Rings of Time by Renee Veillet | Outlander, but Canadian

Following a girl called Emilie as she digs through her family history and inadvertently falls back in time to 1913, I’ve dubbed this one as a less dense version of Outlander – but Canadian. Although, come to think of it, you do still get a Scottish guy, so…

Reading this on a train journey home, I found myself whisked into a history I hadn’t previously seen much of. It’s not often you find books set in Canada, and it made a nice change compared to the usual US or London settings that seem to overwhelm books in general.

Though it was much less detailed in terms of historical events and settings than the historic fictions I’ve read before, the details that were added were without a doubt my favourite part of the story. Getting to read about a homesteader lifestyle and seeing someone come to terms with how labouring farm life can be, I found the more specific details about their day-to-day tasks added something more to the story, something…practical. While the rest of the book seemed lighthearted and skimmed over events I would personally take more time over, those smaller details not only served as a subtle reminder of the time period, but also helped the story seem legitimate. I mean, I’m all for reading about time travel, but it HAS to appear at least somewhat believable – which, luckily, this one managed.

And I can’t deny the butter-churning scene never failed to remind me of good ol’ Tess of the D’Urbervilles

Something not quite as believable though – to me at least – was the insta-love. Lord, I forgot how much I hate reading about insta-love. I knew the romance would be there, I just didn’t expect it to actually hit me in the face a grand total of 22 pages in (ouch). Thankfully, it did steady out a bit throughout the book, but I just never had the time to jump on board with the romance in the first place. Though feel free to shrug these thoughts aside; it takes a lot for me to get on board with the romance of any situation.

The plot itself is where most of the Outlander comparisons lie, though in this much shorter book it acted more like an entertaining, whistle-stop tour of similar events. It was the perfect train read for me, as there was enough of a driving force to keep me turning the pages, while being a fun and lighthearted at the same time. And while the writing appeared a little awkward at times (pleaseeeee don’t describe the path of a water droplet as an excuse to describe a person’s appearance in keen detail *cringe*), it definitely appeared more confident as the story went on and kept a quick, steady pace that had me flying through the book.

So we have a mixed bag of a book. Though I couldn’t help cringing at times – whether through silly things the characters said/thought or the immediate romance cliché – I can’t doubt I was entertained for many an hour. A fast paced and fun read, this was a good journey to follow whilst I was on a journey of my own.

TW: Attempted Rape

*Thank you to the author for sending me a copy of this book. This in no way affects my opinion.

Rated 3/5 stars

Until next time,