• Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • TikTok
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Tahlia Newland

Editor, Author & Artist

  • Editing Services
  • Me & My Creative Life
    • My Books
      • Metaphysical Fiction
    • My Poetry
    • My Masks
    • My Hats
    • Permaculture, Forest & Garden
    • Performing Arts
  • Blog
  • Contact

Unusual & interesting: ‘The Sexual Adventures Of Time And Space’ by Brian Sfinas

August 4, 2013 by Tahlia Newland

The Sexual Adventures of Time and Space

For me, this book falls into the unusual books category, in both style and content. It’s a serious of diary entries written by Michael Thorn about his experiences in drug assisted lucid dreaming. He details the changes that take place in his and his friends’s lives as the dreaming takes hold of him like a drug.

There isn’t a strong plot, and for some this lack will be too great for their taste. It’s a character driven novel and what holds the entries together and keeps you reading is the question of what is going to happen to these people. The writing hints early on at dire consequences from the lucid dreaming ‘vacations’ and the suggestion increases once Dorothy is introduced. The recollections amble along, and my attention is held primarily by the strength of the prose, the voice of the central character, and the fact that the author teases out the answers we are waiting for.

The character of Henry, the drug dealer who gets the drug they need for the assisted sleeping, provides a little tension as well. We feel Micheal’s distrust of him and when that distrust proves warranted, there is the question of what is to be done about him. Again, the author drops hints that suggest that something dire happens, and once again we read on to find out what it is, even while still waiting for the answer of the previous question ie what happens to Dorothy, and the one before that, ie what happens to all of them. The author is a master hint-dropper. He creates mystery, where there is none, and it is just enough to give the book a sense of direction.

Michael’s  character is very strong and his observations on life are interesting, but the other characters are not particularly well-fleshed out. The lack of detail in characterisation is, however, reflective of Micheal’s increasing dissociation with the real world. The focus in this journal-style novel is solely on Micheal and his perceptions.

Though Dorothy’s story had an expected outcome, the ending of the book was a surprise, and it gave the  story the impact it needed to overcome its weaker points.

I had expected more description of  the dreams, especially considering the book’s title – which is not at all indicative of the actual story – but in fact we see very little of what Michael experiences while in his extended sleep. The one dream sequence written in the present tense was the best bit of writing in the book and I would have liked to have had read more such sequences.

Overall, this is an interesting, well-written book and, though not gripping, is worth a read.  I particularly enjoyed the descriptions of Michael’s perception of the world in the light of his growing immersion in the dreamspace.
US Kindle store
UK Kindle store

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)

Related

Filed Under: Contemporary fiction, Reviews Tagged With: Book Review, contemporary fiction

« Different & poignant: Secret Reflection by Jennifer Brassel
An interesting interview on Layered Pages with Indie BRAG’s Stephanie Hopkins »

Search

Recent Posts

  • Fantasy Book Review: The High Priestess by Val Tobin
  • Book Genres – What you Need to Know.
  • How to See Edits in Word Documents
  • Finding an Editor You Can Trust
  • Review of ‘The Guild Codex Spellbound Series’ by Annette Marie

View Posts by Category

Writing a novel? Feeling overwhelmed? Get new insight and inspiration with my FREE Novel Revision Checklist. 

DOWNLOAD  NOW

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Free Book Download  
Get Lethal Inheritance free when you sign up to my new release email list.  I won’t share your details and you can unsubscribe at any time.

My Latest Books

  • Fallout: Recovering from Abuse in Tibetan Buddhism
  • The Elements of Active Prose: Writing Tips to Make Your Prose Shine
  • The Locksmith's Secret
    Rated 5.00 out of 5

Alliance of Independent Authors

Alliance of Independent Authors

Click HERE to see all my books.

Books
Reviews, Writing, Cats & Contemplation
Editing

Click HERE to subscribe to my newsletter and get my fantasy novel Lethal Inheritance FREE. 

How to Meditate – the crucial points

See more

Hi I’m Tahlia Newland

I can help you express yourself and share your story with the world.

 

Do you want to write a really good story and have it professionally polished and published?

As an editor, I help you be the best writer you can possibly be. I strengthen your voice, support your vision and can assist you all the way to publication.

On my blog you’ll find book reviews, writer’s tips, contemplative articles on meditation and working with your mind, and occaisonally pictures of my Burmese cats.

If you’re interested mostly in my contemplative articles then  Sign up to the Living in Peace & Clarity Newsletter to get those articles delivered by email. And check out the resources on my Living in Peace and Clarity Page.

I do a lot of community work involving blogging and general support for Buddhist students processing revelations of abuse in their spiritual communities.  Please consider supporting me to continue this work.

Occiasonally, when inspired and not too busy with community work, I make masks.

All my books are

Visit my Mask & Steampunk Accessories Shop

2015-03-19 15.46.12
Blue Burmese
Like cats in stories? Check out my books. And click the photo to read the cat colomn.

Click Here for More Articles in This Series

Book reviews – sci fi, fantasy, literary fiction, Buddhist fiction and related non-fiction

Fantasy Book Review: The High Priestess by Val Tobin

Fantasy Book Review: The High Priestess by Val Tobin

The High Priestess: Persephone’s Return is the third book in Val Tobin’s Tales from the Unmasqued World Series, and in it she deepens and expands the stories from the previous two book. The book has two central story arcs based around characters we’ve met before. One arc follows Kelsey (a human) who is with Josh […]

More Posts from this Category

My gorgeous Burmese cats

Renovated Website & Cute Cat Series

Renovated Website & Cute Cat Series

Yesterday I did a photoshoot for my renovated website. Take a look around, particulary at the home page (Click on my name at the top to go there). It’s designed for editing clients with my books secondary because I need to focus on the part of this publishing business that actually earns me more than […]

More Posts from this Category

Seven of my novels have an Awesome Indies Seal of Excellence

Four of my books earned BRAG Medallions

I abide by the ethical author code

I'm an Ethical Author
Alliance of Independent Authors

Copyright

All material on this website is under copyright to Tahlia Newland and cannot be shared without written permission.

  • Editing Services
  • About Me
  • My Books
  • My Masks
  • Blog
  • Contact

Copyright © 2023 · Amoré Theme by Oh, Hello Designs on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

FREE Novel Revision Checklist

Written a book? Need some help reviewing and revising it? Download my Novel Revision Checklist for step by step guidance.  

DOWNLOAD NOW

no thanks

{"cookieName":"wBounce","isAggressive":false,"isSitewide":true,"hesitation":"120","openAnimation":false,"exitAnimation":false,"timer":"","sensitivity":"","cookieExpire":"7","cookieDomain":"","autoFire":"","isAnalyticsEnabled":false}

Please note: I am closed for holidays from Christmas day until Jan 30th 2023. Dismiss