Is it any surprise that I loved this book? Those that know me know I am a huge fan of Jodi Taylor's Chronicles of St Mary's and this series is setting up to be just as jam packed with fun filled chaos as that series. It definitely hectic manor but the chaos does seen a little more controlled. The plot is exciting and has a really great mix of time travel, crime fighting and danger.

I really enjoyed getting to see the other side of the coin to St Mary's and finally get a glimpse into how the Time Police operate. It didn't throw us quiet in the deep end as there were plenty of old friends and favourites popping in, including the disaster trio Max, Peterson and Markham. I also loved that we got to learn so much more about Matthew and that we get to see him all grown up and striding out for himself.

I loved the new characters too, especially Jane. I thought Matthew would be my favourite of the trio due to his past but Jane really won me over. Her story was so much fun and she was such an interesting character. I do wish we had gotten to know Luke a little more but hopefully the next in the instalment.

Taylor still puts her characters through the ringer, poor Major Ellis gets it this one, he just can't seem to find a break.

I haven't had a chance to read Jodi Taylor's previous books, but I really enjoyed this one! It's about time police, and if that doesn't sound fantastic, then I don't know what does! The three new 'recruits' are Jane, Luke and Matthew who were each very distinct from each other. This plot gave them a chance to develop and by the end I really loved them and can't wait to see what happens next! I loved this timeline spanning ride and recommend this to anyone looking for a comforting yet unusual read!

This is an amazing new series starter from Jodi Taylor - every one of her books so far has been a gem, and this is no exception! It showcases the same masterful command of humour and tragedy as in the St Mary's books, and somehow manages to make even a die hard St Mary's fan end up rooting for a set of characters who should, by everything we know about the Time Police, be the Bad Guys. Be warned that you don't want to go into this mid-way through the St Mary's series - while I think you could start this series without having read any of the St Mary's books, you want to either have all the knowledge or absolutely none, as it refers to a lot of events and characters from later on in the series. I'm being deliberately vague, but this is not something you want to spoil for yourself!

Doing Time, by Jodi Taylor is a hilarious, fast paced Sci fi novel.

Jane, Matthew and Luke are new recruits thrown together to form Team Weird, they’re not exactly what Time Police officers are made off.

I loved the characters and the various POVs that the story was told from, Luke the playboy was one of my faves, totally entitled but a loveable rogue. There was action throughout, some parts seemed a little disjointed but overall enjoyable. The writing style reminded me of Douglas Adams in Hitchikers, with a sarky AI and various quotes from other sources, my personal favourite: “you have the life expectancy of a Defensive against the Dark Arts teacher in a Harry Potter novel.” The plot was disjointed at times, but that could have been because its an ARC.

Overall, I really enjoyed the book, and am interested in reading more!

I received this book for free from NetGalley in return for an honest review.

ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

I love the Chronicles of St Mary's, so while this was a must read, I was also wary. A new series. A new cast of characters. And a new perspective - that of the Time Police, who have always butted heads with St Mary's. I shouldn't have worried. Taylor is a safe pair of hands and easily spun me away in a time travel adventure that was very different to St Mary's but also kept many of the things I loved. There is a little crossover - Max, Leon and various other St Mary's notables make cameos. Matthew Farrell is one of the POV characters here and I just love him. Forming the rest of Team Weird, there is Jane Lockland, a woman who joined the Time Police because she was escaping the wrath of her Grandmother and turned out to quite like it. Also callow, playboy Luke Parrish, who turns out to be a lot more useful than he first appears, despite being basically indentured to the TP by his father. This is a great adventure, lots of fun with plenty of action. I predict I'm going to love this series as much as St Mary's.

More rollicking good times from a slightly different perspective. We got to see quite a few of the St. Mary’s team too as this book follows the perspective of Matthew Farrell, Leon and Max’s son. Other familiar faces are Ellis and North. I was a bit resistant to a new series as I love the St. Mary’s series so much, but this was just as good!

This was the first Jodi Taylor book I’ve read an I’ll certainly be reading more.

I loved Doing Time. It was the perfect mix of humour, serious plot, character development and setting.

