naledi's review against another edition
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.0
[spoilers]
The Time Traveler's Wife is a beautifully written romance. At first glance, Henry being a time traveler seems almost cool, but as the book progresses, one realises that it is the tragedy of his romance with Clare. He is always leaving and she is always waiting. Henry's life is an incredibly sad tale - he sometimes knows the future and visits the past but in even the most tragic circumstances, cannot interfere. In this way, he is a slave to inevitability and Niffenger beautifully articulates the pain of this, especially as his death approaches. Henry knows his death is coming, down to the day, and he must suffer it still because that is his fate. I admire that Niffenger did not make Henry above his humanness and expressed that as his death approached he was afraid, he didn't want to go. It is made very clear that his time-traveling abilities are no gift, but rather a prison.
Not a lot of attention is given to Clare as an individual, she is written as an accessory to Henry, having few thoughts that do not pertain to him. Even when he is gone, she is always anticipating his return. The only part of the book that felt like this is about Clare, was the miscarriages, but even still, very little air time is given to how she feels about them, and how she dealt with the loss. More could have been said. She also does not have a social life, and even when she is working, she is thinking of him. Although Charisse is her friend, there is no scene with just them two, as there is with Henry & Gomez for example. It is sad to witness that Clare is always waiting for Henry, and the worst of it is when she is 82, waiting for him still. Henry lives his life, only meeting Clare at 28. But Clare's life has been a game of waiting and that is all she has ever known, all she ever will know. The present life she lives with Henry is hardly equatable to the waiting she does and this causes one to feel incredible sympathy for Clare, because who is she outside of being the time traveler's wife?
Criticisms:
This book had the potential to be a 5, but I felt a great deal of unease in the parts where Clare is between 6-18 and Henry is visiting her from his late 30s and early 40s. What is more disturbing is that although he is old, he still looks at her longingly. There is a part where she is 12, and he is about 42, and he considers kissing her, and reconciles with himself that 12 is too young. Furthermore, I lack understanding of his actions because he was already living his adult life with Clare, he had no reason to lust for a child, he could kiss his wife when he went back home. I also did not like how Niffenger wrote the characters of color. Nell, the cook for Clare's family, speaks in broken English and not only was this stereotypical, but it was unnecessary and unproductive to the overall plot.
Closing thoughts :
Reading this book it is hard to determine whether these two characters even chose each other at all. Henry appears from the future when Clare is young and most impressionable and announces himself as her husband, and that is decided. Equally, when Henry is 28, Clare meets Henry and announces herself as his future lover. We don't see a time of Henry actually getting to know Clare, and their biggest bond is that she knows he's a traveler and he is comforted by this. He dumps Ingrid, not because he really was over her or that he liked Clare more, but because Clare showed up from his future-past. And so it is clear that a great question this book confronts is that of autonomy, of free will. Who chooses, what is decided, and do we have a say in any of it?
The Time Traveler's Wife is a beautiful story that I recommend to anyone who would not be triggered by the aforementioned criticisms.
The Time Traveler's Wife is a beautifully written romance. At first glance, Henry being a time traveler seems almost cool, but as the book progresses, one realises that it is the tragedy of his romance with Clare. He is always leaving and she is always waiting. Henry's life is an incredibly sad tale - he sometimes knows the future and visits the past but in even the most tragic circumstances, cannot interfere. In this way, he is a slave to inevitability and Niffenger beautifully articulates the pain of this, especially as his death approaches. Henry knows his death is coming, down to the day, and he must suffer it still because that is his fate. I admire that Niffenger did not make Henry above his humanness and expressed that as his death approached he was afraid, he didn't want to go. It is made very clear that his time-traveling abilities are no gift, but rather a prison.
