What a good debut novel. Although Andrew has written other novels and short stories. Entanglement is his first published book. An interesting set of characters and an imaginative storyline brings humour and just enough intrigue to keep me reading. I certainly will give his follow up novel a try..

A big thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for letting me get an early release version of this book. I got about 25% through but I did not finish it. I do not blame anyone but myself as I just could not get into the book and the writing style was something that I could not get into personally. That being said I know that a lot of people are going to say great things about this book because they loved it but it was not for me.

The book opens with a secret government building just disappearing. Why did it disappear? Is it related to other odd things going on? The author says he was inspired by Douglas Adams who famously wrote The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. There was definitely some whimsy and absurd humor reminiscent of Adams which I liked. However, in the beginning, there are 5-6 main characters whose stories have not yet converged. Because the author chose to focus on so many characters, I felt they were one dimensional and I had trouble connecting with them. Additionally, the "mystery" of the disappeared building took too long to resolve. There wasn't enough intrigue and I felt the story only really got going in the last 20-25%. The last part was very enjoyable and Thomas set up the ending to have a sequel or two. I feel I'm unlikely to pick up the sequel but I haven't completely ruled it out. I gave the book 3 stars. I would definitely recommend for people who enjoyed The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and want another absurd sci-fi romp.


This book was released on September 10, 2019. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

Good stuff! This author has a great sense of humor/humour and imagination, and I would venture to guess very intelligent. Really nice mix of science and story that includes fun characters and plot points. Recommended.

I really appreciate the NetGalley copy for review!!

Wow, this was extraordinary reading. Science fiction/fact, family, love, RAF, civil servants (I used to be one, so I know it to be true!), and everyday folk, all thrown into the mix.
I really did not know what to expect with this book, as it is so different from my usual choices, however, I was hooked, and did not see the 'expose' coming!
Cannot wait for the next one

dnf at roughly 20%.

There is a military base tarned as a weather monitoring centre on which weird shit starts to happen. Moles suddenly disappear. Something's afoot, and the characters don't know it yet.

I tried. I couldn't get in with this one, and constantly asked myself why bother. The answer is clear: I got an arc and really wanted to read and review this one, so I've read past where I'd have normally quit.
My first problem with this book had to do with the format and I don't know if that is in the final copy: We have some footnotes, but they're counterparts are not on the same page and you have to page through your novel to find the appropiate number. I only do that sometimes when I have a physical copy, but with a digital copy and a programm that only loads pages slowly that's too much as hassle. I simply ignored them.

More importantly, the characters didn't sit right with me. We have more than is reasonable when you don't give them distinguishing features. We're thrown at some descriptions, but apart from that, you only have two kinds of characters: Male and female. Every male character feels like every other male character, and same for the females.
You only get the distinction between male and female as every new woman appearing on the pages is described in hair- and eye colour, maybe size, maybe even down to her "trademark smile". We know mostly if the author thinks they're attractive, that's it. There is a huge difference in how the characters are treated depending on their sex, but apart from that, they all feel the same. Bland. Lacking depth. So it gets very confusing as more and more characters appear.

On top of that, we have Fate, which is anthropomorphised, but called "it". Either make it a force, or make them a person and use appropiate pronouns.

Apart from that, I felt a great need to make the reader laugh. "See, I made a joke! Are you laughing yet?"

All in all, what I read feels to me like a first try. I'd recommend the author to read more, especially out of his comfort zone. Write more. Get experience.

I recieved a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

A quirky and enjoyable book. A woman keeps waking up in parallel universes, where everything seems mostly the same except for weird quirks, like root beer at McDonald's or no contactless payments. A Cambridge professor studying moles discovers that they have somehow shifted hundreds of miles away, and a mysterious RAF base in Scotland has disappeared. A light-hearted read with a happy ending, but based more on time travel and light sci fi novels than usual romance or chick lit. It was pacey and intriguing but there was no real sense of danger or worry. The characters find out what they need to and make friends instantly, and I sometimes found it hard to remember which of the three female characters was speaking, as the dialogue was all very similar. However, it was a fun read.

I love time travel books and whilst this isn't strictly time travel, it's time displacement! As the travel is from one parallel world to another. Now, apparently something has to exist in all parallel worlds in exactly the same form and it's CAKE! Which I was very pleased about!

The book is written very much in the style of Douglas Adams and at times I almost felt the lines had been lifted and reworded from THHGTTG. It also reminded me of the Jasper Fforde novels, so needless to say if you've enjoyed either of those writers, you will enjoy this book. If you are more serious minded and don't like frivolity, or seemingly senseless ideas then this is not the book for you. For instance in the library Three Little Pigs is filed under Construction and Project planning not nursery rhymes, as it's seen as construction best practices!

I have a slight criticism regarding the dialogue, as at times it read more like it was written by Enid Blyton for The Famous Five, slighty too formal and staged for the 21st century to my liking. Also the footnotes. On a kindle it is a little annoying to try to keep going backwards and forwards, not like a paperback where you can just flip to the end.

