Books Set in Another Time I Want to Read ( . . . Another Time)

I know I’ve been rather . . . absent . . . on the blogger scene for a while. But you know what that means? LOTS of time to build up my TBR! Which yeah, sure, okay, I maybe shouldn’t be bragging about that. But surely nothing bad can come of it. Best of all, I get to share all of my lovely new discoveries with you!

And then you can add them to your TBRs. Listen, I see the flaws in this plan. Eventually, our TBRs will unite and overthrow us. In that apocalyptic hellscape, though, you know what we’ll be doing? READING. I fail to see any future in which this doesn’t work out in our favor. And speaking of futures . . .

This week’s Top Ten Tuesday is all about books set in another time. I’d like to say a happier time, but . . . well, y’all know the sorts of books I read. As I have a lot of these on my want to read pile, I’d love to share them with you.

I’m obviously going into this with the best of intentions, but I’ll be honest . . . wanting to read something is a whole lot different from actually reading something. There’s a very real chance that these books may be present-day by the time I get around to reading them. Well, probably not the ones set in the past . . . UNLESS WE INVENT TIME MACHINES! Please don’t tell me if we do . . . I’m not responsible enough to have that sort of knowledge.

Once Was Willem

This is the tale of Once Was Willem, who – eleven hundred and some years after the death of Christ, in the kingdom that had but recently begun to call itself England – rose from the dead to defeat a great evil facing the humble village of Cosham.

Pennick for all its beauty was ever a place with a dark reputation. The forests of the Chase were said to be home to nixies and boggarts, and there was a common belief, passed down through many generations, that the castle housed an unquiet ghost of terrible and malign power. These rumours I can attest were all true; indeed they fell short of the truth by a long way . . .

Not gonna lie, Pennick sort of sounds like a place I’d want to live. Or . . . well . . . die, probably more accurately. Because I’m 99.2953% sure that’s what would inevitably happen. The Amazon synopsis is actually slightly different than the Goodreads one and ends: “By the time you come to the end of this account you will know the truth of your own life and death, the path laid out for your immortal soul, your origin and your inevitable end. You will not thank me.” I think Once Was Willem does himself a disservice here. I think I will very much be thanking him, because this book sounds downright delightful.

To be honest, this is about the only way I would ever be interested in visiting year eleven hundred and some: if it’s filled with cryptids and ghosts and all sorts of dark secrets. The fun kind, not the actual kind of dark secrets that would have been kept at that time. You know what? I’m pretty sure I’m talking myself right out of that visit, time machine be darned . . .

A Far Better Thing

I feared this was the best of times; I hoped it could not get any worse.

The fairies stole Sydney Carton as a child, and made him a mortal servant of the Faerie Realm. Now, he has a rare opportunity for revenge against the fae and Charles Darnay, the changeling left in his stead.

It will take magic and cunning—cold iron and Realm silver—to hide his intentions from humans and fae and bring his plans to fruition.

Shuttling between London and Paris during the Reign of Terror, generations of violence-begetting-violence lead him to a heartbreaking choice in the shadow of the guillotine.

What do you get when you take the fae, the French Revolution, and a sprinkle of magic? I don’t know, but I sure would like to find out! (Figuratively, of course. Please don’t send any Fae my way. I am not witty enough to stand a chance against them.)

I really enjoyed The Unlikely Escape of Uriah Heep by H.G. Parry, so of course I jumped on this the moment I saw it announced. By ‘jumped on’, obviously I mean added it to my Want to Read list. Which, okay, fine, it might languish there, but at least it’s on the list! It also doesn’t hurt that this book is compared to Jonathan Strange & Mr. NorrelI.

All I’m saying is if someone doesn’t end up losing their head at some point during this book, I will be disappointed. Someone other than me, obviously. Okay, make this the second place I wouldn’t like to visit with a time machine. Not even with a 10-foot pole. Or a T-Rex. (All right, maybe with a T. Rex. Don’t judge me.)

The Listeners

January 1942. The Avallon Hotel & Spa has always offered elegant luxury in the wilds of West Virginia, its mountain sweetwater washing away all of high society’s troubles.