Not a lot of attention is given to Clare as an individual, she is written as an accessory to Henry, having few thoughts that do not pertain to him. Even when he is gone, she is always anticipating his return. The only part of the book that felt like this is about Clare, was the miscarriages, but even still, very little air time is given to how she feels about them, and how she dealt with the loss. More could have been said. She also does not have a social life, and even when she is working, she is thinking of him. Although Charisse is her friend, there is no scene with just them two, as there is with Henry & Gomez for example. It is sad to witness that Clare is always waiting for Henry, and the worst of it is when she is 82, waiting for him still. Henry lives his life, only meeting Clare at 28. But Clare's life has been a game of waiting and that is all she has ever known, all she ever will know. The present life she lives with Henry is hardly equatable to the waiting she does and this causes one to feel incredible sympathy for Clare, because who is she outside of being the time traveler's wife?
Criticisms:
This book had the potential to be a 5, but I felt a great deal of unease in the parts where Clare is between 6-18 and Henry is visiting her from his late 30s and early 40s. What is more disturbing is that although he is old, he still looks at her longingly. There is a part where she is 12, and he is about 42, and he considers kissing her, and reconciles with himself that 12 is too young. Furthermore, I lack understanding of his actions because he was already living his adult life with Clare, he had no reason to lust for a child, he could kiss his wife when he went back home. I also did not like how Niffenger wrote the characters of color. Nell, the cook for Clare's family, speaks in broken English and not only was this stereotypical, but it was unnecessary and unproductive to the overall plot.
Closing thoughts :
Reading this book it is hard to determine whether these two characters even chose each other at all. Henry appears from the future when Clare is young and most impressionable and announces himself as her husband, and that is decided. Equally, when Henry is 28, Clare meets Henry and announces herself as his future lover. We don't see a time of Henry actually getting to know Clare, and their biggest bond is that she knows he's a traveler and he is comforted by this. He dumps Ingrid, not because he really was over her or that he liked Clare more, but because Clare showed up from his future-past. And so it is clear that a great question this book confronts is that of autonomy, of free will. Who chooses, what is decided, and do we have a say in any of it?
The Time Traveler's Wife is a beautiful story that I recommend to anyone who would not be triggered by the aforementioned criticisms.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Miscarriage and Alcoholism
passionatereader78's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Wonderfully written book! I enjoyed this exploration of time travel. I loved the relationship between Claire and Henry. There is so much heat in theses pages! I love the way the story was easy to follow. The time jumps were uncomplicated and I could follow the plot. I loved everything about this book!
This is Henry and Claire's beautifully complicated love story!
This is Henry and Claire's beautifully complicated love story!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Sexual content, Pregnancy, Alcoholism, Grief, Infertility, Car accident, and Death of parent
Moderate: Alcohol, Gun violence, Miscarriage, Self harm, Adult/minor relationship, and Toxic relationship
tessa52's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pregnancy, Miscarriage, Sexual content, Car accident, Alcoholism, Adult/minor relationship, Drug use, Infertility, Suicide, Violence, Death of parent, and Infidelity
souvraya's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I quite liked the first half of the book up to the wedding, but then enjoyed it less and less. It's a really interesting concept, often well-executed and the non-linear storytelling worked well. It was particularly interesting to see characters interacting in a variety of stages of their lives.
Now for the problems. The second and third part of the book get increasingly depressing in a way that felt like traumatising events were being being piled on for no reason. The characters barely have time to react to each of these events so they don't feel fully developed, just added in for shock value.
It was very disappointing how little agency and personality the titular wife had. Clare was interesting to read about as a child, then she became much more bland as an adult. It was really all about Henry, so naming the book after Clare is not representative of the role she takes.
Another disappointment was that a lot of characters' shitty behaviour has no repercussions whatsoever, Gomez and Celia especially rubbed me the wrong way. It doesn't get called out, nobody reacts to it, and it often doesn't cause any problems. When that happens too often, it feels very unsatisfying to me and when it happens with the main characters it calls their romance into question.
Even worse, there was a major part of the story later on, that consumed some of the characters completely for a long time, and then it suddenly turned into an afterthought. It seems that the author didn't know what to do with Alba as a character, so she was simply turned into a Mary Sue that's somehow immune to all of the aforementioned trauma. It's very unrealistic to think of what she goes through, yet no one seems to care about her and she continues to be quite happy-go-lucky.
