The Psychology of Time Travel: A Novel

by Kate Mascarenhas

"Astonishing."—The New York Times
"A fascinating meditation on the many ways traveling through time can change a person." —HelloGiggles
"This genre-bending, time-bending debut will appeal to fans of Doctor Who, dystopian fiction, and life's great joy: friend groups."—Refinery29

Perfect for fans of Naomi Alderman's The Power and Margot Lee Shetterly’s Hidden Figures comes The Psychology of Time Travel, a mind-bending, time-travel debut.

In 1967, four female scientists worked together to build the world’s first time machine. But just as they are about to debut their creation, one of them suffers a breakdown, putting the whole project—and future of time travel—in jeopardy. To protect their invention, one member is exiled from the team—erasing her contributions from history.

Fifty years later, time travel is a big business. Twenty-something Ruby Rebello knows her beloved grandmother, Granny Bee, was one of the pioneers, though no one will tell her more. But when Bee receives a mysterious newspaper clipping from the future reporting the murder of an unidentified woman, Ruby becomes obsessed: could it be Bee? Who would want her dead? And most importantly of all: can her murder be stopped?

Traversing the decades and told from alternating perspectives, The Psychology of Time Travel introduces a fabulous new voice in fiction and a new must-read for fans of speculative fiction and women’s fiction alike.

• ISBN10: 1683319443
• ISBN13: 9781683319443
• Publish Date: 12 February 2019 (first published 9 August 2018)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Crooked Lane Books
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 336
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9781683319443

Reviews

[Quirky Cat]

I received a copy of The Psychology of Time Travel through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

The Psychology of Time Travel is the debut novel of Kate Mascarenhas, and believe me when I tell you that it is absolutely worth reading. The novel is being described as perfect for fans of Hidden Figures, which I agree with. It’s one of the most intelligent stories I’ve read about time travel, and I just can’t say enough positive things about it.
At the beginning of the book, Kate Mascarenhas makes a point of talking about her motivation for writing it. She said that she felt that there wasn’t enough of a representation of women, or people of color, in time travel plots. And she’s not wrong. I don’t think it ever really hit me until I read The Psychology of Time Travel, but I have never read something quite like this.
Going back to the Hidden Figures reference – picture Hidden Figures meets time travel - and you’ve got an idea of the tone of this novel. It’s smart and sassy and full of brilliant women of all types. It also tells a story of time travel that I’ve never seen before, and I absolutely adored it.



I went into The Psychology of Time Travel with high expectations, only to have those expectations completely blown away. This novel was so much more than I had ever hoped it would be. It was brilliant and well thought out. It also had strong and wonderful characters. More than that though, the characters were human through and through, for good or for bad.
I said up above that this novel wasn’t like any other time travel story I’ve read, and I meant that. I loved the concept of there being successfully time traveling, and that it would be open to…well not the general public, but certainly closer to it than anything I’ve seen before. It opened the door for a lot of debating and for a ton of content as well. A lot of which is actually covered during the course of the novel. The end result is a surprisingly complex and well thought out system of time travel.
The consequences and limitations of time travel are also covered. I loved one of the limitations in particular, but I don’t think I’ll spoil it by saying it directly. I do agree with it though, for what it is worth.
The complexity of the story being told combined with the dozens of interesting and unique characters truly created a wonderful reading experience. It was fun trying to put all the pieces of the puzzle together. Especially since the puzzle pieces were handed to us out of order – courtesy of time travel.
I’ll admit that there were a couple of characters in particular that I was especially fond of, while there was one character that I just loved to hate. That they all had flaws made them feel so much more human and it made the situations they were in feel just a bit more possible.
This is one of those novels that really doesn’t need a sequel - it told the story it wanted to, and there are no parts left up in the air. However, I love the world created here so much that I wouldn’t mind seeing another book or two. Maybe not involving the same characters, or even the same general time frame. I just want to see the world continue, I guess. I suppose that’s the sign of a well-written book though, huh?


For more reviews, check out Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks

[Liz (Bent Bookworm)]

~*Review first appeared on The Bent Bookworm!*~

I was intrigued by the premise of The Psychology of Time Travel. Time travel itself has always fascinated me, and I loved the idea of it being a group of women pioneers who actually made that leap for the first time. Also, the author herself is a psychologist, which I think lent a special depth to the characterization and some aspects of the story (notably mental health issues).

Characters

^Unfortunately I couldn’t find a picture with a redhaired model, but this is about how I picture Ruby.

Within the first couple of chapters we are introduced to one of the main characters, Ruby, as she changes the oil in her motorcycle, and I was SOLD. I’m hopeless when it comes to mechanical things myself, but I love seeing women mow down that stereotype. Also motorcycles are just awesome. I miss ours…but I digress.

The characters – and there are MANY – are from various walks of life, various sexualites, various cultures. I enjoyed all the diversity but the constant perspective hopping became exhausting rather quickly. Especially since even after the book was halfway over, there were STILL new characters being introduced! I almost went cross-eyed trying to keep them all straight. That said, the friendships developed through the book are really what MADE the story. Not the romance – which was a little hard to believe – but the friendships.

I struggled some to connect with the characters, sadly, and only really felt invested in two. The others I didn’t really care that much about, they were interesting but if they lived or died I was just…meh.

The SCIENCE
Yes, all caps, because the amount of thought put into just how time travel would work – really, actually, maybe work – was very much evident. Unlike a lot of books with time travel elements, there are no dire consequences if your younger or older self sees you as a time traveler (no time-turner woes here), it’s just an accepted part of society and life for those travel. There is new slang and jargon for time travel and the occurrences that go along with it – even down to terms for sex with one’s older or younger self! The story also probes into thedisregard for death that most time travelers either already have, or develop through their career. After all, if someone they love dies, they can just travel back in time and see them again. Despite that…they aren’t actually able to change the past. It’s all very mind-bending.

The Mystery
There’s a behind-a-locked-door murder mystery plotline as well, and it was quite interesting. However, that is definitely not the main draw for the story.

Overall, 3.5/5 stars. The Psychology of Time Travel is a very intriguing story, especially if you like seeing things from many different viewpoints and angles.

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[Terri M. LeBlanc]

I really enjoyed this unique time travel mystery. With a distinctly female focus, it was a compelling read. The only downside, I got a bit lost at the end and I'm not entirely certain who committed the crime.