Jodi Taylor’s best-selling series The Chronicles of St Mary is back with a bang… St Mary’s has been rebuilt and it’s business as usual for the History department. But first, there’s the little matter of a seventeenth-century ghost that only Mr Markham can see. Not to mention the minor inconvenience of being trapped in the Great Fire of London…and an unfortunately-timed comfort break at … Thermopylae leaving the fate of the western world hanging in the balance. Re-join Max’s madcap journey through time in Jodi Taylor’s fifth inter-dimensional instalment No Time Like the Past.
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When one of the things you’ve been waiting for finally happens … and when a whole lot that no-one was was waiting for also happens. St Mary’s at its glorious best.
I have really enjoyed this whole series. The books are easy reads with humor and action. Great continuing characters.
A fantastic premise well executed. One of those “I stayed up too late reading it because I couldn’t put it down” books. I’m definitely recommending this to my friends. Can’t wait to pick up the next volume.
As usual, Jodi Taylor never disappoints. I always snap up her books as soon as they become available. I highly recommend The St. Mary’s series to everyone who will listen to me.
Fun series of books. A great way escape into another time period!
I love this series! The characters are terrific and likable. It’s the perfect thing to read when you want something quick and fun.
Read the entire Chronicles of St. Marys series! It is one gigantic roller coaster ride and you never know what will happen next. I’ve ripped through the series and am anxiously waiting for Jodi’s latest to be published. I’ve cried and I’ve laughed out loud – usually within the same book.
3.5 Stars…
I really enjoyed the first half of this book. The ghost that Markham keeps seeing, the jump back to 1643 St. Marys to investigate what happened on that day, and who it is that Markham is seeing…great stuff.
The jump back to the Crystal Palace Exhibition in 1851 provided a lighter day, but definitely not without its drama. Running into old enemies and a spotting a beloved friend made that jump both fun and exciting.
The salvage mission to Old St. Pauls in 1666 was high drama and action-packed. It was also very sad and very cruel. There were a lot of people in that jump, and it ended with tragic results. The St. Marys Open Day that came on the heels of that started out as a great distraction but ended with more tragedy (though I wasn’t too upset about that particular death).
It’s around this time that I started to become irritated with Max and her extremely irresponsible attitude. She was very seriously injured at Open Day and refused to grasp the importance of just calming down and getting better. That there were other people out there who care for her.
Her behavior during the jump to Florence in 1497 during the ‘Bonfire of the Vanities’ was so incredibly wrong. She told everyone else to just get in, get what they needed, and get out.
Do. Not. Interfere.
This rule is the most basic rule of being an Historian. What she did in Florence was so stupid and so unnecessary, and it almost killed both herself and Leon. It also made me like her a lot less. I no longer see her as crazy quirky Max who goes her own way…I started seeing her as the irresponsible and disobedient child she acts like. Every time she screws up, someone has to go save her, putting their life at risk, and it’s getting old.
The last jump to Thermopylae in 480 BC was a little redeeming. Yes, there was high drama and a lot of tense moments, but for once Max did what she was told and didn’t almost kill anyone. The book ended on a sweet note and I’m hoping that Max’s new position will maybe calm her down a bit.
Overall, while I enjoyed the bulk of the story, this book felt a bit stale. This is Book 5…Max REALLY needs to grow the hell up and stop acting like it’s all just fun and games. She knows better, and what was once jovial charm is now just irresponsible and dangerous.
I really enjoy this series. If you are a time traveler buff then this series is for you. St. Mary’s is filled with interesting characters and you never know what is going to go wrong when you go back in time to study various events. After every book you are left anxiously waiting for the next one. Enjoy!
Fun.
The whole series was so good…alternative history, from a thoughtfully, funny writer. Loved it.
A good read!
This is truly a great page turner. I am not one who says “I couldn’t put it down”, but I couldn’t put it down. I didn’t want to stop at a chapter, I wanted to continue reading about the story. The characters are so realistic and well written that it’s like you know them, they could be your friends. I am now starting at the beginning and reading the first book in the series and it is just as well written with characters still as real as in the 5th book In the series. Can’t wait to read them all…
You gotta like ancient history and fantasy. If you do, this series is a delight. A Hogwarts for grownups who love dinosaurs.
Fabulous take on time travel genre. Characters that become freinds of the reader so you care about the twisted things that can happen.
There is now a series of at least seven. I will look for them. This book was great fun. I could have done without the hot and heavy sex scene in the middle of the book, but it was confined to that part, thanks be. That gets really old, really FAST.
Love this series!!! I couldn’t put them down!!!!
A great romp with some decent science
This is a great book and a great series for those who like sci-fi/fantasy time-travel. Wonderful characters, fast-paced and fun!
Jodi Taylor inventive time travel series is rich with quirky plots and amusing characters as they travel through time to examine History as it really happened, flubs, watts and all. What a good time!