The Time Weaver

Apr 19, 2013 Holly rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, favourites, fiction, magic

This was a fantasy book that appeared to follow the usual routes but with a bit of a twist, and it was done very well. It starts out with a battle approaching a castle, introducing a number of characters and the main evil one. It then jumps into our own reality with a software developer on his birthday. Time freezes when he gets into an accident, and then he gets transported to the world of Galadir, but thats not the end of the story in our reality. People witness the aftermath of a fight with a...more This was a fantasy book that appeared to follow the usual routes but with a bit of a twist, and it was done very well. It starts out with a battle approaching a castle, introducing a number of characters and the main evil one. It then jumps into our own reality with a software developer on his birthday. Time freezes when he gets into an accident, and then he gets transported to the world of Galadir, but thats not the end of the story in our reality. People witness the aftermath of a fight with a monster, some casting of magic and our MC disappearing through a huge rift in the fabric of space and time, the army and scientists become quite interested in this series of events and begin investigations. That particular aspect I really enjoyed along with something I have never come across before - an explanation of how magic could actually be performed in clear and feasible scientific commentary - I loved that, the blending of reality and fantasy and the possibility that magic could exist for real.

There are also soldiers, dragons, beasts, magic, violence, gods and all sorts in this novel to keep any fantasy fan entertained and happy. The side characters are quite interesting too and I particularly liked Cedric, although we dont find out a huge amount about him he's definitely one to watch in future books I think/hope. There are parts of the book which felt a bit unnecessary, such as parts where characters walked into rooms and closed doors, took off their boots etc, sometimes an entire paragraph of something a character did, which lead to nothing, but I didnt mind that so much - I think perhaps it was an attempt to bring more realism into the scene at points where perhaps in a film the camera would cut away.

My only fault would be that sometimes it felt like things weren't properly fleshed out, for example at one point seth needs to use some magic, tries and fails, one sentence later he manages perfectly fine, and it is written pretty much like that, so it pretty much detracts from the original attempt. However I still really enjoyed this and will definitely be reading the next one.

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Apr 13, 2013 Sheila rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: cultural, current_issues, paranormal, relationships, scifi-fantasy, suspense, spiritual

With the same appeal as Stephen Donaldson’s Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, and a thoroughly intriguing premise, Thomas A. Knight has created a fascinating parallel world in his novel The Time Weaver, endowing it with pleasingly dangerous and exciting interactions with our own. A father reads to his son then disappears. A son grows up with vague memories and an unopenable book. Then 30-year-old Seth Alkirk finds his life suddenly threatened by car accidents, monsters, magic and more. But Seth jus...more

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Jan 24, 2013 Ia Uaro rated it 4 of 5 stars

A DELIGHTFUL FANTASY (reviewed by Ia Uaro)
Trouble brews in Findoor, a parallel world to our normal land. Greed and revenge drive ambitious black magicians assisted by mythical beasts to conquer prosperous Findoor. To succeed, each of the feuding armies need on their side The Time Weaver's power to control time. Both race to kidnap Seth, your average computer geek from Iowa who is totally unsuspecting of his ability to decide a nation's future. As the last of The Time Weaver, will Seth have the f...more

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Jul 16, 2012 Elloise Hopkins rated it 4 of 5 stars

As a child Seth Alkirk was always very taken by his father’s stories of another world, of magic and epic battles. Twenty-five years later Seth has little left of that childhood except scant memories and his father’s old book, which he has never been able to open. He is a software developer with not much of a social life but his thirtieth birthday brings promise of perhaps something more, but on his way to meet friends after work, a car crash hurls Seth into the midst of the very things his fathe...more As a child Seth Alkirk was always very taken by his father’s stories of another world, of magic and epic battles. Twenty-five years later Seth has little left of that childhood except scant memories and his father’s old book, which he has never been able to open. He is a software developer with not much of a social life but his thirtieth birthday brings promise of perhaps something more, but on his way to meet friends after work, a car crash hurls Seth into the midst of the very things his father’s stories told of.

On Galadir, the scryers’ discovery of a new Time Weaver promises a saviour, one that can heal the rifts created in their world long before, but those who serve the king are not the only ones to have made the discovery and the race between good and evil forces to claim the Time Weaver for themselves begins.