Some of the time traveling concepts fell apart towards the end, with several aspects that should have been relevant being swept under the table. There's no real or implied resolution to what might be causing it, whether there will be more time travelers in the future, how society treats them, etc. With these topics ignored, it only barely fits into the sci-fi genre. It's really more a romance with a quirky setting.
Finally, there was some really out-of-touch racism and social commentary at times. POC, queer and disabled characters were handled terribly and I was especially weirded out by the term "Auschwitz thin" and a character's insistence that an adopted child wouldn't really be theirs, especially because nobody offered an alternative opinion on that statement. The book really needed more editing to cut out all of that.
Now for the problems. The second and third part of the book get increasingly depressing in a way that felt like traumatising events were being being piled on for no reason. The characters barely have time to react to each of these events so they don't feel fully developed, just added in for shock value.
It was very disappointing how little agency and personality the titular wife had. Clare was interesting to read about as a child, then she became much more bland as an adult. It was really all about Henry, so naming the book after Clare is not representative of the role she takes.
Another disappointment was that a lot of characters' shitty behaviour has no repercussions whatsoever, Gomez and Celia especially rubbed me the wrong way. It doesn't get called out, nobody reacts to it, and it often doesn't cause any problems. When that happens too often, it feels very unsatisfying to me and when it happens with the main characters it calls their romance into question.
Even worse, there was a major part of the story later on, that consumed some of the characters completely for a long time, and then it suddenly turned into an afterthought. It seems that the author didn't know what to do with Alba as a character, so she was simply turned into a Mary Sue that's somehow immune to all of the aforementioned trauma. It's very unrealistic to think of what she goes through, yet no one seems to care about her and she continues to be quite happy-go-lucky.
Some of the time traveling concepts fell apart towards the end, with several aspects that should have been relevant being swept under the table. There's no real or implied resolution to what might be causing it, whether there will be more time travelers in the future, how society treats them, etc. With these topics ignored, it only barely fits into the sci-fi genre. It's really more a romance with a quirky setting.
Finally, there was some really out-of-touch racism and social commentary at times. POC, queer and disabled characters were handled terribly and I was especially weirded out by the term "Auschwitz thin" and a character's insistence that an adopted child wouldn't really be theirs, especially because nobody offered an alternative opinion on that statement. The book really needed more editing to cut out all of that.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Infertility, Suicide, and Miscarriage
Moderate: Sexual violence, Alcoholism, Adult/minor relationship, and Infidelity
val_theburrowofstories's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Alcoholism, Medical trauma, Cancer, Infidelity, Suicide, Medical content, Gun violence, Miscarriage, Death of parent, Sexual content, Adult/minor relationship, Grief, Death, Infertility, and Pregnancy
lizzye33's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Death, and Grief
Moderate: Blood, Toxic relationship, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Police brutality, Gun violence, Emotional abuse, Cursing, Car accident, and Murder
potsnpots's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Miscarriage, Infertility, Infidelity, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Alcoholism and Adult/minor relationship
Minor: Car accident, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Homophobia, Grief, Medical content, Infertility, and Infidelity
rvareader's review against another edition
This story has not aged well. Henry is a groomer through and through.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Cancer, Medical trauma, Panic attacks/disorders, Car accident, Chronic illness, Death of parent, Grief, Infertility, Medical content, Stalking, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Pedophilia, Police brutality, Vomit, Death, Gaslighting, Pregnancy, Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Murder, Religious bigotry, Sexual content, Suicide attempt, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, and Violence
flowers_and_cows's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
The story of Clare and Henry was surprisingly easy to follow, even with all of Henry's time traveling. A great story, and the ending left me wanting and wishing that there was more.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Miscarriage, Medical trauma, Child death, and Addiction
Moderate: Suicide attempt, Car accident, Grief, Suicide, Adult/minor relationship, Death of parent, and Drug abuse
ejoymiller11's review against another edition
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I am not usually a tough critic, but I did not love this for several reasons.
