How to Stop Time - Matt Haig

Goodreads rating: 4*

This was my second read from this author and although I’m not disputing the numerous great reviews from fans, I’m not entirely convinced that I will end up reading any more of his books. Whether it’s the writing style or the characters or the plot, there was something missing for me personally.

I still rated this as four stars, but I think if Goodreads had a half-star function, it probably would have been a 3.5 rating – I enjoyed the premise, but it took me a while to get into the story and then when I did start to become invested, the last few chapters and the ending felt totally rushed. I wanted there to be more on the father/daughter relationship – what has Marion been up to for the last 400 years, how was she recruited into the society, what traumas are buried in her past etc. (I appreciate this would have made the book a whole lot lengthier).

It’s not that I didn’t like the over-arching message, I just ended up feeling a little deflated once I was finished with this book. The book itself made me contemplate life and how much we end up forgetting to live for the fear of judgement/criticism from others, and I have to say, I’m not sure I would want to live for hundreds of years if the opportunity presented itself, especially if that meant living on without my friends and family.

The historical references were interesting and I didn’t dislike the fact that it swapped between the present timeline and looking back into the past for the main character, it was just not quite the time-travelling themed novel I wanted it to be.