The king’s wizard, Merek, must retrieve the Time Weaver if he has any hope of saving Galadir from destruction. He dispatches Malia, a highly skilled Swordmage, to cross over to the other world and fetch the Time Weaver. Though the risks and consequences to herself are great, Malia accepts the task and steps through a rift, bringing the reality of another world and another possible future into Seth’s path.

My first impression of The Time Weaver was that the characters were all instantly likeable and so I was pulled immediately into the story and found myself rooting for them as the dangers grew. My second impression was that there is something incredibly unique about it. Nothing that happened was predictable or overly familiar, and nothing I had heard of the book before reading it prepared me for the scale of the story nor of the other world that is on offer in Galadir.

I think the strongest element of the writing here is the voice, which remains consistent throughout, and balances just the right amount of confidence, narrative knowledge and lighter tones to keep the reader interested and empathising with the characters. This leads into another great main strength – the protagonist; I felt he was a good rendition of a modern fantasy hero as he struggled to come to terms with his new life and his abilities having been completely removed from his comfort zone very early on.

Sometimes the traditional fantasy elements – dragons, magic, monsters and so forth – contrasted a little too sharply with the technological and scientific elements for my taste, but this did not detract from a story that was sound in its execution and is more of personal preference than any fault with the story.

The pace of the book is good and there is no lack of action at any point. If anything, occasionally the pace was perhaps too much and I felt pulled from a scene before I had time to fully digest what had happened or reflect upon it. There were a few times when I felt that having a moment to really appreciate the characters’ dilemmas or the consequences of an action would have heightened the depth of the story. Nonetheless this is a thoroughly enjoyable read, a strong introduction to a tale that is in no way lacking in scope or possibility and certainly the start of an epic adventure.

Elloise Hopkins.
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Sep 11, 2012 Angela rated it 5 of 5 stars

Kindle Version (free via author for honest review)

What do you do when your entire life and existence as you know it is all turned upside down? Seth learns quite quickly how little he really knows about his life, his past, and his family on one eventful day. He stares mystery and lots of questions in the face when he has a car accident in the city he is living in. During this accident he learns that things are not always what they seem and that sometimes it's better just to flow with it than figh...more Kindle Version (free via author for honest review)

What do you do when your entire life and existence as you know it is all turned upside down? Seth learns quite quickly how little he really knows about his life, his past, and his family on one eventful day. He stares mystery and lots of questions in the face when he has a car accident in the city he is living in. During this accident he learns that things are not always what they seem and that sometimes it's better just to flow with it than fight it. He learns he has powers, special powers, that can be used to save a far off and world, one that only exists in the past and the past of his family. You see Seth is a Time Weaver, just like his father. Seth doesn't know much of his father, as he left when Seth was just a small child of only five years old, but he does know that he still possesses his father's old "storybook" that he used to read to him out of as a child. Seth is now thirty and finds that he can finally open this special "storybook" with just a swipe of his fingers over the clasp. Why is he now able to open the book? And what kind of foreign language is it written in that Seth is unable to read? Soon he is faced with powers that seem unreal and dreamlike and is found by an old world warrior and told he needs to go with her to help save the world she comes from. Full of confusion and disbelief, Seth has no choice but to help the female warrior when he discovers he can stop time and that monsters, that could only be from his imagination, are real and doing real damage to a world he only knows from stories told by his father and his own world he has lived in for his entire life that. Seth is the key to ridding the old world from the evil that is trying to take over. How can Seth save a world he never knew existed with magic he never knew he could wield? Can he be taught and wrap his mind around what is happening in time to save a world that he is coming to love the longer he is part of it? Can he find the link from his past that will tell him what to do and how to win the battle over evil and dark magic? He is more than willing to try if it means saving and helping the female warrior that came to his world and saved him and asked him for help. She is more than a magic wielding warrior in Seth's eyes. She is a beautiful woman who seems to be capturing his heart in the process of helping him discover who he truly is.

This book is otherworldly, and not just because it takes place between two different worlds/times. I was caught up in this book from the moment I started reading it. It was so full of action, adventure, magic, mystery, evil, and a twist of romance that I couldn't help but keep reading. The characters in this book are truly amazing as is the plot. I never once had a moment of wonder if I should or could continue reading! The action and wonder of this magical book just kept on flowing. I felt like I had a movie going on in my head as I continued reading and envisioning the vivid, wonderful story taking place. I read this book in only 2 short days and was left with my head reeling and wondering when the next book will come out by this terrific author in this magical series. The twist of the Time Weaver and the settings being two different worlds (old and new) just made the story that much more interesting for me. I found at some parts of the book I couldn't read fast enough to see what was going to happen next. Seth really handles his new found magic quite well, but the beautiful warrior helping him along the way may have something to do with that. This book had it all, magic, adventure, romance, dragons, and much much more! I very highly recommend this read for anyone looking to bring some spark into their reading day. I can't wait to read more of Thomas A. Knights books in this series as they come out! I just have to see what other adventures Seth gets taken on as he finds more of the "true" him deep inside.