Local girl-turned-general manager June Porter Hudson has guided the Avallon skillfully through the first pangs of war. The Gilfoyles, the hotel’s aristocratic owners, have trained her well. But when the family heir makes a secret deal with the State Department to fill the hotel with captured Axis diplomats, June must persuade her staff—many of whom have sons and husbands heading to the front lines—to offer luxury to Nazis. With a smile.

Meanwhile FBI Agent Tucker Minnick, whose coal tattoo hints at an Appalachian past, presses his ears to the hotel’s walls, listening for the diplomats’ secrets. He has one of his own, which is how he knows that June’s balancing act can have dangerous consequences: the sweetwater beneath the hotel can threaten as well as heal.

June has never met a guest she couldn’t delight, but the diplomats are different. Without firing a single shot, they have brought the war directly to her. As clashing loyalties crack the Avallon’s polished veneer, June must calculate the true cost of luxury.

Maggie Stiefvater is one author that I will always take a chance on when new materials come out. It doesn’t hurt that this book takes place during World War II but isn’t set in Europe and dealing with certain invading tyrannical forces. (In case you couldn’t tell, I’ve gotten really tired of so many identical-sounding books on the subject. They’re important and there’s a market for them, but it’s not me.)

Also, two other points. One, this takes place in a hotel. I have learned that hotels signify opulence and murder. (Well, that last one is true in the case of at least two hotels — the Cecil Hotel and whatever H.H. Holmes’ Murder Castle was called. I’m sure all you scientists will agree that a sample size of two is totally sufficient here.) Two, there appears to be some tie to Appalachia, and I am a sucker for books set in Appalachia. The fact that it appears to be tied to the coal history of Appalachia makes me even more curious!

In any case, this feels like a unique twist on a very overdone and homogenous time period, so I’m looking forward to seeing if it lives up to it! (Also, it should probably go without saying, but this time period would also be a pass. I’m really not doing great in terms of attractive time traveling prospects here.)

The Staircase in the Woods

Five high school friends are bonded by an oath to protect one another no matter what.

Then, on a camping trip in the middle of the forest, they find something a mysterious staircase to nowhere.

One friend walks up—and never comes back down. Then the staircase disappears.

Twenty years later, the staircase has reappeared. Now the group returns to find the lost boy—and what lies beyond the staircase in the woods. . . .

This one is a little bit cheating, because we don’t actually technically know when this book takes place based on the synopsis. But considering there’s a 20-year gap in the story, it’s safe to say it’s not contemporary in some way, shape, or form. Chuck Wendig is a real hit-or-miss author for me. I tend to absolutely love about the first three-quarters of his books and then utterly hate the last quarter. That’s been the case for the last two adult science fiction novels I’ve read of his.

So why am I so willing to give this one a chance? Pure curiosity. As a child who grew up in the woods who has always had a weird fascination with the concept of the staircases in the woods, I was immediately drawn to this concept. I know it’s going to be creepy and weird, because Wendig’s books normally are. But I’m here for it. Because you know what else is creepy and weird? A staircase in the woods. (Except the one near my favorite childhood hiking trail because, well, it was actually part of the burned out foundation of a historic house. So that’s okay. I mean, other than the fact that a historic house burned down.)

I have absolutely no idea what to expect from this book other than that it’s going to be long (Wendig’s books always are) and I will absolutely devour most of it. (I also would like to be excluded from this narrative. Sorry, I don’t play with creepy staircases in the woods as a general rule.)

Will’s Race for Home

It’s 1889, barely twenty-five years after the Emancipation Proclamation, and a young Black family is tired of working on land they don’t get to own.

So when Will and his father hear about an upcoming land rush, they set out on a journey from Texas to Oklahoma, racing thousands of others to the place where land is free—if they can get to it fast enough. But the journey isn’t easy—the terrain is rough, the bandits are brutal, and every interaction carries a heavy undercurrent of danger.

And then there’s the stranger they encounter and a mysterious soldier named Caesar, whose Union emblem brings more attention—and more trouble—than any of them need.

All three are propelled by the promise of something long denied to freedom, land ownership, and a place to call home—but is a strong will enough to get them there?

If I’m honest, I’m getting burned out on historical fiction focused on atrocities committed against minorities. They’re super important, and I’m so grateful for them, but I’ve mostly taken a break from them for now to focus on other subjects. This one, though, is an exception I’m willing to make! Jewell Parker Rhodes is a phenomenal author, and I really enjoyed both Ghost Boys and Black Brother, Black Brother when I read them for class a few years ago.

