Historical fiction meets scifi. It's the late 90s, and a team of scientists has developed a time machine with the intent of bringing Julius Caesar to the present for a few days, moments before his death on the Ides of March. I really enjoyed the concept and the second half of the book when there plot moves a bit quicker. The first half of the book felt a little bogged down with unnecessary side characters' back stories and relationships. There were also a couple plot points that didn't feel realistic to me (even within the novel's world, accepting time travel). Overall I liked this book and would recommend it to someone who likes both history and science fiction.

Thanks to NetGalley for this Advance Reader Copy.

*ARC provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.*

2,5 stars. A Coin for the Ferryman follows a group of scientists who have found a way to bring people from the past to the present. They enlist the help of Cassandra, a young classics student who is fluent in Latin, which will come in handy, since they are planning to invite Julius Caesar to the present for a visit.

As a classics student myself, I’m always looking for books to read about classici, so when I read the synopsis for this book, I was very interested in reading it.

When I started this book, I was immediately intrigued by the chapter written from Julius Caesar’s point of view. I was very curious to see how this character would react to being stranded in a strange, modern world that he does not recognize, but his character quickly became almost a caricature of the historical figure. I think when trying to describe the thoughts of a historical figure, about whom we don’t know too many accurate personal details, it is hard to not make it overly dramatic and almost cartoonish, but sadly it did happen here. Caesar is thrust into this modern world and he’s curious, but he is not really fazed by it all because he is always one step ahead, even when he’s thrust 2000 years in the future. This just seemed a bit unrealistic for someone who’s still just a man.

Another problem I had is that there are too many characters, and it didn’t help that they all get their own povs, which feels very unnecessary at times. In the first big chunk of this book, they are simply working on this time travel machine without any of the mechanics and details behind it being explained and without anything much happening.

I did really like the writing, especially in the chapters from Cassandra and Faith’s povs, though I do wish we had seen more of Faith’s pov. I thought she was an interesting character. Cassandra was a character I really liked at first but as the story progressed and became more dramatic I just couldn’t really feel for her, because she was making these bizarre decisions. At this point I would have actually welcomed more of the other characters’ povs. The book definitely suffered at the end as the story gained more cliché tropes.

As for the audiobook: I really liked the pace of the narration, but the narrator sounded a little robotic at times which did sometimes take me out of the story.

Overall I did have a fun time reading this book and I think that if this premise interests you, I definitely recommend you pick it up for yourself. I just think I would have enjoyed it more if the characters were more fleshed out and if the approach to the concept of time travel were a bit more detailed.

Anything Greek or Roman history catches my eye and this was so different to the usual genre of that type that I was pretty eager to check it out. Roman history meets sci fi! It took me a few chapters to really get in to it but I quickly became invested in the unique story. All in all I enjoyed the plot and its unique nature. As a history lover I thought of all the historical figure I would enjoy a conversation with, all the historical mysteries you could untangle. My single issue with the book was that I didn't gel with the dynamic between Cassandra and Caesar. It felt really unnatural, no chemistry, a little forced and I felt the story was pretty decent without the addition of this element! That took away from the story for me a little. 3.5 stars.

Thank you NetGalley for giving me an audio arc of this book. I am choosing to leave this review.

well this was... a book.
Las Vegas + Caesar + kidnapping + mafia?? + sexism

Women get absolutely NO RESPECT in this book. There are A LOT of focus on women's bodies and their intelligence is consistently discredited to focus on their appearance. The character I thought was the main character who was first described as an intelligent beautiful women gets discredited due to VALID EMOTIONS and then becomes a background b*tch that nobody likes. Another intelligent women, who is 100% fluent in Latin, gets added to the team. Why? You would think her knowledge but no all the men can talk about IS HOW HOT SHE IS AND CEASER WILL LIKE THAT SHE IS HOT HOT HOT SEXY. WTF. Honestly it was repulsive in many parts.

I thought that at some point this book would turn around and there would be a mention of sexism and the pure discredit of intelegance due to gender but it never happened. Now the book itself is set in 1999 and yes sexism is still prevalent in STEM but there needed to be a conversation how disgusting it was. I read somewhere that this book was 20 years in the making but it needed to be revised and accommodate for the climate we are in today.