5/5 Stars!!!
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Feb 05, 2012 L.A. Rikand rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

What I liked about this book was the quick way it pulls the reader into the story and doesn't really let go. I read it in half the time I expected because I couldn't find a good place to put it down. It has all the detail that a fantasy reader would look for in a story: wizards, magic, a dragon, a castle, etc. Some of the magic elements are unique, as well as how Galadir and Earth intersect or differ.

My biggest complaint about THE TIME WEAVER is that it ended quite abruptly, with the promise of...more

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Sep 15, 2012 Meganm922 rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: requests-completed, favorites, series-i-want-to-finish

I really enjoyed this fantasy novel. I thought the idea was interesting and unique. The beginning grabbed me immediately and sucked me in! I couldn’t put this novel down, despite the fact that I wasn’t really in the mood for fantasy at the time. The author created a spellbinding story that was descriptive and it grabbed my attention and wouldn’t let go.

When the story switches to the regular world and we meet Seth, I was a bit disappointed. I feel now that perhaps the author was much more comfor...more I really enjoyed this fantasy novel. I thought the idea was interesting and unique. The beginning grabbed me immediately and sucked me in! I couldn’t put this novel down, despite the fact that I wasn’t really in the mood for fantasy at the time. The author created a spellbinding story that was descriptive and it grabbed my attention and wouldn’t let go.

When the story switches to the regular world and we meet Seth, I was a bit disappointed. I feel now that perhaps the author was much more comfortable with his world of Galadir than he was in the regular world. The dialogue was a little forced and didn’t flow very well in the beginning. Once the adventure began and Seth found himself in Galadir, all of the awkwardness I felt went away. The author was definitely at home in Galadir and showed in his writing.

A female soldier, Malia, is sent to grab Seth and take him to Galadir as it is his rightful home and he is the last Time Weaver. I absolutely loved her character. I think it was incredible to have a world that allowed a woman to be a soldier without a second glance. I say this because a lot of fantasy novels reflect older times in the world where women keep the homes or castles and if they do venture out onto the battlefield, they are constantly ridiculed. This didn’t appear to be an issue at all in the world of Galadir and I enjoyed this aspect.

The author’s writing was so superb that I found myself immersed in every sentence. Each time a character from Galadir spoke, I could hear their accents in my head and picture them so well. I cannot applaud the author enough for weaving such a well executed story that flowed so smoothly. I fell in love with the characters, like the Bard, the old wizard Merek, and Malia. Seth seemed to find his place in Galadir, too.

I found the plot to be unique and captivating. Seth has the ability to stop the flow of time and perform magic with just a thought. He doesn’t have any idea how to wield his powers and the adventure he finds himself on is a learning experience for him each step of the way. He seemed confident in himself, which I liked, while also being confused and shocked each time he learned to control a new power. It felt believable for me and made him more real to me.

With unforgettable characters, a unique and action packed plot, and descriptive writing, The Time Weaver is a wonderful fantasy novel. I’m looking forward to the sequel and reading other works by Thomas A. Knight. I haven’t felt so at home inside of the pages of a fantasy novel in a long time. I definitely recommend this book to others that enjoy fantasy. A lot of elements of it were some that I haven’t seen before and I found it to be extremely refreshing.
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Mar 22, 2012 Jeff Dawson rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Sci-Fi enthusiasts

This is the second Sci-Fi book I really delved into. I found it about nine months ago and kept thinking about the buy button. Is this something that would really capture the attention and imagination or was it going to be another story of Hocus Pocus or retreading waters of "The Ring?" Well, sorry I waited so long to purchase this work.

It is brilliantly written with plenty of sub-plots for even those who are hard core sci-fi fans. Whether it be movies or books, how many of us try and plan ahead...more

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Dec 10, 2011 PaulineMRoss rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: genre-fantasy, price-cheap, 2-star, self-pub

I really liked the opening of this one - a dramatic wizardy end-of-the-world type battle, which turns out to be - well, something else (not wanting to spoil the surprise). An elegant way to introduce the main characters and the backstory in one go.