I mean, can we talk about how gorgeous that cover is? I’m not judging a book by its cover (because that’d be . . . wrong, right?), but I am definitely appreciating all the hard work the cover artist put into it. I love the fierce and determined Black boy, the beautiful steed, and the gorgeous setting. While this is obviously historical fiction, it sounds like it’s wrapped in an adventure. I also like that while it clearly focuses on freedom and equality, it seems like it touches on people with different backgrounds coming together against the odds. Plus, I can’t help rooting for underdogs.

(If you don’t know that this setting is a hard pass, you clearly didn’t read the synopsis well enough . . . or you don’t know I’m biracial . . . Surprise! I’m biracial! *throws confetti*)

Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil

Santo Domingo de la Calzada, 1532. Boston, 2019.

Three young women, their bodies planted in the same soil, their stories tangling like roots.

One grows high, and one grows deep, and one grows wild.

And all of them grow teeth.

V.E. Schwab is another author that I just automatically read, because you can never really go wrong with her works. I feel like I deserve bonus points for this one, because it takes place at three different times, all set in the past. Some further away than others (though I think we can all agree that 2020 counts as a decade in and of itself.)

Admittedly, this synopsis is pretty freaking sparse. The only thing I really know, thanks to Goodreads tags, is that it involves vampires. (Which, okay, that makes sense about growing teeth . . . though I guess technically we all grow teeth. But we know what this is implying.) I kind of like the not knowing and the mystery of it. Makes me want to read it all the more!

(I reserve judgment about potentially visiting this time until I learn more about it. I’m tempted to say no, only because I’d theoretically have to suffer 2020 again and just . . . ugh. But also . . . I too grow teeth? They’re not pointy, but I guess if vampires are a thing, I’m not necessarily opposed to that either.)

The Last Hour Between Worlds

Star investigator Kembral Thorne has a few hours away from her newborn, and she just wants to relax and enjoy the year-turning party. But when people start dropping dead, she’s got to get to work. Especially when she finds that mysterious forces are plunging the whole party down through layers of reality and into nightmare.

One layer down: It’s no big deal. Stay alert, and you’ll be fine.

Two, three layers down: Natural laws are negotiable, and things get very strange.

Four layers down: There are creatures with eyes in their teeth and walls that drip blood. Most people who fall this far never return.

Luckily, Kem isn’t most people. But as cosmic powers align and the hour grows late, she’ll have to work with her awfully compelling nemesis, notorious cat burglar Rika Nonesuch, for a chance to save her city—though not her night off.

This is the first book on this list that actually involves time travel! (Again, do not let me anywhere near this technology. I repeat: it will not end well for humanity.) Well . . . sort of? Technically, this is reality travel (which I should also not be allowed anywhere near). But I’m still counting it. Because this is my blog and I can do what I want.

I can totally empathize with Kembral already in this synopsis, because having kids is hard, being away from them is hard, and having to work on your day off is . . . rough. Especially when it involves people dropping dead and you plunging through layers of reality. And these realities sound wild. Like one is okay, but maybe carry a big stick. Two is basically a big screw you to Newton and Einstein and all the great scientists. And four is 100% your untimely death to an eldritch creature from your worst nightmares. I don’t know about you, but I think that escalated really freaking quickly! But I’m also here for it.

(I have so many follow-up questions here. Do I get to fly/float in layer two? Could I just . . . stop there? Because . . . maybe. Although, not gonna lie, eldritch horrors with eyes in their teeth sound kinda cute. But where would I keep one? And walls that drip blood? That sounds like a lot of cleaning. Who has time for that when one is tending eldritch beasts? This is feeling like too much work . . . )

Rose of Jericho

Something wicked is going on in the village of Ascension. A mother wasting away from cancer is suddenly up and about. A boy trampled by a milk cart walks away from the accident. A hanged man can still speak, broken neck and all.

The dead are not dying.

When Rabbit and Sadie Grace accompany their friend Rose to Ascension to help take care of her ailing cousin, they immediately notice that their new house, Bethany Hall, is occupied by dozens of ghosts. And something is waiting for them in the attic.

