From the first page, I loved the main character's voice. January Cole is amazing and I couldn't wait for every break to come back and read more of this story. Both enchanting and exhilarating, this action thriller brings all the feels. A murder mystery, science, romance, and more. But mostly, it just reminds us that we are human with flaws and maybe someone can love us anyway. More please. Now I am going to read the Warehouse. Love it!!!!!

Rob Hart is courageous for taking on time travel. Always a subject of spirited debate among science fiction fans. Specifically, what happens if you change the time stream? If you can even change the time stream. I fall on the side of never changing the past, the only credible story lines always channeling you to immutable history.

Hart cites the box universe theory of time that says past, present, and future exist at the same time, always. But in Paradox Hotel, this remains just a theory, leaving room for changes in the time line. Which is why there are time cops who make sure people don't change the past.

Paradox Hotel is told from the point of view of January Cole, once a time cop, now head of security in the titular establishment, a way station for tours to the past. She herself has come "unstuck" in time (would have been nice to give a hat tip to Vonnegut for that terminology). So she "slips" into the past, allowing her to relive moments with her deceased lover.

She can also slip into the future, witnessing murders she hopes to stop, including her own. Meanwhile, she has to facilitate a summit of trillionaires hoping to buy the hotel and time travel tech, and find whoever is trying to sabotage the summit by messing with the time stream by (among other things) bringing dinosaurs out of the past.

January Cole is a great character, a strong woman dealing with craziness (including her own) that spirals increasingly out of control. As our narrator, she is snarky and sarcastic, a master of the smack-down, wearing a world-weary world-view worthy of every literary gumshoe regardless of genre. Seeing this world through her eyes is a real treat, as are her interactions with her AI drone.

Much of the subtext, as in Hart's great dystopian novel The Warehouse, about a world taken over by an Amazon-like corporate entity, has to do with income inequality, politics, privilege, corporate greed, and the like, and of course it helps if one's own views align with Hart's (mine do).

But then there is the issue of time that Hart has chosen as his primary literary device. Does it hold water? I honestly can't say -- and that alone undermines my ability to find it credible.

Hart doesn't examine time travel closely enough. There is only one example of travel into the past. Yes, I know, this is what all time travel stories focus on, actually going into the past or future and changing things (or not), and I didn't expect (nor would I necessarily want) Hart to focus on that.

But it was one of my favorite passages of the book, even though it was too short. I wish there was more. But more than that, as much as I liked it, it did not demonstrate one way or the other whether the past could be changed or what the consequences would be -- I would have liked to see that part of the story resolved by the time stream itself, not by the intervention of the time cops.

But this story is less about time travel and more about January slipping in and out of the past and future and her ability to deal with that. I reached a point where the proof would be in the pudding -- in the ending. The middle section was a bit of rinse and repeat -- did we really need a second dinosaur action sequence, even if the first was such good fun? So the whole thing hinged on how things wrapped up.

That was a problem. Indeed, with too few pages left to find closure, I suddenly got the feeling that we were being set up for a sequel. That proved to not be the case, but that meant that the ending came upon us in a rush, not a euphoric rush, a too-hurried rush. Just like that it was over, and though I generally prize ambiguous endings that leave room for interpretation, this one just left me confused.

So really a 3.5 star read, losing points for not really holding water in its time theory and ending too quickly after spinning its wheels. But rounding up to 4 stars because it's a great idea, well written, and starring a memorable first person protagonist who is quite entertaining despite being quite unreliable.

Westworld meets Fantasy Island with Jurassic Park vibes could be definitely proper cure for mediocre sci-if fan for me!

Think about a hotel designed for Musk, Bezos, Arnault, Gates to help them time travel: going back and forth between any time zone to take care of their top secret businesses.

When I read about space travels of ultra rich groups and watched the final scene of Netflix’s dark and also entertaining satire Don’t Look Up, world building the author created in this book seemed more reliable.

The chief of security of the hotel is also our main unstuck character January Cole who is about to lose the last remaining marbles. She acts like night manager of Overlook or famous DTLA Cecil Hotel moving between different time zones to get flashes but she gets Haley Joel Osment-ed by catching glimpses of ghosts lurking around the hotel. I somewhat found her a little bit irritating and hard to connect with. But a character who suffers from deep grief, working under unconventional situations has every night to be annoying so I got her way of perspective.

The mystery part about a culprit who messes with the timelines by making crucial changes in the past which will immediately affect our near future kept me hooked.

The execution of the plot was complicated. The book totally requires your full attention to get the proper development. January was not our ideal hero to catch the bad guys to save our future but you get used to tolerate her!

Overall: it’s sarcastic, dark, smart, complex, bizarre story! The writing style a little exhausted me with its complexity but it was still unique and foreboding plot which has credibility that makes it more horrifying! I’m rounding up 3.5 stars to 4 sci-fi, time travel, beware of T-Rex stars!

Special thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group/ Ballantine for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest thoughts.

