The premise had a lot of potential but it failed to deliver. The writing was basic and there were loopholes in the plot. I did like the setting

Quite interesting but I wished this was fleshed out more bcus it felt bland at some parts. I do wish we get to see more of the characters too. Its a nice story with good ideas but fall flat

I specifically requested this book because of my love for Vancouver and I was not disappointed by the story or writing. I absolutely want to read more from this author!

I don't have a lot to say about this one. It was just okay. I think the premise had a lot of potential; the execution was just really lacking overall. The writing felt juvenile and there were inconsistencies with the plot as well. However, I loved it was set in Vancouver, though, and wish there had been fleshing out of the city both in the past and present. I'm a sucker for a book set in Canada, especially places I've been to. Vancouver is a beautiful place, and I enjoyed the setting - but that's about it.

This book was a pleasant surprise. The main characters, Jack & Riley, work well together & the connections across time angle gives it an edge, although I enjoyed the chapters set in 1897 more than the modern ones. I did think the plot was a little thin & certain aspects of it weren't explained fully enough for me, but as the first book in a series, it was intriguing. I would definitely be interested in reading the next book to see how things develop. The cover is eye catching too.

** Received a copy for review.**

This book had so much potential but it just seemed that it could not get its footing. I would lol d like to read others but this author but this did not work for me.

I was so excited about the dual timeline narrative and the link between a present day and a past character, but sadly this did not work for me.

I think my major problem is with Riley, her work in the archives and being involved in the writing back and forth does not add anything to the story. To me, it just held up the story and slowed the book down to a point where I got so bored that the last few Riley chapters, I just skimmed. Not my cup of tea.

I absolutely loved this book, it was enthralling from the start and I was dissapointed when it finished, I would definitely recommend this book, one of the best crime genre books I have read this year

Thank you netgalley and the publisher for my copy of this book in exchange for my honest review

I was attracted to the cover art. Well written. Enjoyable read.

⭐⭐

I don't have a lot to say about this one. It was just okay. I think the premise had a lot of potential; the execution was just really lacking overall. The writing felt juvenile and there were inconsistencies with the plot as well. However, I loved it was set in Vancouver, though, and wish there had been fleshing out of the city both in the past and present.

**ARC Via NetGalley**

Thank you NetGalley, for letting me read this book.

I'm a reader who needs to be able to suspend disbelief. I need to float on the stream of a book. I don't like being jolted from that state of disbelief.

This means I was a bit doubtful about the central premise of this book - Riley, an archivist in a Canadian museum, finds a notebook through which she can communicate with Jack, a detective from the past. However, the murder that Jack is investigating, and the portrayal of his world, has enough oomph to carry things along. Riley didn't come alive quite so much, but as a modern woman looking at the past she was able to frame things and interpret them for the reader. I'll be interested to see how things develop in the next book in the series.

I loved Jack - he's a great character, and I think he's going to develop very nicely indeed as the series goes on. His world is really well portrayed, and I enjoyed watching him hone his detecting skills. Definitely want to read book 2.

The book is good with a touch of horror and fantasy. I loved the characters and plot. The most eye catchy element is its cover. I really enjoyed the book and would award it 4 stars. Thanks to Netgalley for giving me an opportunity to read the book.

3,5 stars

The Dead of False Creek by Sarah M. Stephen follows Riley, an archivist living in 2017, and Winston, a police officer living in 1897.
As they communicate through entry diaries, Riley does her best to help Winston, who is faced with a series of disappearances in his time period.

So, last things first: the ending was really really well done in my opinion. I really liked it. The plot was nice and creative, although a bit slow paced.

Now the reason why I'm rating this book 3,5 and not 5 was because I had a hard time getting into the story, and tended to get confused with the pretty numerous character names (or at least there were more than my poor brain could handle). This made reading the book a much less enjoyable experience.

Overall, the book to me was a little above average. I look forward to seeing how the series develops, as I do think there's a lot of potential there.
I would recommend it to readers who enjoy historical fiction and don't mind a little fantasy.