I laughed out loud, got caught up in the history, willed Luke, Matthew and Jane to become a team and loved being along for the ride.

The characterisation in this novel was one of its strengths, I instantly wanted to cheer Jane on, for Matthew to find his place and for Luke to become his own person. Watching these 3 misfits start to gel as a team was one of the highlights of the book.

There were some lovely pop culture references dotted through out Doing Time. I almost certainly didn’t catch them all but highlights included Star Wars (I’d love to know if Luke was named purely for reference or if that came after), Harry Potter, and Star Trek.

Perfect for fans of Jasper Fforde but treading its own path I recommend if you like some fun in your sci-fi.

For those who don't know, Jodi Taylor is the author of a series of books called The Chronicles of St Mary's which I have not personally read but I have heard that they are very good. If this is the first you are hearing about them then my suggestion is that you go and (at the very least) find out what they are about (ideally read them) before picking this book up. 

I had a handle on the idea that the books were time travel in an alternate Oxford College but beyond that, I didn't know anything specific about characters or plots and I figured I'd probably be fine jumping into this spinoff series without that knowledge.

Much like A Little Hatred I still think this book is great, even if you haven't read the other books. Also like A Little Hatred, I suspect you'd get more out of this book if you did have that additional context - maybe this would feel more like an expansion of the universe? Obviously, I don't know that for sure - but that's my best guess. 

But with all that in mind - how did I find Doing Time?

I think this book is oodles of fun. It kind of reminds me of that very specific kind of YA science fiction book in which an unlikely band of miscreants work together against all odds to [insert task here]. While this story takes place in the Time Police as opposed to in space a lot of the tropes and character dynamics remain similar. 

There is always a privileged boy of some kind in books like this and his character development is almost always something along the lines of 'recognising the aforementioned privilege and realising that the peasants he's been working with are alright really.' Now I won't spoil it for you by saying whether this book aligns with that plot or not, but Luke wasn't the worst offender in this category that I've read recently. While he's an arse, he kind of owns it and while he does have a tragic element to his backstory that isn't used to forgive all his poor behaviour. It was cool. 

Matthew and Jane, I almost feel could have had more time dedicated to them. Jane's backstory was probably the one that most interested me and I'm not sure it was developed as much as I would have liked within the story. If a conscious choice was made to focus on Jane's present as opposed to her past then I just hope we get more in later books (I'm guessing there will be more books in this series but Goodreads does not enlighten me). 

The plot is, at least for the first half of this book, probably exactly how you would imagine it, it's the training montage moment. but I didn't find that predictability bothersome and I thought that the way the book got into the real meat of the plot after that was really good, you started to see how certain events were foreshadowed from the start. It was a real romp - even though these characters were in real danger of death quite often. 

This book would make a fabulous holiday read, it's just long enough and detailed enough for you to feel you've achieved something but it's also fast-paced at the same time! As I say, I think you might appreciate this book more if you've read Jodi Taylor's previous work but you will still enjoy this book if you go in as 'blind' as I did. 

Right, off to buy all the Chronicles of St Mary's books now!

My rating: 4/5 stars

I received a free digital copy of this book from the publisher. All opinions are my own. 

Doing Time is available now!

My thanks to Headline for an eARC via NetGalley of Jodi Taylor’s ‘Doing Time’ in exchange for an honest review.

This is the first in a new series, The Time Police, which is a spin-off of her highly popular Chronicles of St. Mary’s.

“A long time ago in the future, the secret of time travel became known to all. Everyone seized the opportunity - and the world nearly ended. There will always be idiots who want to change history.
And so, the Time Police were formed. An all-powerful, international organisation tasked with keeping the timeline straight. At all costs.”

The focus here is upon three new recruits to the Time Police: Jane, Luke, and Matthew. They are considered a team of oddballs, who likely don’t have the right stuff. Adventures ensue.

While I have only read the first in the Chronicles of St. Mary’s (though have a number of them waiting on my Kindle) enough background is given for this to work fine as a standalone.

This was great fun with memorable characters, sharp humour, and an intriguing story with some interesting twists.