Hart seems to have a real gift for telling tales that makes you think. Like with The Warehouse, you will find yourself gazing beyond the pages as you flip the ideas thrown at you like a particularly puzzling Rubik's Cube. In The Paradox Hotel, I found a new twist on my pre-existing concepts of space and time that allowed me to re-examine them in an entertaining context. While I can do without some of the newage morality detritus, it was done in a reasonably non-offensive manner easily ignored should one so choose.

3.5 Stars rounded up
There’s a lot to like about this novel- interesting concepts about time travel, wonderfully queer characters, some interesting origin stories about the creation of the hotel. But ultimately the novel feels overly ambitious with many interesting story pieces not fully explored either as support for red herrings or perhaps to stay under a certain page count.
While there is a thrilling and mysterious aspect to much of the story the greatest takeaways are less about this imagined future and more about love, forgiveness, and family. Which is lovely to explore, but a bit of a letdown in terms of what I thought the story would be about. Especially as an anticipated epic showdown scene is missing all together from the denouement

This book is hard to write a review for. The premise was very interesting and for that I was excited to read the paradox hotel. I will say I was confused from the start and it got worse the more things that were introduced into the plot. I will say I did not have a connection with any of the characters but towards the end I did enjoy Mena the most. I did not guess who the bad guy was but had suspicions on a few it could be. The ending did not wrap it up as well as I hoped and fell flat for me. Overall I would recommend the book to others.

Thank you for the advanced copy of this book! I will be posting my review on social media, to include Instagram, Amazon, Goodreads, and Instagram!

I am not much of a sci fi reader but the description of this one intrigued me because of the time travel element. It was a bit disappointing that the actual plot wasn't so much sci fi but more a straight forward mystery, but it kept me turning the pages until the end.

Let me be blunt. I am not a fan of science fiction. But I was a big fan of Rob Hart’s The Warehouse, so decided to take another chance on him. The book seems incredibly relevant, as today’s billionaires are all clambering to get into space. In this story, they’re clambering to time travel back to the past.
The book takes place in a hotel for time travelers. The chief of security, January Cole, is losing it. She is what’s known as Unstuck. She moves around in time, sliding forward and backwards for brief flashes. So, when she sees a dead body in one of the rooms, a body no one else sees, she knows what’s coming.
I loved January. She’s got an attitude. Anyone who’s had to manage an insane situation, extenuating circumstances of any kind, especially those involving rich, self important people, will appreciate what she’s going through. Especially a woman dealing with an overload of testosterone in the room.
Hart packs a lot into this book- workplace angst, inequality due to wealth, how we move beyond the loss of a loved one and what constitutes a family. There’s even some Buddhist philosophy for good measure.
This isn’t an easy book to read or comprehend. It requires concentration. There are a plethora of characters to track. I can’t say the plot made a lot of sense, but it was fun. There are some scenes with a Jurassic Park feel to them. I could just see this being made into a movie.
My thanks to Netgalley and Random House - Ballantine Books for an advance copy of this book.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of The Paradox Hotel.

I'm not a big fan of science fiction, mostly because most of the concepts are over my head but time travel as a theme does fascinate me.

The Paradox Hotel had a great premise with great writing but sadly, like some books with great potential (regardless of genre), the execution was messy and lacked a cohesive thread.

It might be due to the concept itself; a hotel where uber rich tourists pay for the luxury to witness significant historical events from a dozen different time periods.

That's already a heavy theme; now combine it with ghosts, a high profile meeting involving the Elon Musks of the world, a dead body only the main character can see, dinosaurs, and...oh yeah, someone is using the timeport to mess with the past which means the current timeline is being affected.

Did you get all that? Yeah, it's a lot.

Then, let's throw in an unlikeable, grumpy, unreliable main character mourning the loss of her great love, spurning the support and kindness of her colleagues and a ton of supporting and minor characters with names you forget the second they exit the page.

I didn't connect with January, or anyone else. I actually found her moaning and mourning the loss of Mena pretty irritating, which is a bad sign. Losing a loved one is terrible, but January was an annoying character.

There's very little world building; I would have loved exposition on the creators of the hotel, how the timeport works, more flashbacks of January's work catching bad guys who intend to screw with the past.

I was looking for something more adventurous and suspenseful, but I found the Paradox Hotel confusing, its characters unmemorable, though the ending was satisfactory (to me).

I did like Ruby.

So much potential wasted! I wanted to love this book, but it was just too hard. First, January is just so freaking unlikeable for 3/4 of the book; I wanted to feel for her, and I did, but redemption took way too long. Second, there was way too much going on and it was a mess; everything that could possibly happen, seemed to happen. Lastly, the ending felt very unsatisfactory. This premise is fantastic and the writing is really good! I just wished it had more finesse.

This novel was literally a wish come true (no pun intended)! I have always been fascinated by time travel, and having this novel combine it with suspense was an excellent idea. Highly recommended!