The plot is not the most original ever for a fantasy novel. There's a King. Check. Beautiful Warrior Babe. Check. Wizards. Check. Farm boy with unsuspected magical powers. Check. [OK, so he's a geeky software developer, same deal.] Magic Sword. Check....more I really liked the opening of this one - a dramatic wizardy end-of-the-world type battle, which turns out to be - well, something else (not wanting to spoil the surprise). An elegant way to introduce the main characters and the backstory in one go.

The plot is not the most original ever for a fantasy novel. There's a King. Check. Beautiful Warrior Babe. Check. Wizards. Check. Farm boy with unsuspected magical powers. Check. [OK, so he's a geeky software developer, same deal.] Magic Sword. Check. The Dark Lord. Check. [Didn't he get defeated before? Once or twice?] Well, nothing wrong with the familiar tropes, if the author adds a new twist. This one has a mystery (what happened to the software guy's father), and some nice humour wrapped round the cross-universe culture clash. The warrior babe assumes modern world people are peasants because they have no swords. Well, you would, wouldn't you? And Seth (geeky software guy) is astonished by simple fire-lighting magic, and horrified at being asked to use a sword: "Do I look like the kind of person that can handle a sword?"

This is all good knockabout stuff, no problem there. And I like that Seth isn't just spirited away to the alternate universe in the middle of the night, to be returned later (presumably) with no one any the wiser. Instead it all happens in the middle of a busy intersection, with a mega pile-up going on, leaving behind a dead monster and lots of witnesses to swear they saw a knight in armour kill said monster with a sword and then walk into a big blue hole with an unconscious man and vanish. Great fun.

So far, so good. Unfortunately the writing isn't quite up to the promise of the opening. The characters are all rather stereotyped, with not much subtlety to them. There's a lot of heavy description of people and places, the point of view hops about confusingly, and we rarely get any sense of what the characters are feeling, although Seth's sense of disorientation is clear. Sometimes the tension in a dramatic scene is dissipated instantly by a particularly clunky line. After a wizard meets a vividly gruesome end, we get only: "The remaining five council members suffered a similar fate..." There are quite a few typos, too, like 'isle' instead of 'aisle', 'peal' instead of 'peel' and the inevitable 'peaked' instead of 'piqued'. I can ignore the over frequent use of 'shall', which is probably intended to sound archaic, and the lack of 'had' (as in 'Some healers arrived already and...') which is an Americanism, I think, but the use of 'that' instead of 'who' really grated (as in '...children that ran about'). My pedantic school teachers would never have allowed it. Nitpicks, maybe, but if you notice them they really interfere with the suspension of disbelief.

The story jumps backwards and forwards between the two worlds, which works rather well. However, the modern world investigation into the incident soon turns up DNA differences between Malia (the Warrior Babe) and regular humans, and Seth is even more different. The military immediately jump to the weapons potential. This makes the whole magic business no more than a matter of chromosomes, and somehow it all becomes far more mundane. I don't mind magic that has a system or rules of some kind, but when there's an actual sciencey-type explanation for it, it loses its - well, its magic. As for the need for words to make magic happen, that's fine, it's a bit of a tradition, but I've always thought that in a wizard battle, you'd really want to choose the spells with the fewest words. Or else talk really, really fast. Apart from that, the magic system is nicely thought out, and I like the way a defended spell turns itself against the caster, with dire consequences.

Just as I thought things were straying into military scifi territory, the campy Cedric and the Man in Black turn up and the plot really cranks into high gear. After that, it's a matter of hanging on tight as things roller-coaster to the end. If you like wizardy thunderbolt battles and armies of weird creatures and the whole farmboy turned hero scenario, not to mention some interference from the gods, this book is for you. There's nothing wildly original in any of this, but if you can ignore the rather flat and heavy writing style, and you don't expect too much depth, it's an entertaining romp. I'm not sure what age group the author is aiming for but there are some wonderfully gruesome moments that would appeal to a certain type of child: "His eyes exploded out as his brain superheated in his skull, and then he fell to the ground, smoke rising from his empty eye sockets." Eew, gross. Ultimately, although I kept reading to find out how it ends, and it had some very enjoyable moments and a couple of nice twists at the end, it turned out to be not really my thing, sadly, [*] so combined with the weaknesses in writing, that keeps it at two stars.