What kept the book afloat was the fabulous mystery and the documentation of travel between the parallel worlds. I was certainly kept entertained and when the little twist came ( I hadn't seen it coming) it was certainly an "ah ha" moment the author can be proud of.

I'm giving this book 4 out of 5 stars.

This jolly book has a bit of everything. A bit of science fiction, since the basic story follows what happens when an experiment in a secret government installation goes wrong. A bit of romance as the journey between alternate worlds enables the leading female character to find her lost love. A bit of a thriller, a bit of drama and bags of novel imagination. Well wrapped up in bags of humour, this book is a delight to read.

This was a fascinating story which really stimulated my imagination. What if? The characters were interesting and helped move the story along. Great descriptions so that you could feel you were actually there. Loved the conclusion.

Things I learned from Entanglement:
1. There are moles and then there are “true moles”
2. U.K. geography
3. Cake is very important.

I randomly picked this book up as an eARC from NetGalley the other day. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review Entanglement.

I requested the book purely on the title and the promise it had vibes of Douglas Adams in the book. At the time of me writing this review, I confess my knowledge of Douglas Adams is limited to his work on Doctor Who. Not a bad thing, mind you, but I’ve yet to read his books.

I immediately loved the quirky writing style of Entanglement, which made it very easy to read. It was confusing at first, sorting out what exactly was happening, but I’m pretty sure that was the point. After all, it’s not every day that parallel worlds collide.

Essentially, a science experiment gone wrong makes crazy things happen to a group of people whose lives seem inexplicably, shall we say, entangled. Moles mysteriously vanish, then reappear in a completely different location, there is the case of the extraordinary brick, and of course, the girl who loves cakes who can’t find peace.

One of the things Entanglement does well is makes quantum physics and the theory of multiple universes seem approachable. I am a science fiction lover, so I’ve picked up quite a bit about quantum physics along the way, but science fiction is not a very approachable genre unless you already read science fiction. I say this because Andrew J, Thomas does well to make quantum physics approachable and easy to understand.

It’s a wonderful read, and a sequel was teased at the end, so I’m very excited for that as well. Thanks again to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this eARC of Entanglement.

This is a brilliant debut novel. I laughed a lot. I loved the characters and the authors sense of humour. The story kept me reading and entertained the whole way through. It is a unique story in many ways and I would definitely recommend it.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

Entanglement by Andrew J Thomas is a highly recommended, funny, quirky, science fiction mystery and the first volume of a new trilogy.

Fate was bored, and then odd things began to happen. A secret research station vanished, as did a colony of moles. A brick began to do some odd things. And a young woman called TC began to shift from one alternate universe to another. These four mysteries occur and set into motion a series of entanglements, resulting in road trips, intertwining relationships, and cake. Entanglement can occur in relationships and in physics. In relationships, entanglement occurs when people are deeply involved with each other. In quantum physics, entangled particles remain connected so that actions performed on one affect the other, even when separated by great distances.

This quirky story takes the threads of several different odd occurrences, explored in alternating chapters, and follows the various story lines along until everything coalesces into a single plot. The writing is very good. It starts out a wee bit too derivative of Douglas Adams, but then, once the narrative begins to explore relationships and the entanglement between people, it takes off and holds its own in a delightful, comedic, touching story about friendships, relationships, and fate.

Part of my enjoyment was in the characters, who are all well developed and unique individuals. Another delight was found in closely noting the details. While science certainly plays a role, this novel is more about relationships, and it is the characters set in this plot that makes it a special start to a new series. This is a novel that got better as it went along and by the end I was a fan and wanted the next two in the series.

Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of Cameron Publicity.

http://www.shetreadssoftly.com/2019/09/entanglement.html
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2987870990
https://www.librarything.com/work/23729752/book/173588334
https://twitter.com/SheTreadsSoftly/status/1176206045007491077?s=20

A frolicking good time, Entanglement blends the wit of Douglas Adams with the sci-fi genius of Terry Pratchett. While the humorous nature of the book might make one consider it to be a beach read, the author manages to weave intricate storylines together in such a way that - to those readers paying attention - the pay off is well deserved. The first book in a trilogy, I can't wait to see what the characters get up to next!

A special thank you to Netgalley for providing me with a free advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

I will admit to being a bit sceptical at first, comparing this author to Douglas Adams is a big statement! I must say it was a wonderful comparison!
This book is suited to anyone who is interested in sci-fi or something quirky. The characters are all likeable and the author captures their personalities very well.

This book is not in the “leave your brain at home” category. The story line and points of view switch between the main characters quite regularly so you need to be engaged to remember what’s going on. This wasn’t too difficult for my tired brain as I was enjoying it so much and wanted to see what happened next.
I understand the Author is working on a follow up to this book and I cannot wait to read it.

I received this book from Netgalley and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I have a hard time finding comedic science fiction that appeals to me. I don't mind trying different things but here again, I just didn't find it funny. References to Adams and Pratchett are made in the blurb, of course, because they're the only SF humorists people talk about. It's hard to pull it off, though. Maybe someone needs to reference Connie Willis instead.