I requested this because I was intrigued by the concept of this book and it did not disappoint! I enjoyed the storytelling by the narrator and I liked that although majority of the story was told via main character, there were multiple POVs happening too. With a background in Science myself, I was particularly interested in seeing how the project was going to work and definitely curious to see if the team would be able to pull it off. And again, it did not disappoint! I assumed that the account that we got was from Cassandra, the main character, in real time but by the end of the book it's revealed that she wrote a book. So now I don't know if it's her book that I read or her actual account. I guess that's up to the reader to decide.

From Goodreads: "In 1999, an elite interdisciplinary team headed by Nobel laureate Andrew Danicek gathered in California to carry out a ground-breaking time-travel experiment. While the rest of the world remained unaware, Julius Caesar was successfully transported from the last day of his life to a specially-constructed covert facility. Four days of conversation with historians and Latin scholars were planned, followed by Caesar’s return to the moment from which he was extracted. But despite the team’s meticulous efforts to maintain secrecy and plan for all possible exigencies, a kidnap attempt plunges Caesar into peril. Fully aware that the future of civilization may hang in the balance, one team member must summon strength she didn’t know she possessed to return Caesar to the Ides of March.

The shocking details of Caesar's visit and its effect on subsequent events have been protected by draconian nondisclosure agreements....until now."

My Opinion: I love books about time travel and books about Julius Caesar and ancient Rome, so I figured I couldn't go wrong with this book, and boy was I right! First off, the narrator did an excellent job with the voices and tone of the different characters. It was easy to switch back and forth between them without being yanked from the story, which is a pet peeve of mine.

As for the story, and I never thought I'd say this, but there was just a bit too much back story for me. Not enough to dislike the book, but enough that I felt sort of bogged down by it. But the characters were written well, so this wasn't a huge problem. The setting was well described and the pacing was good. I absolutely loved Julius Caesar in all of his arrogance because you just have to figure that if you ever met him, that's exactly how he would be! Nice twist at the end, too, although I'll leave it at that.

In summary, I enjoyed this book very much and can definitely recommend it, especially the audiobook version.

5/5 stars.

I received a copy of this audiobook free of charge through NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Thanks, to NetGalley for providing the audiobook for an honest review.

When I got this book I was excited to read something different.

The book started interesting and I was listening with anticipation of the jump from today to bringing ancient people into our time and seeing how the story continues.

Overall when I finished the book I had the feeling that a lot of the characters were not needed to develop the story and I most likely would have enjoyed the book more.

Still, if you like fantasy, SiFi stories, give this book a try. It is fun to read and different in my opinion.

The book had a lot of potential but 45% through and still very little had happened. There was far too much tedious set up that was unnecessary and additional characters that didn't really need to be there.

Once you get into the meat of the story about halfway through it is pretty good, as others have pointed out there seems to be a weird sexist element in the way a lot of the characters are portrayed, which I disliked entirely. The story itself had a lot of potential, but was just okay.

A Coin for the Ferryman finally answers the age-old question: "What would Julius Caesar think of Las Vegas?". Actually, that never question occurred to me until I started reading this book, but it is an interesting one!

The novel follows a team of brilliant minds (including a Nobel prize winning physicist, several classicists, a doctor, and a really cool undergraduate student who knows how to speak fluent Latin) who embark on a mission to bring Julius Caesar to the United States just before the year 2000 starts. In addition to being a blast to read, the book also touches on the culture of academia and the role of wealth in intellectual pursuits, especially with ancient fields of study. I think anyone who has an interest in classic Rome history and or time travel would enjoy this book. A book club would likely have fun discussing the ethics of time travel, and perhaps who they would choose to transport to their time. The best word to describe it is a romp!

That being said, I noticed a few minor issues that might deter another reader from finishing this. On the big-picture level, the beginning started quite slowly, with introductions to a large cast of characters taking up the first half of the book. A die-hard science fiction fan would likely note the lack of intense scientific terms and explanations (however, someone who enjoys the historical aspect of time travel narratives, like me, appreciates that!).