While waiting for the next in this fab SF time travelling series I am going to make sure that I read more Jodi Taylor books.

Highly recommended

I'm a huge fan of Chronicles of St Mary and was more than happy when I got this ARC.
It's a great and funny read, full of the usual humour that marks Jody Taylor's book.
It can be read as a stand alone but I think it can be fully appreciated if you read the Chronicles as it gives you a better idea of the world building and Matthew's background.
This novel is a page turner that will make you laugh out load and turn pages as fast as you can.
There's a lot of satire in this book and it's a high level satire.
The plot is well crafted and engrossing, the cast of characters well written and I loved every moment.
I look forward to reading the next instalment.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

There is Taylor’s trademark humour, along with moments of real lump-in-the-throat poignancy – I don’t know anyone else who can swing the mood around from tears to laughter and back again with such conviction. What has been reined in a tad in this first book of a new series, is the anarchic mayhem that regularly breaks out in a St Mary’s book as those historians get an idea they want to test. I found it significant that the only time Taylor cuts loose in the same way, is when one of the characters finds himself back at St Mary’s for a short while. I was pleased to see that the more restrained, repressive atmosphere of the time police force has filtered into the writing.

That didn’t stop the tension being tight-wound to the point that I couldn’t put the book down as one character’s life becomes badly impacted by a ruthless antagonist. The sudden resolution to the situation didn’t have me wanting to break off, either. Taylor’s pacing, as ever, is brilliantly handled and I loved the way our initial bonding or otherwise with the main characters goes on altering and developing throughout the book as we learn more about each of them.

Once more, I reached the end of the book with the story having been satisfactorily concluded, but nonetheless feeling a real sense of loss that there wasn’t more. This tends to be my default emotion when getting to the end of one of Taylor’s books – and it’s a struggle to keep from plunging straight into the next one.

Highly recommended for fans of near-future, character-driven stories where time travel features, but isn’t necessarily the engine powering the narrative. The ebook arc copy of Doing Time was provided by the publisher through NetGalley in return for an honest opinion of the book
9/10

This book was so good! I love Chronicles of St. Mary's, but I can easily say you don't have to read them to read this book. It works as a stand alone. But, if you read them, I'm sure your experience will be much better.
This book was hilarious, very well written, such a charmer to take you to another world. It's the definition of what I expect from a book to immerse myself.
I love Taylor's writing. It's perfection.

Thanks a lot NetGalley and the publisher for this copy in exchange for an honest review.

I am so glad that I decided to give the sci-fi genre a whirl having resisted for so long, for pretty much no reason other than I didn't think I'd enjoy it! This is a new author to me so I have never read the Chronicles of St Mary's series of book which, I believe, this book is a spinoff from. That said, I don't feel I have missed anything as the part played by St Mary's is adequately explained herein.
So, the secret of time travel isn't anymore; a secret that is. It's available to all, and pretty much abused by the majority. From just popping forward a couple days to get the lottery numbers, to going back in time to change history. And this way, chaos ensues as more and more people tear the fabric of time. And thus were the Time Police brought into being. Their only task is to keep time on the straight and narrow. By any means necessary. And by any means, I do mean ANY! They're a bit shoot first, ask questions, gung-ho at times. But they do their jobs and peace has been restored to the time continuum. This book, and indeed this series (hopefully) follow three new Time Police recruits as they first go through basic training and then out in the field as they pit there wits (hmmm) against those who would disrupt time. But... have they bitten off more than they can separately or collectively chew as it soon becomes evident that all is not as it should be with the upper echelons of the Force...
I blooming well loved this book. Read start to finish in only a couple of sittings as it compelled me to keep reading. It was bonkers and intriguing and funny and occasionally silly - the rabbit - but also quite serious at times - murder and mayhem - so much so that I found it impossible to put down for anything that really couldn't wait.
Jane, Luke and Matthew - our three recruits - are chalk, and cheese, and something that also doesn't go with either. But they rub along, well, they don't but they do. You'll see when you read the book! Each have their own (or other's) reasons for joining up but I'll let you discover these as the author intends rather than spoil thing here. Suffice to say they are all pretty dreadful at the tasks in hand! Some of their early missions had me tittering, giggling and occasionally guffawing at the way they "get the job done"! Everyone loves an underdog and we have three such characters here, all of whom I took to from the off which really helped the book go along at a pretty fast pace. But soon it becomes a little darker as there are nefarious things afoot. Things that threaten the whole ethos of both the Time Police and time itself and it becomes a race against time (see what I did there!) to sort things out before it's too late (again, sorry!).
All in all, a cracking read that I thoroughly enjoyed and which left me both satisfied at its conclusion and gagging for the next in series. I'm also going to endeavour to sneak the St Mary's series into my tbr at some point. Oh for a time machine to get me some more reading time - oh, wait!
My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

