I requested this one as I am always a sucker for any book that mucks about with time – and was delighted when I was approved…
Lauren Pailing is a teenager in the eighties, becomes a Londoner in the nineties. And each time she dies, new lives begin for the people who loved her – while Lauren enters a brand new life, too. But in each of Lauren’s lives, a man called Peter Stanning disappears. And, in each of her lives, Lauren sets out to find him.
Strictly speaking this is historical, as the story starts back in the late 1960s, but like many others reading this one, the period covered also deals with my past. So the first question – does Rudd convincingly portray the recent past without holding up the narrative? Yes – she manages to slip in all sorts of little details that I had forgotten, yet were immediately recognised as I encountered them. I didn’t spot any anomalies, either – which, along with the accomplished writing and strong characterisation, helped to pull me completely into the story.
Lauren was well depicted as a small child, which isn’t as easy as Rudd makes it look, which is important, given her age when the first jolt out of time occurs. I was shaken at how Rudd tackles this – Lauren resurfaces into another timestrand where things are slightly different but largely the same. It would have been so easy to make this tediously slow-paced, or not quite convincing – showing slight differences is always harder to achieve than large, dramatic flourishes. But Rudd handles all this with ease, giving us a ringside seat into Lauren’s struggles to come to terms with what is happening to her, as well as allowing us to see how her death has affected her close relatives. As time goes by, we continue to track everyone most hurt by Lauren’s untimely death in a way that had me unable to put down the book.
Meanwhile, I also really liked how the two personalities are merged as Lauren copes in her new timestrand and learns not to mention what went before. However, the question of Peter Stanning and his sudden disappearance slowly emerges throughout all the timelines – and once Lauren realises this, she clings to the mystery of his absence, determined to try to hunt him down…
I’ll be honest – I’m not convinced that this particular plotline is wholly successful. While I liked the idea of Peter’s disappearance running through all the timelines, I felt this was built into a major mystery that was at odds with the final denouement. However, this could well have been deliberate, as the circumstances surrounding what happened to Peter and how that affected both his wife and sons, also added to the poignancy of his death.
While I had been expecting an entertaining read, I was unprepared for the elegance of the writing and plotting, or the excellent characterisation. Highly recommended for fans of timeslip adventures of the sliding doors variety. The ebook arc copy of The First Time Lauren Pailing Died was provided by the publisher through NetGalley in return for an honest opinion of the book.
9/10
Having read my fair share of time jump books lately, this sounds very good and I’d consider adding it to my list if I had more time. I do love seeing how different authors handle it!
She is clearly an accomplished and sophisticated author – and this one has stayed with me. I find myself thinking about it a lot…
Oooh this sounds good . Adding to my TBR
Thank you, Rash:). I hope you manage to track it down as this is definitely something a bit different and special.
I love books that play with time too. I also love that cover. Those colors just scream 60s-70s to me, lol.
Yes – it really does bring back the 60s/early 70s vibe, doesn’t it?
Aye, adding this one to the list. Thanks matey!
x The Captain
You’re very welcome, Cap!
This sounds so good and I’m glad you had such a great time with it. Books that cast about in time – can be hit or miss for me but this sounds like it might be just the thing.
Lynn 😀
This one is really well written and the characterisation is exceptional:)
I generally don’t like books that mess with time or time travel. But sometimes. I’m glad you could enjoy this one.
Thank you, Anne – yes, I really enjoyed it. This one is a bit more mainstream than many time travel stories, but I take your point. We all have genres we tend to avoid, don’t we?
While I’m always on the fence when I hear about stories dealing with time, this one sounds both intriguing and offering a different take on the subject, so I will certainly add it to my “next reads” list.
Thank you so much for sharing! 🙂
You’re very welcome, Maddalena – I’d appreciate someone else’s take on this one whose opinion I value…
Oh, thank you! #blush# 😀
Hmmmm, potentially a candidate for my TBR list. GREAT review!
Thank you so much, Rae:))
I love time loops of the sliding doors variety! It’s one of my favorite sci-fi storylines. That’s it, I’m hightailing it to NetGalley to see if this book is still available! ❤️
I’d love to hear what you think of this one:))
I’m not one to invoke Stephen King often, but your point in here reminds me of how I felt after reading Needful Things–a really compelling setup, builds, builds CLIMAX–oh. It’s just a demon with a firey cart that actually has a bumper sticker on it. Oh. Sigh.
This is probably a bit extreme compared to the story you read, SJ, but I do think that if the ending’s payoff doesn’t match or surpass the buildup, then there is indeed something off. x
I probably would have felt a lot more fed up if the plotline with Peter had pulled Lauren into it more closely – but it didn’t. And the writing regarding her and how she shifted between different timelines was masterfully done.
I haven’t read Needful Things – but it sounds as if I should…:)
It’s a good King story…until the ending, at least 🙂
Wonderful review Sarah. This sounds like a very interesting concept. So glad it was even more than you expected.
This one has certainly stayed with me – I think it’s one of my favourite reads of the year so far…
That is high praise. I am definitely going to see if I can find this one.
Oooh, this book sounds really interesting! (And I’m a sucker for beautiful writing, so it’s a bonus.) Thank you for bringing this one to my attention!
It’s a fascinating read – and has lodged in my memory as one I still think about. I’d love to know your thoughts on it, too!