EDIT: [*] It occurs to me that it's unhelpful and sounds a bit arbitrary to say that a book is "not really my thing" without explaining why, so I'm going to elaborate, which strays into spoiler territory.

(view spoiler)[
This book follows a tried and trusted formula: an ordinary young man discovers that he has unexpected powers, and the story details how he comes to terms with that and learns to control and use his abilities. Nothing wrong with any of that, and the early part of the book (the discovery phase, as it were) and the middle section (the control phase) are not bad at all. Seth's tentative exploration of his powers is nicely done, and the tension is maintained because the reader never quite knows what he can do, any more than he does himself.

There's a very enjoyable piece where Seth, Malia and Cedric are chased through the swamp and end up in the mountain cave. Seth is manipulated into facing, alone, some entirely unknown situation, without any certainty that he will be able to deal with it. The other two are trapped by a horde of furry beasties with big teeth. However handy she is with a sword, Malia will not be able to kill or hold off all of them, and Cedric - well, Cedric is a mystery. Who knows what he is capable of, or what he's up to? There's real tension in the situation - not because anyone is likely to die at this point, but because, even though we know they will escape, we have no idea at all how that will be achieved. And although the friendly dragon is a bit of a 'get out of jail free' card, it's still a nice move. Dragons are always cool.

So at this point, things are heading for three stars, no problem. But then we get to the final showdown. Things are desperate, there's a big battle looming which Our Heroes believe they can't possibly win. The situation is so dire that the king has killed himself. So what does the city do? It holds a ball, that's what. Now I get that the author wanted the big romantic moment when the warrior babe puts on a frock and sweeps Our Hero off his feet. But really, on the eve of a huge, civilisation-ending battle? When the king has just died? I don't think so. The warrior babe, if she were sensible, would be sharpening her sword, and so would everyone else. So that's point one: if you want me to believe the stakes are that high, don't have the main characters swanning round on the dancefloor, it completely destroys my suspension of disbelief. Although the ending up in bed part - that's a perfectly believable response to imminent death, actually.

And then there's the final showdown. Now, over the course of the book, Seth has gradually learned just how awesome his powers are, and he's learned to use them, so it's not unexpected that he's the guy to save the world. But when it comes to a duel of awesome wizard powers, two people with essentially god-like abilities hurling thunderbolts at each other - well, that's just not interesting to me. And the actual gods get involved, too, which takes it even more out of the realm of credibility. And frankly, I never for a moment thought that Seth would fail or be killed, so there was no real tension there. So that's point two: I prefer my magic to be subtle, with clear limitations, not this 'anything you can do, I can do better' business. It's over the top and, again, it destroys my suspension of disbelief. Although extra brownie points for needing three people to kill the Big Bad (not sure why it needed three, but it was way better than Seth the Superhero doing everything). So ultimately the ending was too unbelievable for me.
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Oct 12, 2012 Will Knight rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Originally posted at Bibliophilia, Please.

The Time Weaver starts with a small jump back to the main character's childhood, where his father, ominously and mysteriously, has to leave the family as "he" has found them. Then we jump to the main story. Seth is a software designer (Funny thing is, the author is also a software designer. If I were to write a book, I'd definitely make my main character a translator. Sorry, The Translator. Handsome, charismatic, charming and swashbucklingly awesome. It...more Originally posted at Bibliophilia, Please.

The Time Weaver starts with a small jump back to the main character's childhood, where his father, ominously and mysteriously, has to leave the family as "he" has found them. Then we jump to the main story. Seth is a software designer (Funny thing is, the author is also a software designer. If I were to write a book, I'd definitely make my main character a translator. Sorry, The Translator. Handsome, charismatic, charming and swashbucklingly awesome. It would also be in the genre of fantasy... Ok, moving on. *grin*)

After a bit of back-story and setting things up, it gets interesting. There's a car crash. Time stops. A huge ass werewolf thing rends space and time and claws its way to Seth, our main character. Who promptly proceeds to metaphorically shit his pants and run like hell. I would too, mind you. I may be swashbuckingly awesome, but mama didn't raise no dum-dum. Big ass werewolf thing = run. If you leave this blog learning nothing but one thing, let this be that one thing. Run away from big ass hairy things. Unless you're into that sort of thing. In which case, have fun! *wink*

From the car accident/space rend incident, the book takes off for me. It starts good. I enjoyed it a lot. And as you read on, it gets better. And better. There are times when I feared it would fall in clichés, but it doesn't. When I thought Seth would go one path, the normal fantasy drag-things-along path, BAM, fireball to the face. Seth felt out of place and confused and scared shitless, but when push came to shove, he got things done.