I received this book for free from NetGalley to provide an unbiased review.

Preamble:

I'm guessing most people who are interested in reading 'Doing Time' are up to date with the Chronicles of St Mary's ' series - I've only read the first 3. I am enjoying them immensely and thought I'd try this spin off... Yes, I'm an idiot! To any in the same position as myself, I would catch up with CoSM and then start this. There are a few 'spoilers ' so bear that in mind.

Review:

Matthew, Luke and Jane are grouped together as Time Police trainees, jumping through time (eventually) to ensure the timeline is secure... But not like those St Mary's imbeciles - the Time Police do things properly.

We follow the three newbies, pre-TP, through their first few months of training. They are odd, friendless, and don't even socialise with each other. But they have each other's backs. Mostly.

Overall, a decent introduction to the internal workings of the Time Police, albeit a little formulaic - three outcasts striving to get through new situations, and it all turning out... well... not 'ok' but it leaves it open for book 2!

I'm looking forward to the next book in the series, and will definitely read... once I'm up to date with St Mary's!

Disclaimer * I'm a huge fan.
Doing time was so good! Reading the chronicles of st.marys first is not a must, but i highly recommend it. We all know Matthew's backstory (and if not, as aforementioned), but Luke and Jane are new to us. You could read doing time as a stand alone, but reading the chronicles of st.marys first make for such a richer experience.

Thank you to the publisher for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest opinion.

As a long time St Mary's fan, I was extremely excited to be approved for the first Time Police spin-off. Although enjoyment of this book is greatly heightened by a more in-depth acquaintance with Max et al, it's not necessary in order to appreciate the story.

Jane, Luke and Matthew are entertaining and unlikely recruits for the Time Police, and their escapades are gripping and amusing. It's excellent to see Matthew develop in his own right. The story has a good pace and Taylor's trademark humour is at its best, gaining several chuckles and giggles from me. (I can confirm she is just as witty in real life)

The well-loved historical jump is present, and going to the 90s is a great twist (St Mary's wouldn't be allowed but for the Time Police presumably it's far enough back in time!). There's plenty of suspense and further plot development to come, and I for one will look forward to Taylor's next offering.

I have read the other reviews about this book and they have left me with feelings of inadequacy as they are very eloquent and descriptive, my review does not need to expand on their articulations.

I have never read any books by this author so came to this with no preconceptions, I thought this book was funny, very funny, sad at times and addressed issues in current society, the quintessential Britishness of it is a joy to behold and looking at the current state of my homeland probably not something we ever see again

An utterly hilarious Sci-Fi adventure from author of the St Mary's series. At some time in the future Time Travel was invented. Everyone from the rich to the poor tried to go back in time and change historical events, win the lottery etc. So the Time Police were formed. An elite force, who travelled through time ensuring the continuation of history, making sure Hitler doesn't get killed as a baby and the like. Previously known to shoot first and ask questions later, their new Commander realises that as times are changing, so must the time police. There are fewer instances of 'high crime' and more and more lesser criminals hoping for a quick buck. Fighting against the 'old boy' mentality, she wants people to respect the Time Police, not fear them. And little does she know that her latest team, a band of unruly misfits, might just make that change a little easier.

