(3.3 / 5)
I enjoyed this time travel romance. I have a high expectation for time travel books as so often they can so often be done poorly. This one was delightful.
Joel is on a road trip with a friend in the year 2000 when he stumbles across an abandoned mine. It just so happens that some strange celestial event is occurring at the same time and once he enters the mine he is thrust back in time to 1941. With money he can’t use because it hasn’t been printed yet, and no identification, he has to quickly learn how to make his way in a world that is about to be ravaged by war. He also happens to come across his grandmother and fall in love with her very-much-engaged-already best friend Grace. If the opportunity to go home again came, would he take it?
I loved the characters. Joel was a fantastic character! I loved how he was forced to navigate through this foreign time with nothing but his wits and intelligence, and luckily a good memory of history. I enjoyed his sense of humour and take on life. I was a bit perplexed by some of his choices in regards to his love life, but overall he was a great character.
I enjoyed the other characters too but I feel it lacked a bit of conflict. I find I really enjoy stories where the main character makes an enemy or has to work out how to deal with a foe, I felt that this story lacked a bit of OOMPH for me. Don’t get me wrong it was a lovely romance, but I felt at times it was a little slow moving without too much strength in the story to keep me totally hooked.
I really enjoyed the friendship that bloomed between Joel and Tom. That was one of the best parts of the book for me. The predicament he was in, that if he didn’t let Tom go, he would never be born.
The book was extremely well written and easy to read. I polished it off fairly quickly.
As for the romance. I don’t know… I just felt it was slightly forced and unbelievable. I found Grace to be quite a dull character and their interactions were quite drab. And Joel sure was forward to get the attention of the already extremely ENGAGED Grace. And knowing that any alterations that he makes in regards to the timeline may have dire consequences, some of his actions did surprise me. Especially towards the end. However the twist at the very end made up for this and overall it was a satisfying read.
Would I recommend it?
Yes, If you enjoy a nice feel good romance and a bit of time travel with a touch of history, The Mine is for you.
Many thanks to the author John A. Heldt for a copy of this book in exchange for my review.
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