Historical New England is a fun setting to explore, especially when it involves witches! And honestly, it usually involves witches. They were kind of a big deal at the time. This book had me at, “The dead are not dying.” Normally, I’m opposed to this concept, because it usually looks like zombies, and I don’t play at that. Not even in fiction. But this doesn’t sound like zombies. Especially when it also involves ghosts. So count me in!

Also, I don’t know what it is about attics, but there’s always something in them, and it’s almost never something you want it to be. Unless it’s, like, a priceless artifact that makes you rich. It’s either that or death. 9 times out of 10, it’s death. Attics are just a bad idea in general.

(Travel to this time period could be problematic. I would 100% be accused of being a witch, because I’m mouthy and not great at reading the room. Seeing as I don’t actually have any witchy power, this seems like a problem. I’m not saying no, especially if it involves the dead not dying. I feel like that tips the odds slightly in my favor. I’m just saying I’d have to really think about it.)

When the Tides Held the Moon

Benigno “Benny” Caldera knows an orphaned Boricua blacksmith in 1910s New York City can’t call himself an artist. But the ironwork tank he creates for famed Coney Island playground, Luna Park, astounds the eccentric sideshow proprietor who commissioned it. He invites Benny to join the show’s eclectic cast and share in their shocking secret: the tank will cage their newest exhibit, a live merman stolen from the salty banks of the East River.

More than a mythic marvel, Benny soon comes to know the merman Río as a kindred spirit, wise and more compassionate than any human he’s ever met. Despite their different worlds, what begins as a friendship of necessity deepens to love, leading Benny’s heart into uncharted waters where he can no longer ignore the agonizing truth of Río’s captivity—and his own.

Releasing Río could mean losing his found family, his new home, and his soulmate forever. Yet Benny’s courageous choice may just reveal a love strong enough to free them both.

This title feels a bit like a trap, because the answer is either never or always. Technically, the tides have never held the moon because . . . it’s the moon. It’s either in space or something has gone horribly wrong and the tides no longer exist. (And neither do we.) But if we’re being metaphorical, the tides always hold the moon in reflection . . . except during the new moon, technically. But the cover is absolutely stunning, so I can forgive the title’s conundrum. I’m generous like that.

I’m a sucker for books set in New York, and the fact that this is a historical Coney Island makes it even more appealing. The allure of exhibits and sideshows sounds irresistible, especially when you throw in the existence of mermen! I’m also currently in my romantasy era, so this sounds perfect in every conceivable way.

(This one is going to be a resounding yes. Please send me back to this historical Coney Island, where you can apparently just catch sexy mermen and convince them to fall in love with you?! What are we waiting for? Why haven’t we left yet?! Chop chop!)

Susan, You’re the Chosen One

Starting over isn’t easy when your whole world is a pile of rubble and everyone thinks you’re insane.

One moment, Susan Moore had the perfect life—a handsome husband, a fabulous career, wonderful friends, and a gorgeous home in Nob Hill, San Francisco.

The next minute, it was all gone. And Susan found herself in a straitjacket, locked in a padded room.

An optimist at heart, Susan’s clawing her way back, rebuilding her life brick by brick—not an easy feat when you’re over the hill and it feels like the whole city hates you.

But when a group of ridiculously gorgeous models in Fae cosplay barge into her tiny apartment and declare her to be the chosen one, Susan decides to play along. She’s off to save the world.

Except they’re not in cosplay.

Either Susan has really, truly gone insane this time… or all this magic is real.

I’m fairly convinced that this book was written just for me, and you will not convince me otherwise. I don’t know Lauretta Hignett, and I’m fairly certain she doesn’t know me, which just makes this feat all the more impressive. I’ve said for ever that older protagonists can (and should) be chosen ones. Who the heck in their right mind would entrust the fate of the world to a 12-year-old orphan when Sharon is just sitting over there, wishing you would give her something to complain about and someone to teach a lesson.

Susan sounds absolutely delightful. I’m not sure she’s “trust the fate of the world to her” delightful, but what do I know? Certainly not more than the Fae, as we’ve already established. So surely she must be doing something right. I am all for books with older Chosen Ones, and I can’t wait to see how Susan handles it. (I bet it’s poorly. It’s poorly, isn’t it? Maybe this is why they choose 12-year-old orphans . . .)

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