The book is written from three main perspectives - Jane, Luke & Matthew. Jane is a no-body, meek and mild, she joined the Time Police as a last resort to escape from the clutches of her Grandmother. More likely to jump at her own shadow than take down a criminal, she needs to realise that her weaknesses might actually make her stronger. Luke is a playboy, spending his life living off Daddy's money, his life comes to an abrupt halt when his fathers secretary informs him that he is cut off & much join the Time Police, hoping that it will fix his attitude. With a humongous chip on his shoulder & a lady's man to boot, he needs to realise that there is no I in team & shouting at his fellow team mates might not be the way to bond. Matthew is an oddball, raised between St Mary's and the Time Police his one dream in life has been working with the Time Map. A man of few words, he would do anything for his team, including getting shot.

This book had me in absolute hysterics! If you ever want to read a book so true to British culture then this is the one for you. I found the premise intriguing and the book did not let me down. Taylor manages to take you from our current generation to ancient Egypt, the colonisation of Australia, Ancient Rome and the future with relative ease and wit. If you go into this experiencing a serious look into the effects of time travel, I'm afraid you will be sorely disappointed. However if you're looking for an easy read, with some truly believable and endearing characters, and a slightly chaotic if not satisfactory ending that leave's room for further novels then pick this one up asap!

There are plenty of twists and turns throughout this book. We follow the story of our very own Team Weird, but there is another plot line in the background. One slightly more sinister that you spend nearly the entire book trying to figure out. A perfect combination of light and dark, humour and adventure, friendship and individuality. There were some parts of the book I thought went on a pretty wild tangent, but most of the strings were tied together at the end, you just have to stick with it and trust in the author that it is indeed relevant.

I would definitely pick up any further books in the series, and will be picking up her St Mary's series as soon as possible. An easy 4/5 read, and original and intriguing plot with just the right amount of humour and adventure to make you fly through the pages.

4.5 stars.

Doing Time is a new 'spin off' series from the popular historical science fiction St Mary's novels from Jodi Taylor, and follows new Time Police recruits Jane, Luke and a certain Matthew Farrell.

In the not too distant future, the world has discovered time travel. Countries, people and historical events blink in and out of existence as vigilantes seek to remake history to their own advantage. To combat this, the Time Police were born. Charged with setting these 'anomalies' right, they blast their way up and down the timeline, seeking to preserve time. They're not subtle. Think blasters, black cloaks and a menacing authoritative voice. Even if you haven't read any of Jodi's previous novels, this stands well on it's own with a suitable amount of background information and a whole host of new characters (and some very familiar ones!) to satisfy science fiction and history fans. If you have read all of the St. Mary's books to date, this is set a few years on from the 'Hope for the Best', with Matthew deciding to leave St. Mary's to join the Time Police. Past events that are relevant, such as Matthew's back story are fleshed out here, but other things are left deliberately vague so as not to spoil any future St. Mary's novels.

In Doing Time, we're introduced to our very own 'Team Weird' in mousy Jane, arrogant Luke and the enigmatic Matthew Farrell. They're the outcasts of Time Police HQ (TPHQ), thrown together because no-one else wants them on their team, and forced to band together and cooperate in order to pass their six months 'grunt work' before they can qualify as fully fledged Time Police officers. Through various assignments through time, ranging from the early 20th century Britain to 19th century South Australia and beyond, we see the team come together despite all their superiors beliefs that none of them are cut out to be Time Police. Amidst these assignments, we also have a wider arc involving the development and changing methods the Time Police are trying to employ - moving away from brute force to provide a more intelligent, creative and 'softer' side to policing the timeline. This comes with it's own difficulties, as we see Commander Hay start to loose her grip on some of the more 'old school' officers. Could a mutiny be on the horizon?

I needn't have worried about warming to these characters, or comparing them less favorably to their St. Mary's counterparts. One of Jodi's immense skills as a writer is her ability to make lovable, believably flawed characters. Jane is the ultimate wet weekend. She's one of the sole female officers in the Time Police, who has spent the majority of her life being repeatedly put down by her grandmother. After an incident with a stuffed seagull leads her to the Time Police doors, we see her really grow and come out of her shell as the book progresses. I particularly loved the chapters which document her feelings of loneliness and isolation following the introduction of Sarah Smith, and how she deals with this.

