A Time and a Place: A Strange Dimensions Book

Joe Mahoney's "A Time and a Place" is the first fiction book I've enjoyed in too long. It delivered a satisfying dose of SF goodies while simultaneously being nuanced in its portrayal of choices made by characters. The characters feel like people, albeit of the larger than life kind I've always enjoyed in speculative fiction where the stakes are high. Curiously enough, I couldn't decide at the end of the novel whether the author agreed with his protagonist or the wayward nephew he pursued across a calamitous universe of frightful monsters, intelligent cat-beings and other wonders, in a determined effort to save the boy's life. I liked the mental exercise this moment provoked but only because it didn't spoil the sense of closure I appreciate at the end of a story arc. I liked the wacky, vivid universe portrayed, as well as the intriguing characters, and will visit it again if a series ensues. All in all, I recommend the book to readers like me who enjoy a bit of psychological realism and "what if" philosophy mixed into their SF romps, textured with generous helpings of relatable characters, epic adventure, and a seasoning of humourous undertones.

I really enjoyed the creativity and detailed mental images. A wild ride and heartfelt relationships.

A fun romp through space and time with enough unexpected twists to keep you guessing. Packs a surprising amount of heart for a story that starts out drily witty and plunges you immediately into the bizarre world of demons, portals, body swapping and talking cats.

What I love about this book is that it’s an intelligent and amusing take of the time travel genre. The hero, Barnabaus J. Wildebear goes on an expansive and compelling journey through space, time, and importantly, his own family history. It’s more complicated than he ever thought. As I do IRL, I really enjoy Joe’s dry wit and sly sense of humor. The book is at turns philosophical, literary and often, really gross. (Wildebear experiences a variety of goos, gucks, and gunks in his adventures.)Disclosure: the author is a friend

Joe Mahoney tells a deft tale. By turns droll and exuberant, thisnovel reels you into its strange world with as much pull as the portalthat sends Barnabus through time and space. I don't read much sciencefiction fantasy but I greatly enjoyed this story for its array ofcharacters, the romping plot and the lyrical musings on what happensto free will when you hurtle through time and place.

I didn’t like this one, and couldn’t get past the third chapter.

I liked A Time and a Place and there’s a lot to like in Mahoney’s novel. I loved the T’Klee, the race of alien cats (distantly related to felis catus) with opposable thumbs. At one point in his journey, Barnabus inhabits other animals (including a T’Klee) as part of his education and it reminded me of Merlin teaching Wart about the responsibilities of power in T.H. White’s The Sword in the Stone.At another point, Barbabus uses his new ability to time travel in an attempt to save his wife before she died. Replaying the events of the night again and again, Barnabus fails, no matter what he attempts to change. This trope alludes to Groundhog Day and serves to reinforce the hypothesis that the past protects itself from interference. But then, Barnabus discovers that others have successfully messed with the timeline, throwing him and that hypothesis under the bus.Unfortunately, Barnabus seems pulled through the events of the story by external forces and lacks the level of agency I like to see in a protagonist. Much of the time he comes across as bewildered. I actually thought B. Wildebear a clever bit of wordplay until the author disabused me of the notion.A Time and a Place is a complex story and an ambitious novel, but I found that the execution wasn’t quite up to the premise. It’s still an entertaining and worthwhile story and I hope you consider giving this Canadian speculative novel a read over the holidays.