A few more granular details: Though this is even acknowledged by the book, the time travel project team completely forgot that Caesar was a tactical mastermind. While this led to some interesting hijinks, I found really implausible that all of the bright minds who can make time travel happen forgot such an important part of Caesar's identity. There was also some uncomfortable sexist language towards the protagonist, Cassandra, actually on the part of another female academic. I would've enjoyed the book a lot more if this was left out entirely.

Finally, as I switched off reading in between the audiobook and ebook, I wanted to briefly review the audio version in particular. I personally did not enjoy the narrator, I found the voices he used for certain female characters to come across as mocking and sexist. Though he read Cassandra, the protagonist, in his natural range, the other female characters were given a falsetto voice for no apparent reason.

However, if anyone is willing to put those issues aside like I did, I think they would enjoy this book greatly. I've certainly never read anything like it!

Thank you, Imbrifex Books and NetGalley, for the early release of this book!

I'm so very glad I went into this book blind and didn't have any idea what it was about or what to expect. In A Coin for the Ferryman, we follow a team that has built a machine that can transport things through time. They need to know exactly when and where people are about to die in order to do that, as they snag them just before the moment they would die, to lessen the impact on history, and then return them just in time to die. The assembled team is a rag tag bunch of characters that I thoroughly enjoyed, and their interactions were hilarious to witness.

So, when you can bring someone forward in time and you need to know exactly when and where they will be, who do you choose? Caesar, of course! I loved seeing the modern world through his eyes and being along for the ride that was this book! It was a wonderful surprise and I loved every moment of the journey!

The narration is great! I loved the voice acting and the inflection the narrator used, along with the pauses and tone that truly added to the performance. The pacing was great!

I didn't love this as much as I wanted to. The premise was intriguing but the execution was not as fulfilling as I had hoped. Maybe it was the sheer number of characters and backstories that were covered that made the story a bit disjointed. Maybe the story arc itself being squished over 4 days. I'm not sure I can even put my finger on one single thing but it sort of fell flat for me.

Thanks to Netgalley for providing an ARC of this book. I found the premise of this book to be very intriguing but the writing left me bored a lot of the time. I didn't connect with the characters much and I thought the "fluff" was mostly just uninteresting filler. 2.5 stars for me.

I really enjoyed this story, the cast of characters, the twists and turns it took throughout. 3.5 stars.

The story centers around a group of elite scientists and classicists at the Ides Lab working to bring Julius Caesar to present day. With the way the Ides Lab is structured, it was interesting to consider how different disciplines would consider the possibility of bringing someone forward from the past - from the changing of the course of time to health considerations.

I liked the narrator’s voice and narration of the story.

The story did drag at some points and Caesar’s lack of reaction to modern day technology (TV, cars, the Vegas Strip) made it hard to suspend disbelief.

However, the characters were great! And the ending and how it connected back to the start was clever.

I’d recommend it to friends who like both historical fiction and sci-fi.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing a free audiobook review copy in exchange for my fair and honest review.

This was such an incredibly fun romp! A Coin for the Ferryman is an action packed genre mash-up of sci-fi caper and contemporary fiction which really hit the spot for me.

The story follows a group of multi-disciplinary experts as they build a time machine in the year 1999 with the goal to test bringing a human from the past to the present. They decide on Julius Caesar, planning to scoop him up right before he meets his infamous demise on the ides of March, bring him to 1999 for just under a minute and then pop him back to meet his fate. Of course something goes wrong and it sets off a chain of events that scatters the crew and makes ripples across time.

It takes about 40% to get to the rising action but in the meantime we meet several players including a glimpse of Caesar himself on the morning of his death. I enjoyed how Edwards wove everyone's story together so that by the time we get Caesar to the year 1999 it's fun to watch everyone's reactions to him and how their plans begin to scatter. Some might find the middle a little slow but I enjoyed watching Caesar react to people, places, and things. By the end I was along for the ride and committed to the relationships that develop.

Overall, really cool idea with an amusing execution and heartfelt conclusion.

