Wrong Place Wrong Time

–** Spin up I'll Be Ok by Nothing More **–

Gillian McAllister's “Wrong Place, Wrong Time” wowed me. I had never heard of it until my GR friend Nyx wrote a fascinating review of it. Nyx compared it to the movie Ground Hog Day w/ a murder mystery twist, which initially piqued my interest, but it wasn't until the review mentioned a novel approach to the time-loop concept that ultimately sold me. “Usually, it's always about reliving the same day over and over again, but here, she was slowly traveling back in time every night.” When I read that, I was like, “Huh, that sounds incredibly interesting!” So, if you are in the mood for a calculated, somewhat complex mystery that rattles the mind just as much as it tugs on the heartstrings, this book is for you.

// A psychological thriller about a mother who sees her son stab someone, and then finds out that she is given an opportunity to travel back in time to stop the chain of events from taking place. //

Okay, so my head is reeling at how to review this book. Not that it is overtly cerebral, mind you—in fact, it is impressive how the author was able to inject topical ideas and overarching family dynamics into this unique structure—but because this is one of those books that has a twist and turn around every corner, even mentioning a few details might start to wander into spoiler territory. So, with that in mind, I will try and stay away from any major details, but, trust me, it is better to go in with little knowledge just because of the nature of the various paradoxes and time loops present.

// “This is not a wild-goose chase, this is not madness.” //

Let's focus on Jen for a moment. She sees her child stab someone and must come to terms with what that means for his future. He will never get to experience university at his age, get married, or flourish as a contributing member of society. It's heartbreaking because her family is her entire universe—her rock—until this tragic moment occurs and she has to travel back to make sense of it all. Questions start to circle, such as, “Was I a good mother?” or “Was I too lenient with who my child's friends were?” and “Did I even pay that much attention to the man he was growing up to be?” Don't Know What You Got (Till It's Gone) had to be playing on repeat in her head. To make matters worse, she is so focused on her busy life (aren't we all?) that she misses some of the little things, casting even the smallest details off into the ether because she couldn't be bothered, was uninterested, or wasn't paying attention. It is an interesting exercise to stop and think about important choices in your own life, or lack thereof, in a Christmas Carol-y sort of way.

Okay, on to Kelly and Todd. They are Jens family and two upstanding blokes, but it's impossible to say more. As Jen recedes through time, she gets to see them in a whole new light and make calculated decisions on what she says to them. For fans of paradox-y stories, think more along the lines of Primer or All You Zombies than BTTF or The Time Traveler's Wife. Let's see, we have Jen's father, which I can't say anything about; a co-worker, which I can't say anything about; and a time-travel enthusiast, which I can't say anything about. Hmmm. I guess I can't say much about any of the other characters. Oh, wait! Jen hires an Uber driver who smokes and plays games on his phone. So, there is something descriptive about a character. Who else? Hmm, you know what? This is going nowhere; I can't talk about any of the other characters, so I'll just move on.

// “The past disappears into the fog like the horizon.” //

Since I can't really talk about the plot, let's get a little introspective here. The first third really didn't work for me. Well, that's not true; let me elaborate a bit. There is a part in the book where Jen and her father (who are both lawyers) amuse themselves by watching episodes of Law and Order and picking apart how the lawyers handle legal matters. I like doing the same with time travel movies, TV shows, and books. It's fun to try and figure out where the characters are in time and how their future selves or past selves will be affected by the decisions of a would-be temporal adventurer. What I soon found out was that this book removes high-concept ideas such as the hokey Delorean (no hate, love the car) and T-800's severed arm and replaces them with something much more dramatic and personal: love for your family. Now I know that sounds UBER cheesy, but it works so well in this, and once I pushed all my pre-conceived notions to the side, I really cozied up to the story. It has some pretty crazy moments and I'm not going to lie; I might have got a bit misty around the eyes. So, don't fault it for its lack of substance at the beginning. It starts to ramp up about halfway in.

// “Does anyone care how or why we are forged into who we are? Dark, guarded, funny, whatever; or does it only matter that we are.” //

One thing you are probably wondering is does it deliver? It does. Instead of an info-dump, it gives a quick explanation that is satisfying. Something that is really interesting. I could actually see a sequel in this. You could really cover some other creative avenues, but it's a good standalone nonetheless. I'd recommend checking it out. Maybe you already have, or maybe you will in the future. Either way, it has a great message and one that is worth experiencing.

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