Timekeeper

I read a lot of reviews before picking this one up, and I became very curious about it, because some reviews say that it doesn't focus on the m/m romance much, and others say there is too much focus on the romance. I was happy with the amount of focus on the relationship between Colton and Danny. It's central to the plot, although there are several other key elements also.

The world-building is good; it's set in an 1880s alternate-universe London with steampunk technology, in which there have been a few advancements towards gender equality, and same-sex relationships are mostly acceptable. There are several prominent and interesting female characters, none of whom are either saintly or devilish. All of the major characters and most of the side characters feel multifaceted, with strengths, flaws, etc. It's easy to understand why some of the characters Danny's mother and Matthias have made decisions that have hurt others; there isn't really a pure villain, which I think is a difficult feat for an author to pull off. The main character is developed very well and stays true to who we know him to be throughout the story.

The book does have a few flaws, in my opinion. I can see some of the skeleton; the reasons given for characters' actions aren't always completely convincing or believable, and it feels obvious that the plot just needs them to do something at a specific moment. More annoying to me, though, is how whiny Danny is at certain points. I know this is a book about a character moving from misery back into living his life, though.

This is a whine of my own, and just my personal taste, but I'm not a huge fan of the lyrical writing style that is prevalent in YA. Poetic language usually takes me away from the story. It doesn't feel original to me, either, since I keep seeing it in YA, unlike some distinctive styles I've encountered (China Mieville, for example, or Kai Ashante Williams' style in Sorcerer of the Wildeeps), or like it serves much of a purpose. It seems like unnecessary embroidery. I know that many readers disagree with me about this, and I think I would've fallen in love with this style 20 years ago; it's just that these days I'm more interested in stories and characters than in language itself.

Despite all that, this book has a lot of cinematic moments. I can easily imagine it making a great movie.

I see this is marked as book one in a series and I'm having trouble imagining where it will go, but I'm curious to find out. Reading it was definitely a worthwhile experience!