1. This story (in my opinion) was told backwards, and would last the test of time better had it been told the other way around. Being about time travel, the story bounces around quite a bit. However, I would argue the story more closely follows Clare’s linear timeline. Before we actually get to know the two main characters as a couple, the first half of the book is about how Clare knew Henry as a child and teenager. We learn about Henry’s lustful thoughts about her even when she is underage, even when she is prepubescent, which made me very uncomfortable. In my opinion, had we learned about their adult relationship first by strictly following Henry’s timeline, and had Henry just straight up not had inappropriate thoughts about a CHILD, I think the relationship would seem less creepy (but let’s be honest, some of what happened would be creepy, inappropriate, and sick regardless).
2. About 200 pages of the 536 pages I read weren’t relevant. I don’t understand why certain scenes were necessary as they didn’t contribute to the plot, character development, or context of the story. The whole infidelity thing? For what.
3. INCONSISTENCIES. And inaccuracies. Some of this book just straight up didn’t make sense. I found myself wondering SO many times, “did the author do literally ANY research??” Yes, probably with certain art pieces and music mentioned in the story, but certainly not how pregnancy, miscarriage, birth, hypothermia, and other medical things work. Furthermore, so many times the book would mention something like “they decided to leave the kids at home!” And on the next page, “the kids were playing quietly in the corner.” Like did no one proofread this? I’m lost.
4. Sometimes it was really hard to understand who was speaking. The book bounces between Henry’s and Clare’s perspectives, but in sections of the dialogue there are long stretches with no indication of who is speaking. Several times I had to go back and reread to understand the context of what was happening and what the characters were feeling.
I felt like this was a great concept that was so poorly executed. This could be a fantastic, timeless love story, but it just fell flat for me. The writing combined with the characters who weren’t just flawed, but horrible people, ruined it for me.
1. This story (in my opinion) was told backwards, and would last the test of time better had it been told the other way around. Being about time travel, the story bounces around quite a bit. However, I would argue the story more closely follows Clare’s linear timeline. Before we actually get to know the two main characters as a couple, the first half of the book is about how Clare knew Henry as a child and teenager. We learn about Henry’s lustful thoughts about her even when she is underage, even when she is prepubescent, which made me very uncomfortable. In my opinion, had we learned about their adult relationship first by strictly following Henry’s timeline, and had Henry just straight up not had inappropriate thoughts about a CHILD, I think the relationship would seem less creepy (but let’s be honest, some of what happened would be creepy, inappropriate, and sick regardless).
2. About 200 pages of the 536 pages I read weren’t relevant. I don’t understand why certain scenes were necessary as they didn’t contribute to the plot, character development, or context of the story. The whole infidelity thing? For what.
3. INCONSISTENCIES. And inaccuracies. Some of this book just straight up didn’t make sense. I found myself wondering SO many times, “did the author do literally ANY research??” Yes, probably with certain art pieces and music mentioned in the story, but certainly not how pregnancy, miscarriage, birth, hypothermia, and other medical things work. Furthermore, so many times the book would mention something like “they decided to leave the kids at home!” And on the next page, “the kids were playing quietly in the corner.” Like did no one proofread this? I’m lost.
4. Sometimes it was really hard to understand who was speaking. The book bounces between Henry’s and Clare’s perspectives, but in sections of the dialogue there are long stretches with no indication of who is speaking. Several times I had to go back and reread to understand the context of what was happening and what the characters were feeling.
I felt like this was a great concept that was so poorly executed. This could be a fantastic, timeless love story, but it just fell flat for me. The writing combined with the characters who weren’t just flawed, but horrible people, ruined it for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Miscarriage, Car accident, Adult/minor relationship, and Suicide
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Sexual harassment, Medical content, Infidelity, Death of parent, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Infertility, Alcoholism, Addiction, Toxic friendship, Pregnancy, Medical trauma, Drug use, Chronic illness, and Cancer