't as much of a narrative as much as it was an experience.

Going into the book, here is what I knew: two time-traveling agents working for different organizations wage war on each other throughout time. Though the two are enemies, they eventually fall in love. That's all the context I had, and it colored what I was expecting. I thought it would be a more traditional plot-driven book since that tends to be the trend with science fiction books. This wasn't it at all. In fact, it even led me to be a little disappointed at first.

It took me a while to get into the feel of the book. I feel like the main focus of it is the language. The letters written by Red and Blue (and even the prose itself to an extent) are filled with some of the most lyrical, abstract, and poetic writing I've ever heard. Metaphors, similies and craftsmanship with the English language fill their letters, like they are both composing music or sonnets. After getting used to this playing and building of language, I started to click with the book and immerse myself in it more. I believe listening to the book versus reading it might have helped with that. It helped the flow of the words feel more natural. It's very unique in that I can't think of another novel I've read that has this same kind of priority on language. There have been others that I've read that felt more like experiences, perhaps in the setting or by just exploring something, but this is the first I've read where the prose itself is what the reader is meant to immerse themselves the most in.

The setting also takes a setting seen in many different media--time traveling--and gives it a unique spin. In fact, I'd say this story is almost borderline weird fiction with how surreal it can get. The main characters are humans, but they stretch the definition of it by all of their enhancements, all to help them better fight their time-traveling war. The way they pass letters onto each other is... unconventional, to say the least. I don't want to say more because I think reading about them is part of the experience of reading this.

It's hard to talk about the characters because their development is not focused on very much. I can't really criticize the relationship not feeling like a natural progression or the two having chemistry because it's hard to quantify those things when all of their interactions are done through these letters filled to the brim with purple prose. But I was surprised, at the end, to find myself invested in their relationship and hoping that everything worked out. Maybe it was the dramatic, creative ways they communicated with one another? While I didn't feel there was much under the surface (even with the backstories they revealed about themselves, I'm the kind of person who feels more impacted when the characters have things happen to them as opposed to them talking of things that have happened to them in the past and seeing the aftermath), this isn't the kind of story that comes across as having that be a priority. I think when an author (or authors) write stories a certain way to make it clear what purpose they have in writing it, it's easier for me to not be so bothered by the lackluster aspects of it.

My biggest complaint? I've already gone over how beautiful and poetic the writing can be, especially in the letters that Blue and Red write to one another. I think sometimes it gets to be a bit too...much. Obviously, this isn't a case where you expect their letters to sound natural and like something most people would write. It's part of the experience, like I said above. But, in all honesty? Even with that in mind, sometimes it gets to be a little ridiculous at points. I guess it's a lucky thing that I listened to this through an audiobook because it means I can't reference it to paste quotes. Otherwise, this review would be filled with the most ridiculous ones. Holding coins under your tongue? An entire paragraph describing eating blueberry pancakes and honey in the most flowery, purple prose imaginable? A dramatic description of a character being locked in a glass coffin with no "necrophilic prince?" I'll be honest, I think even the most delicate and beautiful writing can't really cover up the silliness of such things, and only works to highlight it even more. That's the main reason why I hesitate to give it a full four stars so readily.

But despite the initially bumpy ride, things smoothed out as time went on, and I found myself enjoying it. If you're looking for a traditional story, I don't think this will do it for you. If you're okay with experiencing a story through its writing and take joy just in the act of listening to poetic prose, you will enjoy this. I recommend the audiobook. The narrators do a great job with their respective parts, and it helps better to let the words flow over you.