The Friday Review: When the Day Comes (Timeless book 1)

By Gabrielle Meyer

I do not read speculative fiction and I haven’t read any time travel books since I was a kid. I’m too logical now. But, the premise for Gabrielle Meyer’s Timeless series was intriguing. And then she won a Christy Award for one of her books… I figured I might as well give it a whirl. What harm could a book do?

Spoiler alert: a lot of harm. I may never emotionally recover.

Is it a gift or a curse? Elizabeth lives in two worlds. In 1774, she lives in Williamsburg, running a print shop with her widowed mother. The world around her is on the brink of revolution and she has thrown in her lot with the patriot cause – and the handsome Henry Montgomery, a spy for the Sons of Liberty. But when Elizabeth goes to sleep in Williamsburg, she wakes up in 1914 as an American wealthy socialite, trapped in a business transaction engagement to a British aristocrat. This dual lifetime will end when she turns 21. At that point, she must choose a path: 1774 or 1914. Whichever she chooses will be her fate for the rest of her life. Her identity in the other time will die. As the days and weeks of 1774 and 1914 progress, Elizabeth is propelled towards the inevitable. But then the unthinkable happens and Elizabeth is faced with an impossible choice – one that can change the course of world history or doom the lives of those she loves. Which will she choose?

Cons: I have done some nasty things as a writer, but at least I never dreamed up the absolute psychological hell that Gabrielle Meyers put her characters and her readers through. I was crying. I was nearly sick to my stomach. I couldn’t sleep. I don’t even know if I’ll be able to read the rest of the series.

Pros: This book was so good! I was very skeptical, but was soon overcome with the excellent writing. I stayed up late, unable to put the book down. As I recover and reflect, the gems that stand out are the way Gabrielle Meyer wove a theologically sound Christian worldview throughout this fantastical historical novel. God’s sovereign plan juxtaposed with man’s attempts to control life made this book almost like an allegory. 

And the ending… I’m still a wreck from everything else, but the ending was enough of an antidote that I think I may survive to read another Timeless book.

(As a Downton Abbey fan, I also appreciate the nods to the TV series throughout the 1914 timeline.)

Bottom Line: Don’t let the speculative genre scare you off. It’s a historical fiction masterpiece that will wreck your heart. You should read it!