None of the usual stumbling along, never quite mastering your powers until the very last second, good guy doesn't kill a fly cause it would be wrong. Nope. Allow me to grab my light sword, which I materialized out of thin air, and skewer you like a kebab. I said good day. I. Said. Good. Day. !

There was self-doubt, and running away, and crying. But only to a manageable degree. If he'd been all "I know kung fu" and blasé about it, no chance I'd bought it. If I were attacked by a 12 foot beast thing and dragged to another world through a lightning emitting wormhole thingy, I'd be mildy nervous. So I can't judge others, fictitious characters or not. I bring this up because self-doubt in main characters usually annoys me. It didn't this time.

I liked two things the most. I feared the characters would be predictable. The old arch-magus. The smart-alecky bard. The fierce stubborn female warrior. I was pleasantly surprised. They were not formulaic at all, even if they did seem so at first. Not sure if it was actually the case, or if my preconceptions made me think of them that way. Regardless, I liked them all. I agreed with their choices pretty much at every turn. I was sad when some of them died. Happy when some of them didn't, or did. There was this one douche that had it coming, but didn't get it. But there's always book two! *happy*

The other thing I really liked was the story. It starts out normal, for a fantasy that is. And then it grows. And grows. And doesn't really stop until the end. Characters develop, the story unfolds, it expands, it breathes. I stayed up till 1am to finish reading it. Didn't play Skyrim (awesome game by the way). Didn't watch Doctor Who (awesome show if you haven't seen it for some reason). I found this book to be that good.

I'm really looking forward to book two. I hope the author gets a few of the kinks out. (There were some points in the book were I felt something was a bit off, but couldn't figure out what it was - didn't detract from the experience though). I hope it lives up to my expectations and the potential the story, and the author, have. And I hope I get to read it and review it. Great story, great characters, great read. Happy little reviewer here. :)(less)

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May 25, 2012 Krista (CubicleBlindness Reviews) rated it 4 of 5 stars

This story was so much fun to read. Very entertaining and great unexpected twists.
I thought the mixture of characters and personalities was fun and brought some humorous dialogue.
With a unique twist to the usual stories including wizards, dragons and castles is all very magical and lead to some great visuals while reading along.
Even though I read mostly books for teens, when I was approached by the author to review the book I thought that the readers on my blog would be interested in this one...more

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Mar 08, 2013 Eric rated it 1 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I got this book free through the first reads program.

There are a lot of things a sword and sorcery book can do to appeal to me. They can have interesting characters, world building, or an imaginative magic system. If this book had even one of these things, I probably could have ignored its other shortcomings and focused on something it did right. Unfortunately, this book has very little to offer but a by the numbers tale staring a rather shameless Marty Stu.

Our main character Seth Alkirk is not...more I got this book free through the first reads program.

There are a lot of things a sword and sorcery book can do to appeal to me. They can have interesting characters, world building, or an imaginative magic system. If this book had even one of these things, I probably could have ignored its other shortcomings and focused on something it did right. Unfortunately, this book has very little to offer but a by the numbers tale staring a rather shameless Marty Stu.

Our main character Seth Alkirk is not only one of the last time weavers in existence, he also just so happens to be able to wield all but one type of magic, befriends a dragon, faces little to no adversity from his enemies, and is also somehow a brilliant tactician. This type of "child of destiny" story is the main reason I stopped reading The Sword of Truth series after one and a half books. When you make it to where one character can do anything, you make the story boring. A few other characters help round out the cast, but their mostly there to tell Seth how awesome he is or, in the case of love interest Malia, to have a huge personality shift midway through the book and start making puppy dog eyes at him. Malia could have actually been an interesting character. As the only female swordmage in the kingdom, there was a lot of room to empower her and make some point about gender equality, etc. But instead she spends her time either getting injured (so Seth can come in and miraculously save her...twice) or pining over her love, who she has known for all of two weeks.

