February 2025 - Books with a clock or some measurement of time on the cover

[Jayme, Moderator]

You are not limited to the two chosen books. You may read any book within the theme "A book with a clock or some measurement of time on the cover" if you prefer.

In order to receive a badge you must:
1. have read the book before or during February 2025.

2. discussed it in this thread. Discussion must be more than "I read the book and I liked it". Discussion requires something more substantial and analytical of what you read. Please elaborate on your thoughts on at least 5 of the following topics:
- Setting
- Characters
- Writing style
- Genre
- How the book made you feel
- Which parts stood out
- Did you/will you read more by the author
- Anything else related to the book you find worth mentioning

This can be done in one post after finishing the book, but preferably in a few posts while reading. Please refer to our group spoiler policy for further information.

3. Report that you have read AND discussed the book in the reporting thread (include a brief summary of what you thought of the book).

General Rules:
1. Please mark your spoilers with the spoiler tags along with mentioning what stage of the book you are at so other's don't get a nasty shock. Chapter numbers/titles are generally best as they are the same across all formats and editions. See our spoiler policy
2. The book may be combined with the Year Long Challenge, Topplers, and Monthly Challenges.

Happy reading!

[Janice, Moderator]

I'm going to opt for this option and read Time's Convert


I'll start it once I finish my current book.

[Janice, Moderator]

I started my book Time's Convert (message 2) today. It's been awhile since I read the previous books in this series and it took a little bit to put the pieces together. It sounds like it will address some interesting themes.

I have to chuckle at the toddler twins, half witch/half vampire who still talk baby talk and repeat what they hear (view spoiler)[oh shit! (hide spoiler)]

[Tammy]

I’m going to read

[Tammy]

I have finished Transcending Time
I gave it an average rating of 3 stars. (view spoiler)[The story is about a family of watchmakers who have a lot of losses. One family is a father and son who live in Illinois, US. They have a cousin who lives in Europe and after the death of his father comes to the US to work with his family there. The US father is dying and has unresolved losses in his life ( the death of his wife at childbirth and a twin daughter given away at that time ). He is in touch with the Holy Spirit and that gives him great comfort and guidance. Also on the story is a nurse that helps with the dying US father who falls in love with the US son. As the father can’t work in the watch shop any more, they hire a woman to help. It turns out she is the twin that was given away. The family has close bonds. The characters are likable, but the story was a bit simple and predictive. The genre is Christian fiction. I probably won’t read another book by this author, not that the book was bad, but there are too many great books to read. I did find it interesting that there was a “ special “ oil used in some of the clock repair that gave the repairer insight into the owners life. (hide spoiler)]

[Janice, Moderator]

Tammy wrote: "I have finished Transcending Time
I gave it an average rating of 3 stars. [spoilers removed]"

Tammy, I don't think one sentence is a discussion. Could you please elaborate a little more? The instructions in message 1 lay out what constitutes a discussion.

[Janice, Moderator]

I've been reading more in my book. While it is fantasy about vampires and witches, it covers a lot of history about Marcus' youth before being reborn as a vampire and the time he ran away (view spoiler)[ after killing his father (hide spoiler)] to fight in the civil war. Even after centuries, Marcus retains much of his ideology and values from that time period.

[Tammy]

Janice wrote: "Tammy wrote: "I have finished Transcending Time
I gave it an average rating of 3 stars. [spoilers removed]"

Tammy, I don't think one sentence is a discussion. Could you please ela..."

Absolutely. I updated my post. Is that more appropriate?

[Janice, Moderator]

Tammy wrote: "Absolutely. I updated my post. Is that more appropriate?.."

Thanks so much. That is super.

It sounds interesting. Too bad you didn't enjoy it more. Personally, I don't care for Christian fiction. I chuckled when I saw her name. Do you think it's a pseudonym?

[Tammy]

Janice wrote: "Tammy wrote: "Absolutely. I updated my post. Is that more appropriate?.."

Thanks so much. That is super.

It sounds interesting. Too bad you didn't enjoy it more. Personally, I don't care for Chr..."

Great. I do enjoy Christian Fiction, but it can be very similar. Pseudonym, maybe.

[Janice, Moderator]

I finished my book and decided to give it 3 stars. I wasn't pulled into the story, finding that I didn't care for the characters. it seemed to take forever to finish it.

I did like the twin toddlers and had to laugh at all the adults freaking out over (view spoiler)[the one's magical abilities and the other's desire to bite. None of them had to deal with birthed babies, since newborns to them were one's created by a vampire's bite and blood. (hide spoiler)] Nothing like a little over reaction.

[Jayme, Moderator]

I am starting my book today. I am pretty excited because the book is about John Harrison a clock-maker who figured out how to use longitude lines for mapping and naivigation. He was mentioned in last months group read the The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder.

[Janice, Moderator]

I hope you enjoy it Jayme. Did Henry read The Wager? And will he read this one once you're finished?

[Jayme, Moderator]

I've tried to write this post 3 times, but we are in the middle of a wind storm and keep losing power.

Henry still hasn't read the book, Janice. He is dealing with the fallout from "the orange one's" executive orders and is crazy busy. Henry is slated to retire next year, so we will be holding our breath until it is official.

[Jayme, Moderator]

I'm only on page 25 of Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of his Time and it is discussing the horrors that not being able to accurately measure longitude had on maritime history. One of the examples that is being used is Commodore Anson and his ship the Centurion. The Centurion was the lead ship of 5 (Our group read last month The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder was one of those ships) and it's interesting to read about what happened to his ship after reading about what happened to the Wager.

The book also referenced The National Maritime Museum and its exhibit on Harrison (who this book is about) in the Foreword by Neil Armstrong. The museum is located in Greenwich, London, England and is now another museum added to my museum bucket list.

[Janice, Moderator]

Jayme wrote: "I've tried to write this post 3 times, but we are in the middle of a wind storm and keep losing power.

Henry still hasn't read the book, Janice. He is dealing with the fallout from "the orange one..."

Fingers crossed that it all works out for you, and that the wind storm dies down.

[Jayme, Moderator]

Who would have thought that a book about the creation of a clock that can help figure longitude at sea would be so riveting. The snubbing and preventing of Harrison to receive the prize money (millions by today's estimate) by leading astronomers on the Royal Society Board (they couldn't believe that a clockmaker beat them to it) was so frustrating to read. In the end of course Harrison did receive most of the money, but only after 40 years of trials and attempted sabotage was his invention acknowledged.

[Janice, Moderator]

I think his experience is very similar to what women constantly had to deal with in scientific fields. I started to read The Naturalist Society. The MC, a woman, was forced to have her husband claim her work because as a woman she wasn't allowed to be active in her field. Yes, that was fiction, but it was typical of the time period.

[Jayme, Moderator]

Just a reminder to report your read in the thread below, if you would like a stamp :)

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

[Kristie, Moderator]

I just noticed that my current book has a pocket watch on the cover. Eddie Winston Is Looking for Love is about a 90 year old gentleman who works in a charity shop in Birmingham. He is a really cute and quirky character and he has never been kissed. He meets a 24 year old woman who is grieving after having just lost the love of her life and together they set out to find love for Eddie.

So far, it's a very sweet story and I'm enjoying the characters. Eddie is just adorable. I loved watching Eddie and Bella get to know each other and become friends. Eddie is just so lovable and has such a positive outlook. He lives in a building with a lot of young people and seems to care about and get along with everyone. He also has a guinea pig named Pushkin and his relationship with him is so sweet.