Breezy ... As the novel zips along—there are lively depictions of the Blitz, plenty of sex and a rom-com’s worth of flirtatious patter—Mr. Spufford’s reasons for withholding information about the science-fiction conceit become clearer.
The novel is a pleasing pasticcio of romance, occultism, non-Euclidean geometry and airborne adventure across the blitz-stricken rooftops of London. It is difficult to imagine it would hold together quite so well in other hands than Spufford’s ... Dazzling ... A formidable achievement, a popcorny delight of a novel – and those who agree will be pleased by an ending that hints we’ve plenty more to come from Spufford’s fantasy multiverse.
Very enjoyable ... The more fantastical elements of the novel can be a little hard to follow – even for Spufford himself, who doesn’t seem to have made up his mind whether the time traveller, having changed the past, is able to remember that they have done so. Such inconsistencies are frustrating in a novel that relies on complex rules of magic. But while the wilder plot points can feel a little silly, Spufford reconstructs London at war with fabulous, awful detail.