With gender equality off the table as far as theme goes, what message does this book offer up in its place? Well, the better part of the asides are dedicated to commenting on how great life is in the alternate world as opposed to the bustling city life Seth left behind. He comments several times about how clean the air is, how lush the trees are, and how there are no places like that on his world. This bothers me for two reasons. Either we are to believe that this is the author's belief, in which case I feel like I'm being preached to, or we have to assume Seth is just an idiot who has never been anywhere outside of his city. The whole of earth is not paved over and there are hundreds of places one might go to experience the same sensations Seth describes.

I feel this review is becoming overly long, so allow me to just rapid fire some of the more egregious problems I encountered. The military goes from discovering a new type of DNA to being able to make a serum from it and giving people magic powers IN 6 DAYS. One of the villains is introduced without any foreshadowing or acknowledgment of his existence a third of the way into the book. After an entire book of people loosing limbs, having holes fired in their chest, ribs break, and magical infections spreading through their bodies and yet being healed by magic, one character gets hit by lightning and ABSOLUTELY NO EFFORT IS MADE TO SAVE HIM. The sequel bait plot is laughable and only seems to work because everyone other than the main character is completely incompetent. As I've mentioned in other reviews, I often base my feelings on one book in a series off how much I am looking forward to the next. Well, I have no interest in reading the next book in this series. This one was enough to get through.(less)

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Dec 09, 2012 Charlie Kravetz rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Fantasy readers of all ages.

WOW! What an exciting, fast-paced fantasy.

What do you do when your entire world is turned upside down in the blink of a second? How does an everyday person, who is nothing special, cope with a new world, new powers, and a family history never before heard? This is a fantastic story of one such person, a very special person that is called a Time Weaver.

This book is very fast-paced. It is exciting. It is an imaginative story told in a way to allow enjoyment, fear, and love to flow throughout the b...more

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Sep 24, 2012 Sallie rated it 4 of 5 stars

On the morning of Seth’s birthday, he is finally able to open a book left by his father before his disappearance 25 years earlier. Seth brings the books with him to work to ask his friend’s help with deciphering the contents.

That night Seth is involved in a car accident. Instead of being killed, as he should have, Seth literally stops time. While reeling from the experience an aperture opens and a beast erupts which leads Seth to facing down and unleashing powers heretofore unknown to him. What...more

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Nov 11, 2011 Connie Jasperson rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

On the morning of Seth Alkirk’s 30thbirthday, a book that his father left him and which was locked for 25 years mysteriously opens for him. He discovers that it is written in a language that he can’t understand and takes it to work in his lap-top bag for his friend and business partner Dave to have a look at.

At lunch that day there is a moment when a glass appears to fall to the floor in slow motion, before it breaks. That evening he is involved in an automobile accident in which time completely...more On the morning of Seth Alkirk’s 30thbirthday, a book that his father left him and which was locked for 25 years mysteriously opens for him. He discovers that it is written in a language that he can’t understand and takes it to work in his lap-top bag for his friend and business partner Dave to have a look at.

At lunch that day there is a moment when a glass appears to fall to the floor in slow motion, before it breaks. That evening he is involved in an automobile accident in which time completely stops, allowing him to walk away from an accident that should have killed him. As he tries to absorb that, a rift opens and a beast emerges. Running through the silent, immobile city and trying to escape the beast, Seth is placed under a compulsion to face the beast down. Without knowing why he does so, he unleashes a powerful magic attack on the beast. Deterred momentarily but not stopped, the beast seizes him.

At this point I was hooked. The plot had me, and I put aside everything and did nothing but read until I had read the whole book.
It turns out that Seth is the son of the most powerful time-weaver in the history of the parallel world of Galadir. His inadvertent opening of the book and use of his powers has alerted both friends and enemies of his existence. Merek, the arch-magus, sends a warrior, Malia, to retrieve him. She rescues him from the beast (which is a demon-like thing called a Narshuk), and takes him back to Galadir through the rift that the beast had used. They must get to Findoor Castle, and have a long trip ahead of them. On their journey they meet a bard, Cedric and he eventually finds himself aiding them in exchange for their aid in getting him to Findoor, and vouching for him.

Unbeknownst to arch-magus Merek, his apprentice, Grian, has turned to evil. Upon hearing of Seth’s existence Grian steals a dangerous book. Catching him in the act of the theft, Merek exiles him to the Badlands. Unfortunately, that was where Grian wanted to be. The high council, of which his father is a member, goes to the Badlands to confront him. Grian murders the entire council including his own father in his effort to consolidate his power. Now the forces of evil are looking for Seth in the world of Galadir.

