Two o’clock was missing in Timekeeper.
In an alternate Victorian world controlled by clock towers, a damaged clock can fracture time—and a destroyed one can stop it completely.
It’s a truth that seventeen-year-old clock mechanic Danny Hart knows all too well; his father has been trapped in a Stopped town east of London for three years. Though Danny is a prodigy who can repair not only clockwork, but the very fabric of time, his fixation with staging a rescue is quickly becoming a concern to his superiors.
And so they assign him to Enfield, a town where the tower seems to be forever plagued with problems. Danny’s new apprentice both annoys and intrigues him, and though the boy is eager to work, he maintains a secretive distance. Danny soon discovers why: he is the tower’s clock spirit, a mythical being that oversees Enfield’s time. Though the boys are drawn together by their loneliness, Danny knows falling in love with a clock spirit is forbidden, and means risking everything he’s fought to achieve.
But when a series of bombings at nearby towers threaten to Stop more cities, Danny must race to prevent Enfield from becoming the next target or he’ll not only lose his father, but the boy he loves, forever.

I received a free audiobook copy of Timekeeper courtesy of Audiobookworm Promotions, in exchange for an honest review as part of this blog tour! The tour is being sponsored by Forever Young Audiobooks.

When I saw Audiobookworm Promotions was offering a blog tour for Timekeeper, I knew that I wanted to be a part of it. I’d heard nothing but great things about the book, and I was in the market for a new audiobook!

Timekeeper did not disappoint me at all. Tara Sim’s writing flowed as perfectly as time is supposed to, even though time rarely did what it was supposed to in this novel.

It took me a little while to get used to Gary Furlong’s voice for Danny, because it’s been a while since I’ve had a male narrator. Once I got into the novel, Furlong’s voice was perfect. I loved his narration by the end of it.

There was a little bit of homophobia in the novel, but it was called out as being garbage. Most of the issue with the relationship between Danny and Colton was because he was a clock spirit, not because he was coded to be male.

I fell in love with Colton more than a little bit. He was the sweet, soft bisexual clock spirit that kept me wanting to read Timekeeper. I fell in love with him almost as quickly as Danny did.

I hope that we get to see more of Daphne and Cass in the next book. Focusing on Daphne would bring us a non-English perspective of how the clocks work, with her study abroad program, which it looks like we’ll get into

I’m also interested to see more of Danny’s parents – his dad seems very much like the stodgy, by-the-book character that would get in the way of, well, everything for Danny. I’m interested to see where Sim takes us next!

Timekeeper was absolutely a five star read for me, and I hope it will be for you, too! I highly recommend the audiobook if that’s your style! If not, you can pick up a copy on Amazon or Indiebound!

And, if you keep scrolling, you’ll get to find out more about author Tara Sim in an interview!

Q: What’s the best piece of writing advice you’ve ever been given?

I actually can’t remember where I read this, but it was something along the lines of making sure your story is a spider web: make sure everything is connected.

Q: What’s your favorite emoji?

I’m awfully fond of the star emojis. Also the side-eye one.

Q: Where do you like to read? What do you need for a good long reading session?

I like to read wherever is most comfortable! Usually my bed, or a giant armchair/couch. All I need a place to recline and a good cup of tea. And my cat.

 Q: What are your top 3 general book recommendations for people?

Six of Crows, I’ll Give You the Sun, A Darker Shade of Magic

Q: What authors are auto-buys for you?

Victoria Schwab, Leigh Bardugo, Sabaa Tahir, Roshani Chokshi, Stacey Lee, Adam Silvera, Heidi Hielig, Traci Chee, Jessica Cluess, and Emily Skrutskie.

Q: What does your writing space look like?

I’m always so embarrassed of my writing space—it’s a tiny, cramped corner of my bedroom, where I use a small IKEA desk for my laptop. However, it’s right next to my bookshelves and it’s in front of a window, so it feels ~creative~.

Q: What is your favorite description of your books?

I once saw someone put it on a Goodreads shelf called “clocks, gears, and techno queers” and I’ve yet to see anything beat that.

Q: What inspired you to begin writing novels?

Being a reader, basically. I always fangirled hard over the characters and stories I loved, and that eventually led to me fangirling over my own characters and stories. (I think you have to fangirl over your own work a bit; that’s where the passion comes from.) I wanted to create characters and make them do things, and I wanted to create worlds for them to explore. It was addicting.

Q: What’s the first book you remember falling in love with?

Since I read them around the same time, it’s a tie between Harry Potter and the Alanna books by Tamora Pierce. I read the first books of these series when I was about 8 years old, and bothof them made me Feel Something. I can still remember finishing Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone in my mom’s parked car, at night, when she was visiting a friend at the hospital. It was the House Cup ceremony and the book was ending and I was so happy but also so terribly sad because it was ending. I felt the same while reading Alanna: the First Adventure; I just loved it so much that it was a physical ache.

Q: What was your last five star read? What made it a five star read?

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas. What an amazing book. Not only is it relevant to current affairs, but the writing itself is so spot on, and so immersive. I encourage everyone to read it.