I wanted to enjoy this book, and I really thought I would, based on the description. However, I found it to be very confusing, and I had a hard time staying engaged or connecting with any of the characters. It felt like perhaps the author was trying to fit too much in to this one story. In comparison to how dragged out some portions were, the ending seemed quite abrupt.

I guess I'll land on 3.5 stars... This is such a hard one to rate, because for premise, writing quality, and characters, I could happily give this something in the B+ to A range. But for plot execution, this is more like a C+, because there are so many threads that don't really come together as successfully as I hoped. By the end, it felt kind of jumbled but still somewhat satisfying, which creates a headscratcher in terms of how to review! In general, I appreciate an ambitious project even if it is not wholly successful, so I would still encourage people interested in this to give it a try. I really liked what it was trying to do with respect to a time travel story that actually takes the moral implications seriously and how fast moving the story was as a whole.

What an interesting concept.

In many ways initially reminiscent of the golden age of flying, the reader is thrust into the golden age of time travel. Centered around the Paradox hotel, it is a story, first and foremost, of people, their interconnectivity, and relationships.

In terms of genre, this one is pretty fluid, it's sci-fi, but also a murder mystery. In many ways, there is something for everyone in this one. And that's also where the weaknesses are for me.

I would have loved to see more world building, the concept is such an interesting one, but in many ways, it just serves as a background note and an excuse for an unreliable narrator. Second, there are so many people thrust into the story that I had trouble remembering just who was who, even near the close.

Absolutely beautiful writing, killer concept, but muddy in execution. I felt far more lost than just trying to figure out "who did it." I loved the hotel as a character, but it felt fairly one-dimensional. I wanted more.

This is one that I will want to stick on my virtual shelf and check out again in a few months. Maybe a second read through will be more satisfying. I know, regardless, that I'll be reading more of Rob Hart's work.

Great premise. Hart does a good job with the difficulties of writing time travel. It had some good twists I didn't see coming, even though I thought I had it figured out. I'm giving it a 4 instead of a 5 as the characters felt a bit flat at times, but if you can get past that, the plot and pacing are excellent. I could see it being made into a movie.

This was a very good read! A mystery set in a universe where time travel exists, and there's a hotel where guests stay before and after embarking on said time travel. It was interesting, and I enjoyed it. The unreliable narrator was entertaining, and added an element of not quite being sure what was going on that I enjoyed.

LGTBQ and non-binary characters were represented, which is a a very good thing, and takes nothing away from the story. It enhances it!

Although, I have to say, I really wanted the book where January was working in the time stream. Other characters talked about how exciting that was, and I was like, yeah! I bet! Could I read about that??!! The small look into that subject, set in the 40's....that's the book I want! LGTBQ and non-binary characters were represented, which is a a very good thing, and takes nothing away from the story. It enhances it.

That said, this was interesting and engaging! Thank you Net Galley for the review copy!

The Paradox Hotel - Rob Hart

Let me begin with many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the free advanced reader’s copy of this book. Now on to the review - grab this book!

Overall I gave this book 4 stars, as once I got going I found myself thinking about this book even when not reading it! This book tackles the fascinating topic of time travel, as explored by January, the prime character. Through her we discover a cast and crew of unique personalities, including that of time itself.

The beginning of the book may feel a little overwhelming, but stick it out and the book will grab your attention and make your mind whirl with the possibilities that unfold. This is most certainly an interesting mystery, as well as a great springboard for contemplating the vagaries of time travel as we understand it.

I loved that January’s character development corresponded with the increasing depth of description of time travel. It almost seemed that one could not exist without the other. That being said, I do wish there had been a bit more character development for some of the secondary characters, as they taunted with their potential.

So much more could be said, but in an effort to avoid spoilers, I will end with how much I enjoyed this book - and how I feel that there is such rich material here there is great potential for a sequel!

oh it's a breeze, but somehow dense and technical at the same time? i just wanted to know more and more. and i took notes! it's not a real mystery unless i take notes

Paradox Hotel is a great read, driven by the compelling curmudgeon haunted gumshoe January Cole, who had to stop her field career stopping people from altering the timeline to be the in-house security at the Paradox Hotel, which is where people stay before going on their time excursions from the adjacent Einstein Timeport when she became Unstuck -- a condition people develop from excessive time travel where they see things from different times. She clings to the hotel because one of the things she regularly sees is her deceased lover, who was a "flight attendant" on the time travel flights, and lived with her at the hotel.

This book touches on a ton of issues, like privatization, excess wealth, corruption, and of course morality as January investigates both typical detective stuff like attempts on the lives of the competing bidders for the timeport that the government is arranging to very time-specific things like velociraptors hatching from poached eggs and threatening the guests and other time anomalies and "ghosts."

January's acerbic wit and determination through all of these challenges, as well as her competing coolness and affection for the staff and crazy guests drive the narrative through all the twists and turns and her unique voice keeps the story going. One of the best books of the year!