Thanks to NetGalley, Hachette Audio, and Orbit for the ARC. It hasn’t affected the contents of my review.
Firstly, this is way more fantasy than it is sci-fi, for those who want the proper expectations. There are time loops and parallel universes, but they function on what feels like magic much more than science. And this is a book with a fantasy heart. Feeling blah right now, so here’s the (truncated) blurb:
Kembral Thorne is spending a few hours away from her newborn . . . But when the guests start dropping dead, Kem has no choice but to get to work. She’s not the only one. Her nemesis, notorious burglar Rika Nonesuch, is on the prowl. They quickly identify what’s causing the mayhem: a mysterious grandfather clock that sends them down an Echo every time it chimes. In each strange new layer of reality, time resets and a sinister figure appears to perform a blood-soaked ritual.
As Kem and Rika fall into increasingly macabre versions of their city, they’ll need to rely on their wits—and each other—to unravel the secret of the clock and save their home.
This was a really fun time. There are some good characters and character work here, but this is fast-moving, action-centered book. Each time loop is an hour long, and things change and go wrong differently each time. We also learn more about Rika and Kembrel’s past, and watch them come together again as they try to solve the wacky shenanigans going on around them.
This wasn’t a perfect five star read for me. It was pretty important that Kembrel was a new mother, but often I just felt her telling me about loving her baby, when I feel like there could have been ways to show me instead. That said, there was a little twist involving her newborn daughter (ish) that I absolutely loved, and that sort of pulled the rest of it together, though it did still feel shaky.
Mostly, I just had a lot of fun with this book. Moira Quirk does the audio narration, and always, she does a stellar job. I very much recommend this one!