Even worse, in the world that Seth left behind General Mathers is looking for him also. The general has taken DNA left at the scene by Seth and Malia, and has used it to create a serum that can make a super-human. A mysterious man in black, Cy the Betrayer, murders the lab tech in charge of the experiments and uses the serum on himself. Now that he has used the serum he can return to Galadir, and he does so. It turns out that he is a vessel for the soul of Gladius, the leader of the forces of evil whom all had hoped was dead. This is where the action really begins happening.

This tale has some exciting twists and turns and just when you think it is going one way it goes in another. The characters are well drawn, and believable, and the worlds are vivid and colorful. Morganath, the Dragon is a wonderful character. There is romance and action, although there is a certain amount of rough language, and a great deal of graphic violence. For the most part these don’t detract from the tale.

Much in the way that Tad Williams does in The War of the Flowers, Thomas A Knight manages to create a neat meshing of urban fantasy and sword and sorcery. The ending is an exciting roller coaster of emotions, and I really enjoyed it right to the last word. Knight has left me hanging, and waiting for the next book!(less)

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Nov 27, 2011 Skip rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The Time Weaver 'Couldn't put it down' so to speak. Other that a break for food I just had to read finish it the day I started it. Was great fun in a genre that I don't normally wander in.

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Jul 13, 2012 Mary Ellen rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: first-reads

I really got into this book and finished it very quickly since I wanted to know what would happen next to the characters. The book is well-written and subplots dovetail nicely. The whole time I read, it was easy to visualize this book as a movie. I came to like the main characters and still have some unanswered questions, so I'm hoping there will be a sequel!

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Jul 07, 2012 Lexxie (un)Conventional Bookviews rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: review-books, read-in-2012

The full review is now up at Risque Reviews

From the first line, The Time Weaver grabbed me and hauled me inside a crazy world, on a wild ride! I have rarely felt so connected with the main character after just the first line, and I just had to turn the page, see what would happen next, and continue to be amazed. Thomas A. Knight wields his words with the same sure elegance Seth learns his magic.

The rest can be read on the blog above :)

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Feb 24, 2013 Karen Smith rated it 4 of 5 stars

This is the first book in a series. It is the story of Seth, who finds himself drawn into an epic battle in a parallel world when that world intrudes on his own. Your typical average Joe, Seth discovers things about himself and the father he hardly knew. He finds power (magical and personal), love and a dragon.

This is a well edited novel with a well-crafted world. The secondary characters are complex and potentially interesting in their own right. If I had to say what I would like to see improve...more

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Jan 04, 2013 Chris Lane rated it 5 of 5 stars

Enjoyed 98 % of this Just every now and then had to reread particularly when it suddenly swopped from one charachter to another. Still found it a good plot and curious to see what happens next

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Jan 11, 2013 Dana rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Don't you just hate it when a story is so good, that when it ends, on a cliffhanger no less, you are just wildly disappointed? lol. Well, that's what happened here. A well written fantasy tale with just the right amount of action and (blush) romance. I will be waiting patiently to read the next book in the series. Well done Thomas, well done.

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Jan 06, 2013 Stephen pieraldi rated it 3 of 5 stars

Was interesting enough but really left you wanting more than feeling satisfied in the end.

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Jul 10, 2012 Clare Cannon marked it as grg-reviewer

HS to review @ www.GoodReadingGuide.com

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Dec 21, 2012 Doreen Dalesandro marked it as to-read

Shelves: fantasy, owned-kindle

Kindle freebie, 12/21/12

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Apr 22, 2013 Paddy O'callaghan rated it 5 of 5 stars

It's fantastic,and I'm not just talking about the genre. Knight has created a brilliant complex world in which to base this amazing novel. Crack on, and get it read!

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May 22, 2013 Apple Austria marked it as to-read · review of another edition

May 22, 2013 Shantyl marked it as to-read

Shelves: 4-stars, time-travel

May 17, 2013 Jenelle marked it as to-read

May 15, 2013 Ty marked it as to-read · review of another edition

May 14, 2013 Legato Darksummers added it · review of another edition

Shelves: daddy-dark-s-baby-warrior-list

topics	posts	views	last activity
The Sword and Laser: The Time Weaver Chronicles	1	17	Oct 13, 2012 11:50am
Goodreads Authors...: The Time Weaver (Adult Fantasy)	1	10	Dec 22, 2011 11:37am

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The Time Weaver (The Time Weaver Chronicles #1)

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