A Time and a Place is the debut novel of Joe Mahoney, a local Ontario author. I first met Joe some time ago at a local book fest in Whitby, and his book has been on the back burner ever since. Finally he’s come out with the audiobook – he’s done all the voice acting and editing himself – so I got myself a copy. It’s a science fiction, quasi-fantasy story.A time and a place follows our hero and narrator Barnabus Wildebear – which is an awesome name. He’s essentially a John Everyman type character. He’s living on Prince Edward Island, he teaches high school English, and he’s the guardian of his teenage nephew, Ridley. We very much get the sense that Wildebear is coasting through life. He’s somewhat lacklustre as a guardian, he’s passive and non-confrontational, and he, we learn during a truth serum session, has never been in a relationship. He does like a good scotch, though.The book opens with him greeting his friend Dr Humphrey, who’s agreed to come in and speak to Ridley, who’s been acting quite strange lately. The two men discover a somewhat New Agey, occult type book in Ridley’s room, and, when Wildebear speaks the name of the book, he sets in motion the events of the novel.The book itself is a portal and transportation device, controlled by a demon, a genie, or an alien, or something else, and Ridley, it seems, has been seduced by this creature. Now Barnabus must involve himself in affairs from other worlds so he can get his nephew back.One thing about Joe's style - he writes with this sort of absurdist acceptance of the fantastical reality he's created. Wildebear is your average John Everyman character, not living, as far as he was aware, in a sci-fi universe of jinns and interstellar war. Then he gets sucked into this, with Men in Black invading his home and Helena Blavatsky’s book coming to life, and inhabiting the body of a seagull, and at no point does he break down in shock and awe, cradling himself in the fetal position. In other words, there's no realist commentary on the surreal. Instead, a blind acceptance - which was mildly jarring at first. It almost took me out of it. Until that absurdist acceptance came through - everything is just absurd and there's no point in dwelling on it. There's a comedy here too, slightly muted but there. I actually laughed out loud when Wildebear was arguing with Jack Poirier. This all interweaves into Joe's style, which is actually quite pronounced for a first novel.There’s some good philosophical stuff in here too. He muses on issues of predestination and free will, good and evil as it relates to intentionality – some deep stuff for a first novel, especially one with squid-like supervillains and anthropomorphic cats.As for the audio performance, Mahoney’s done all the voice acting and editing himself. The editing is completely seamless, and he does a pretty good job of portraying different voices – better than I’d expect from a production performed by the author.I enjoyed this novel, more than I thought I would. Mahoney writes with a practised wit. Parts of the novel seemed a little rushed, and there’s questions left unanswered, but overall I enjoyed it.

A Time and a Place is a 'must read' for all lovers of science fantasy literature. Beautifully written with twists and turns in the plot that will keep you guessing right up to the last page. Joe Mahoney has developed his own style, so hard to do for any writer, but he achieved it in his first novel, with underlying humour reminiscent of Stephen Leacock. Barnabus J. Wildebear is a perfectly plausible imperfect hero, whose goal is to rescue his kidnapped nephew. If you like new worlds bred from a colourful imagination this book is for you.

I’m not even going to try and say it better than the writer because that would be impossible. So, to quote author Joe Mahoney from the novel A TIME AND A PLACE:“Two planets, two civilizations. Profoundly different in appearance and temperament. One clean and fastidious, the other filthy and squalid. One rash and impetuous, the other thoughtful and contemplative. Both intrigued to learn of the other’s existence.”A Sci-Fi Fantasy with Literary notes, there is so much to love about this book. Nebbish protagonist Wildebear is the last person you’d expect to embark on a multi-planed adventure through a time-space continuum that can literally pull carbon bodies apart if not expertly handled. But he does. His nephew Ridley has fallen under the influence of the comely glass-eyed Iugurtha who is the center point for a war of worlds. The lad must be rescued.Beings of all stripes enter the field of battle, the most charming being Jacques, a one-eyed tentacled Necronian who will engulf you unless you have something he wants. This is Wildebear’s power. He not only controls the gateway, but has access to an archive of knowledge that can change everything. There are also T’Klee, large sentient Felis catus with blue fur and opposable thumbs that will risk all to stamp out Jacques and the menacing horde he brings.The magic of A TIME AND A PLACE resides in its rich description of places we’ll never see—not even in dreams—and the people who must manipulate impossible situations to save their kith and kin. Family figures heavily in this tale. It’s what drives Wildebear most. The charm comes from the exchanges between different species and the realization that they all want the same thing. 5 stars

Joe Mahoney’s A Time and A Place is a meditation on deep philosophical questions disguised as a rollicking science fiction adventure. His ability to evoke imaginative worlds and alien creatures is what makes reading this book such a pleasure. Mahoney delivers the goods with both a dramatic and humorous flair!

A great book. And I'm not just saying that because I know the author. HI JOE!!! I really am a a big fan of Time Travel written and done well.