Review: The Book of Lost Hours
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A memory, once it’s over, is never exactly what it was when it was happening. Whatever comes later changes the meaning of it.
The Book of Lost Hours – Hayley Gelfuso
★★★★★
The time space is an endless library which contains the memories of everyone who has died. This library can only be accessed with special watches that used to be passed down family lines, but eventually, government agencies gained control of the watches. They now choose which memories survive.
In 1938, Lisavet Levy – eleven years old – gets trapped in the time space and grows up watching the memories of people across history. When Lisavet realizes that governments are destroying memories to rewrite history, she’s determined to save as many of them as she can. She finally gets a chance to learn about the outside world in 1949, when American spy Ernest Duquesne interrupts her solitary life and sets her on a path that could change time more than any government ever has.
In 1965, Amelia Duquesne’s life changes irrevocably when a CIA agent approaches her after her Uncle Earnest’s funeral. The agent, Moira, tasks Amelia with finding a book of memories – an assignment previously held by Ernest. Amelia reluctantly accepts her mission, but it ends up being far more dangerous than anyone could have guessed.
The Book of Hours is an extremely ambitious novel. We follow multiple characters across decades, and I was equally invested in all of them. The story is told in two timelines that eventually meet, and I was impressed by Gelfuso’s ability to maintain tension throughout the book. It’s difficult to pace this kind of story well, but I was never disappointed to jump to a new perspective. Any sadness I felt leaving Lisavet’s time was quickly assuaged by my excitement to get back into Amelia’s world or vice versa. It’s extremely propulsive.
I loved getting to know the protagonists. They’re such dynamic characters, and you can feel the complexity of their relationships. That’s what ultimately pulled me into the story and kept me hooked until the final page. I needed to know how things got to this point, why the characters are acting this way, and what would become of them. The setting and plot felt like the cherry on top.
The time space and timekeepers – those who store or destroy memories – provide an interesting exploration of how history is preserved, whose perspective gets shared. Books as a physical manifestation of memories is a fun idea, and while the time space doesn’t actually exist, book burning as a way of manipulating collective memory does. But The Book of Lost Hours doesn’t just ask readers to engage with questions about the value of remembering big, societal ideas – positive and negative, it’s also about the personal, the everyday memories we collect as we live our lives.
Another major theme is a willingness to sacrifice for the ones you love. How much of yourself are you willing to give, and how much will you take from others to keep those you care about safe? Characters have different perspectives on this that change as they have new experiences and love new people. Following their journeys is beautiful, heartbreaking, and thought provoking.
I adore this book and highly recommend it to everyone. It’s immersive and evocative. The characters are complex and endearing. The themes are incredibly salient as echoes of the past reverberate through the current global rise of authoritarianism and fascism. The Book of Lost Hours is a stunning debut from Hayley Gelfuso that cements her as an author to watch. I’ll definitely be picking up whatever she releases next.
Content warnings: antisemitism, death (adult, child, murder, parent), pregnancy trauma, sexual harassment, suicide, violence, war