Downtime [Kindle Edition]

Tamara Allen (Author), Ravven (Illustrator)

Book Description

FBI Agent Morgan Nash is on assignment in London when his case goes awry and he finds himself moments away from a bullet through the heart. But fate has other plans: Morgan is knocked out pursuing a suspect... and wakes up in 1888.

While cataloging ancient manuscripts at the British Museum, Ezra Glacenbie accidentally pulls Morgan out of the twenty-first century--an impromptu vacation that may become permanent for Morgan if they can't locate the spellbook Ezra used. Further hampering Morgan's quest to get home is the irresistible temptation to investigate history's most notorious serial killer. But in repressive Victorian London, the unexpected romance blossoming between Morgan and Ezra becomes the most dangerous complication of all.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Ezra is a darling - psychic, queer, tortured, honourable, and trying so hard to fit in with a society and class completely unforgiving of someone so far outside social norm. I loved how Allen resisted taking the easy course between him and Morgan, and it's a good way into the story before anyone makes a move, having to get past misunderstanding, prejudice and social restrictions before they can admit the attraction between them. It feels right to delay, and for there to be no easy path to their relationship either."
- Uniquely Pleasurable


"Morgan and Ezra's relationship was as gradual but inevitable as a flower blooming and I found myself similarly as gradually swept up in caring about the relationship to a point where I had to put the book down a couple times at crucial moments to both calm myself down and laugh at myself.

If you're looking for smut, this probably isn't the book for you; most of Allen's sex scenes are fade to black or play coyly with romance novel euphemisms, but honestly, I will trade all the porn in the world for emotional porn, and Allen delivers in spades on that front."
- The Oscillating Fan

From the Author

Downtime was first published in 2004 under the pen name James Allen. It was republished in 2011. This is the third edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• File Size: 623 KB
• Print Length: 504 pages
• Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
• Publisher: Tamara Allen; Third edition (April 1, 2012)
• Language: English
• ASIN: B007QWJNXK
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Enabled
• Lending: Not Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #91,411 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 28 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Reissued at last. Highly recommended! February 10, 2010

By R.Parklane TOP 1000 REVIEWER

Format:Paperback

This was first released as a e-book in early 2007 by Torquere press under the writer's other name "James Allen". I have always wanted it in print and am very glad it is now available. I may have read it 3 years ago but still recall how much I enjoy this time traveling absorbing plot, with its exciting moments, and love both the characters of Morgan and Ezra. The novel length of over 330 pages is another plus when most M/M romance nowadays are hardly over 200 pages. The ending I thought is especially good. So there is no erotic sex between Morgan and Ezra but their romance which is convincing, sweet and gentle does not need it. When the plot and characters are as great as in Downtime, erotic sex are not desired and rightly so as it just hinders the substance and pace of the plot itself. Downtime is quality writing and I strongly recommend it to all of you who want great plot and deep characters in your M/M or gay romance.

27 of 32 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars A pleasure and a treasure February 10, 2010

By Ann Somerville

Format:Paperback

Time travel stories hinge on the fish out of water theme, or the `what would happen if I shot my own grandfather?' paradox. Downtime, a really rather charming romance, is mostly about the former, with a bit of the latter. This 300+ page novel was a delight in many ways. The Victorian details were handled very well, and deftly so one never felt it was a history lesson (only a couple of goofs revealed that the writer was not English.) The editing and format was perfectly clean , and the quality of writing was itself superior. And the actual plot was not terribly cliched, in a rather cliched genre, with warm and credible characters who linger in the mind long afterwards.

I have very few criticisms. The plot got somewhat tangled, with Morgan's present day crime fighting confusing in detail, and resolved rather quickly - if it had been dispensed with entirely, it would have been no loss. The interweaving of the Jack the Ripper story with the characters' lives was a tad strained and leads to some slow pacing, but on the whole worked well enough. There were a couple of bum notes in the otherwise well-sustained Victorian era setting, and I also thought the acceptance of Morgan and Ezra's relationship among Ezra's circle was a tiny bit too easy, but not to the point of breaking the suspension of disbelief. The social consequences of being homosexual at that time are certainly not skirted over, but nor are they belaboured. I thought that side of it well handled indeed.

These really weren't enough to tarnish my enjoyment of this story which I inhaled more or less in one sitting. Morgan is the least likable of the characters, which is not to say he's not likable at *all* - but being a brash and rather pigheaded American, he sometimes made me want to slap him. But he's just what Ezra and the others needed to shake up their confined existence, and he and Ezra make a lovely, believable couple. Some of his detective antics are a bit too Hollywood for true credibility but they're used well and keep things rolling along nicely.

Ezra is a darling - psychic, queer, tortured, honourable, and trying so hard to fit in with a society and class completely unforgiving of someone so far outside social norm. I loved how Allen resisted taking the easy course between him and Morgan, and it's a good way into the story before anyone makes a move, having to get past misunderstanding, prejudice and social restrictions before they can admit the attraction between them. It feels right to delay, and for there to be no easy path to their relationship either.

The minor characters are also attractive and well-drawn, from Derry, the Irishman (with a regrettably wandering dialect) to Hannah, the beaten-down maid who blossoms under Morgan's modern approach to women and servants. The little household of bachelors, and the wider circle of men of ambiguous sexuality and class fascinated me, as did the set pieces in drawing rooms and opera houses. Real history and fiction are nicely woven together, to make a vivid and enjoyable setting for the romance.

The ending surprised me, though there are really only a few ways a story like this can finish, and I found myself thinking about Ezra and Morgan for days afterwards - always, to me, a sign of good writing. It's not the most perfect novel I've ever read - time travel stories bring many pitfalls and I know of none that avoid them all - but I still thoroughly enjoyed Downtime, and would happily reread it. Recommended, and I'll be looking out for more by this author. One to watch out for.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Great fantastic wonderful May 19, 2012

By JustNJ

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Two generes that I dont particularly care for, time travel and romance novels are wonderfully intertwined here and the main characters are believable, and well fleshed-out. I do prefer gay romance to gay erotica and with a well-written story, I had zero complaints!!

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