Very interesting look at what might happen if Julius Caesar could be transported to modern times for a few days. I really enjoyed the insights into what made him a great leader and strategist. 3.5 rounded up to 4 stars.

Thanks to NetGalley for the chance to review this advance copy of the audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

While I ultimately thought this was an OK audiobook, I did think several times about not finishing it. The narrator has a tone in his voice similar to narrator Kirt Graves which I don't find appealing. he also didn't put any emotion into it to help the story 'live".

I thought this was going to be heavy on the scifi and historical stuff, but Caesar is almost forgotten in the pages upon pages of detail about the less exciting secondary characters and their backstory and current actions. We don't get any detail, certainly not from Caesar's POV in the first few hours of him being in the 20th century (story takes place in the late 90's). That's the most interesting part, how he would feel and respond to things. There are a few instances of that and a couple of flashbacks to his life, but they weren't the best choice in my opinion to add anything meaningful to the story.

There was a lot of misogyny in this story by the male and female characters. The main character has a rare skill which should have been stressed in this situation in particular, not her looks, over and over.

The action and narration did pick up towards the end and finally got me wrapped up in the story. I also appreciate the few moments of humor in how Caesar responded to the doctor. Since we got so much backstory the epilogue at the end was a nice touch too.

I received a copy of the audiobook from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

I ended up DNFing this book around 30% of the way through.
The blurb was super fascinating, but the writing just wasn’t for me. I feel slightly conflicted, as this may be largely due to the narrator. Some combination of the words as they were written and the narrator’s performance just made me feel slimy. Despite the author being a woman (and possibly because of the male narrator), it just felt incredibly male gaze-y and uncomfortable.
Added to this, I got to a third of the way in, and despite the fact that the book has done nothing but introduce us to characters, I didn’t feel like I cared about any of them. Which is fine, I don’t need to connect deeply with the characters in a sci-fi adventure romp, but then give me some sci-fi adventure romp! Don’t give me planning meetings and grown adults falling in instalove for no discernible reason.

Such wasted potential. Wonderful plot idea bogged down by cliched interactions between characters- female jealousy over another woman being added to the team, affairs on the team, older men hiring young pretty (albeit top in their field), older men paying Vegas waitress (on her first attempt at prostitution) to get her classics degree (and all the extras like an expense account.) From the description I thought the focus would be bringing Caesar back and it goes awry but 40% into the book and the author is still writing about the team members’ interactions and pasts. I gave up in frustration because of the sexist cliches which surprised me coming from a female author.
The narrator droned and whether because the sentences weren’t varied enough or he just read in a droning voice, I’m not sure. He gave some modulation to different characters but overall, he was a strain to listen to.

What would Julius Caesar do? An amusing science fiction what-if interwoven with drama, romance, and humor. Be patient with the multiple storylines early on as they quickly come together in the main story. Chapter 3 reads like it belongs in Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and pulled me in so I would finish this book. Well-narrated (an especially big challenge with the different accents and languages peppered throughout the story).

I received this audiobook as an advanced readers copy and the following review is soley my own. A Coin for the Ferryman is about a group of elite scientists and scholars working together on a secret time travel project. The team successfully transports the famous Julius Caesar to modern day California where they plan to have historians interact with him for a period of 4 days. Andrew and his team think they have a failsafe plan and will return Caesar safely to the past, but an attempted kidnapping is not the only thing working against the team. A major detour is taken that may change not only history, but the present.
I enjoyed this story. I thought the author did a good job of bringing in all the different characters and giving small back stories on each so you knew why and how they got to where they were in the story. I did feel the story bounced around a little bit to the large # of characters. This may only be because I was listening to an audio version and may not be as confusing while reading the physical book. I really enjoyed the ending of the book, but only wished there would have been a follow up/resolution with Pippa. During the 2nd half of the book the story and excitement really picked up.
Also, I know Caesar wasn't truely convinced he had been transported to the future and he was also trying to put on that "tough guy facade" but there were several situations where I thought, there is no way he would react like that!
I don't think the cover of the book, does the story justice.
Overall, I did enjoy this audiobook and I thank NetGalley, Megan Edwards and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to listen and review it. I give the story 3.5 stars and would recommend you give it a try..