Luke immediately comes across as the polar opposite of Jane. He's cocky, confident and has had everything handed to him on a platter until his father sends him to TPHQ as punishment for his many misdeeds. He's constantly on report, and doesn't care about anyone or anything. To see his character progression was also really nice, with some particular scenes away from TPHQ which helped to make his character more likable and relatable. By dedicating various chapters to the main characters like this, the protagonists are able to flourish and be more than one dimensional. They jump from the page, and manage to get under your skin in just the right way.

The plot, as always with Jodi, is fast paced and chaotic- but this has a structure to it that I sometimes feel is lacking in the St. Mary's novels. There's a definitive overall arc, with a conclusion that is satisfactory yet also open to further novels. It's also highly atmospheric at times, with a real creepy and suspenseful feel that I wasn't expecting. I did think that some of the finer plot details had some loose threads that could have been expanded on and resolved, such as who sent the package to the 20th century, who killed Sarah Smith and all of the Jackal/Egyptian mythology aspects which felt a little out of place and petered out to nothing, but on the whole I thought this was brilliantly done, a welcome and fresh approach to the expansion of the St. Mary's novels, and I can't wait for more adventures with Team Weird.

4.5* (Posted on Goodreads- linked on twitter @BookreviewsKb)

This was amazing, funny and original-I cannot wait for more!

The Time Police is a very original and unique story that follows Jane, Matthew and Luke, three people who join the time police for very different reasons, all of whom are seen as weird and likely to fail. Jane joins after breaking her grandmothers seagull (sorry but you will have to read the book to hear more about this event ;D). She is quiet, nervous and anxious and seems extraordinarily unlikely to be particularly useful. However, as the story moves on she appears to bright, intelligent and witty- she was a wonderful character with whom I easily connected with and felt extremely sorry for at times! She is funny, interesting and, in her own right, rather badass.

Matthew is considered weird but genius. He is the most familiar with the time police, having grown up around it (though his backstory is considerably more heart-breaking than we initially realise - this has a cleverly written effect on his personality but is not so domineering that his character is based only upon the past). Matthew is relatively charming despite his stoic and silent approach and is also funny and incredibly clever. However, he is hated due to his connection with St Mary's, something he is not ashamed of and appears to take it in his stride.

Luke is the flirty, rich kid- people dislike him because he purposely irritates them. However, there is so much more to his personality than this and he is charming, funny and considerate at a lot of points in the story. He joins the time police through his father who is trying to teach him a lesson. However, this appears to have some unintended results by the end of the book. (Not sure if it was intentional but the possible Star Wars reference at the end between Luke and Mr Parrish was much loved-see if you can spot it ;D ).

These three are grouped together for their training and are given the bottom of the barrel missions (which are hilarious, interesting and perfectly showcase the depth of these characters)- they unconventionally complete them and appear to do better than originally predicted. However, that is not to say they do this perfectly, in fact there are many mishaps that keep you interested and intrigued from failing to catch a rabbit to trying to apprehend a man cheating the lottery. North and Ellis are their team leaders, they are amazing characters who can't help but have a soft spot for their odd team. Elis is already familiar with Matthew but also believes that each of them have potential. Ellis is more compassionate the North who is blunt and knows what she wants. however, even she feels for the team.

As the team work on their training they find themselves entangled in a much wider story of death, traitors and crime.

I loved the Time police. I thought it had the perfect balance of comedy, action and character development. The characters were lovable and easy to connect with, the story was fun and intriguing and the historical elements were interesting. Despite being based around a widely done concept of time-travel, the Time Police is entirely original and unique with and interesting world, structure and story. The story, despite being rather comical at times, is also serious with murder and violence ensuing- and you are constantly guessing who is the perpetrator.
There are many values to this story from how the change of institutions and society affects those use to tradition to embracing your own nature and personality.

This book is definitely a must-read and is so fun to follow.

*I received digital advance copy from #netgalley and Headline publishers in exchange for an honest review* (@BookreviewsKb)