Jaye (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
jayes_musings) wrote2019-05-12 12:57 pm
jayes_musings) wrote2019-05-12 12:57 pm
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Book Review: The Chronicles of St Mary's by Jodi Taylor
This fun series of time-travelling (we don't call it time-travel) shenanigans has evolved into a series of some 10 books and several short stories that fit in between.
Series List
"... just one damned thing after another" and happens to sum up the Chronicles of St Mary's perfectly.
Set sometime in the nearish future and at some point after a period of Civil Uprisings in the UK, the St Mary's Institute of Historical Research is established. It sounds far more organized and serious than it turns out to be. Their mission is to time-travel...or rather 'investigate major historical events in contemporary time' throughout history. Working out of the rather innocuous listed historical building of St Mary's the team of Historians, Techs, and R&D observe and record historical events as they happen to discover what really occured while frequently getting into some sort of trouble, and (hopefully) be home in time for tea. But one wrong move and History can and will fight back, often to the death.
The main character is Madeline Maxwell, better known to everyone as Max. She has a murky past, but quickly becomes a key member of the Historians. As well as documenting historical events, Max and her teammates not only have to avoid getting on the wrong side of History (who does not like being messed with) but also battle rogue time-travellers out to change History and destroy St. Mary's into the bargain. And then there is the Time Police who are either the bad guys or a necessary evil depending which side one is on at a particular given time.
Along with Max, there is her team of misfit Historians, but they have the really dangerous job, so the rest of St Mary's puts up with them. There are the Techs who maintain the Pods in which they travel led by Max's eventual husband, the broody Leon Farrell. There is Security, who are almost as irresponsible as the Historians (well, Markham at least), but they protect St Mary's and watch the backs of the Historians on missions. There are the support, notably Clio Partridge, Dr Bairstow's PA and unbeknowst to all but Max, secretly the Muse of History, Mrs. Mack (Kitchen), Mrs. Enderby (Wardrobe), both heroes of the Battersea Barricades, and Dr Foster and Nurse Hunter in the overworked Medic Bay. And then there is R&D who test out various things, and usually end up blowing parts of the building up and scaring the swans. They all fall under the leadership of Dr. Bairstow who keeps St. Mary's from being closed down and has a permanent headache from denying all the claims for damages that inevitably cross his desk.
Not only does St Mary's offer wonderful, down-to-earth, sometimes humorous and sometimes nail-biting views of various historical events (Library at Alexandria, Battle of Agincourt, the Cretaceous Period to name just three), but almost all the characters are engaging, witty, and very human. There is plenty of time to be serious on a mission and plenty of time for hijinks at St Mary's. And while being very British at the same time, where very little can be solved without a nice cup of tea.
Although the series is in many ways a fun look at history, it is also very well researched. The ninth book in the series really highlights it as Max is stuck for an entire year in 14th Century England. As well as getting the historical details right, Jodi Taylor shows just how foreign and difficult it would be to live in a different time and not just language and sanitation, and it is little easier for Max than it would be for the rest of us, despite the fact that she is a qualified historian. A good change from books and movies that show the protagonist(s) immediately adjusting to a different time (I'm looking at you "Timeline").
It does suffer a little, as all long series tend to, with becoming a bit repetitive in the later books, but the humour, characters, and action manage to not make it dull. The later short stories diverge a little by focusing on more minor characters rather than Max, like Markham, Mrs. Mack and Enderby, and a trip to space. If I had one complaint, however, it would be the series villain, Clive Ronan. While he starts out as a really good villain, he should have been defeated long ago, but instead he just keeps coming back and is becoming more of a caricature and a new 'big bad' is needed (or even 'little bads' as St Mary's get into enough trouble on their own without a villain seeking to disrupt their plans!)
I give it 9/10
Series List
"... just one damned thing after another" and happens to sum up the Chronicles of St Mary's perfectly.
Set sometime in the nearish future and at some point after a period of Civil Uprisings in the UK, the St Mary's Institute of Historical Research is established. It sounds far more organized and serious than it turns out to be. Their mission is to time-travel...or rather 'investigate major historical events in contemporary time' throughout history. Working out of the rather innocuous listed historical building of St Mary's the team of Historians, Techs, and R&D observe and record historical events as they happen to discover what really occured while frequently getting into some sort of trouble, and (hopefully) be home in time for tea. But one wrong move and History can and will fight back, often to the death.
The main character is Madeline Maxwell, better known to everyone as Max. She has a murky past, but quickly becomes a key member of the Historians. As well as documenting historical events, Max and her teammates not only have to avoid getting on the wrong side of History (who does not like being messed with) but also battle rogue time-travellers out to change History and destroy St. Mary's into the bargain. And then there is the Time Police who are either the bad guys or a necessary evil depending which side one is on at a particular given time.
Along with Max, there is her team of misfit Historians, but they have the really dangerous job, so the rest of St Mary's puts up with them. There are the Techs who maintain the Pods in which they travel led by Max's eventual husband, the broody Leon Farrell. There is Security, who are almost as irresponsible as the Historians (well, Markham at least), but they protect St Mary's and watch the backs of the Historians on missions. There are the support, notably Clio Partridge, Dr Bairstow's PA and unbeknowst to all but Max, secretly the Muse of History, Mrs. Mack (Kitchen), Mrs. Enderby (Wardrobe), both heroes of the Battersea Barricades, and Dr Foster and Nurse Hunter in the overworked Medic Bay. And then there is R&D who test out various things, and usually end up blowing parts of the building up and scaring the swans. They all fall under the leadership of Dr. Bairstow who keeps St. Mary's from being closed down and has a permanent headache from denying all the claims for damages that inevitably cross his desk.
Not only does St Mary's offer wonderful, down-to-earth, sometimes humorous and sometimes nail-biting views of various historical events (Library at Alexandria, Battle of Agincourt, the Cretaceous Period to name just three), but almost all the characters are engaging, witty, and very human. There is plenty of time to be serious on a mission and plenty of time for hijinks at St Mary's. And while being very British at the same time, where very little can be solved without a nice cup of tea.
Although the series is in many ways a fun look at history, it is also very well researched. The ninth book in the series really highlights it as Max is stuck for an entire year in 14th Century England. As well as getting the historical details right, Jodi Taylor shows just how foreign and difficult it would be to live in a different time and not just language and sanitation, and it is little easier for Max than it would be for the rest of us, despite the fact that she is a qualified historian. A good change from books and movies that show the protagonist(s) immediately adjusting to a different time (I'm looking at you "Timeline").
It does suffer a little, as all long series tend to, with becoming a bit repetitive in the later books, but the humour, characters, and action manage to not make it dull. The later short stories diverge a little by focusing on more minor characters rather than Max, like Markham, Mrs. Mack and Enderby, and a trip to space. If I had one complaint, however, it would be the series villain, Clive Ronan. While he starts out as a really good villain, he should have been defeated long ago, but instead he just keeps coming back and is becoming more of a caricature and a new 'big bad' is needed (or even 'little bads' as St Mary's get into enough trouble on their own without a villain seeking to disrupt their plans!)
I give it 9/10