This historcal read has a different twist to it when the two MC work together to solve a case across time. The magical element definitely gave me a surprise. I adore that the book had different time zones and that they both communicate through the book

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC! What a great book. Enjoyed the dual timeline. The two main characters were very likable. Did not want to stop reading.

I love a good time slip novel and while this one held my interest to the end and I loved the plot twist; there was one aspect I struggled with.
Riley, the character from the present. I couldn’t see what she added to the story. I found her quite annoying and all she seemed to do was worry about what her employers would say if they knew what she was up to. I couldn’t help feeling that the story of Jack would have stood well on its own.

Jack really brought the book to life and I loved learning about Vancouver in the 1800’s. S isn’t guess the killer until the end, which is always a good sign with a thriller.

Would I read more of the series? Probably not, unless Riley really embraced her role in the story.

This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review


Vancouver 1867, Detective Jack Winston, newly arrived is put on the case of finding a missing man, Walter Huntington.

Vancouver, 2017, Riley Finch, the new museum's archivist, is on a mission to create the best exhibit story from Vancouver's past history.

After discovering a journal that wasn't in the catalogue with abilities to transport her words through time. Riley Finch sets out to uncover the truth about the journal and forms a new relationship with Detective Jack Winston, who owns the Journal.

Without knowing so much about this book, I enjoyed this so much.
Every chapter didn't stall and the middle had so much action I couldn't stop reading.

It was interesting to follow a crime committed in the 18th century through the eyes of a 21st century archivist.

The plot was superb and it did its job as a mystery novel. The anticipation of trying to uncover the culprit responsible for the disappearance of the residents of Vancouver who had bright futures.

Each Character showed so much emotion. I especially liked Riley Finch who had to weigh her choices, of wanting to help Detective Jack Winston or protecting the future from the past.

You get to experience historical Vancouver through the dialogues, dressing, setting. The little details brought this to life and it was exciting to suspect everyone and still not figure out who was responsible.

There's a second book in the Journal Through Time series and trust me you'll definitely want to read that as well.

This historical mystery has an unusual twist, in that the two protagonists working together to solve murders exist over a hundred years apart.
The first protagonist, Jack Winston, is a young and inexperienced Vancouver police detective who lives in 1887. Vancouver of that time was a rougher, much less populated place, with many men passing through on their way up north, hoping to strike it rich. The city has its share of the wealthy also, though the community is very small and everyone knows everyone. One of these men went missing, and Detective Jack Winston has been trying to find him, keeping notes in his journal of his minimal progress.
The other protagonist, Riley Finch, works at a Vancouver museum in 2017 as an archivist. She’s new to her job, and is nervous about doing a good job. Her first assignment is to organize the old items from the Vancouver police service. Riley finds one of Jack Winston’s journals amongst the items, and by accident, discovers she can communicate through time with Jack, using his journal. The two begin collaborating on his case, and become friends as they work together.

This was an enjoyable historical mystery. Being familiar with some of the locations gave me added pleasure in imagining Jack’s 1887 Vancouver Streets, some of which are now pretty residential areas.
The characters were likeable, though I feel the author did a much better job drawing Jack Winston’s personality than Riley Finch’s. I got a good picture of the man trying to define himself away from his industrialist father, and who still misses his elder brother, who vanished years earlier. The only things I could definitively say about Riley, by contrast, were that she was frequently nervous, fascinated by the past, and diligent.
I liked the writin otherwise, and, in particular, loved the small passages the two wrote to each other in Jack’s journal, initially only about the case, but gradually opening up about themselves.
The mystery was not that difficult to figure out, with both Jack and Riley missing fairly obvious clues in the case, which I’ll put down to their inexperience. I also liked the somewhat abrupt end to Jack’s case—not every case can end in an arrest, and as it looks like there will be another book, I look forward to them both honing their detection skills.

Thank you to Netgalley and to BooksGoSocial for this ARC in exchange for my review.

The book follows Riley Finch an archivist in Vancouver who finds a journal written by Detective Jack Winston. Through the journal the two are able to communicate with each other.

The book feels a bit like Tom Riddles journal mixed with the Lake House mixed with a historic crime drama. The two work together to try and solve a missing person case and murder case that may or may not be connected. It’s a fun who done it that’s also about why they did it. The journal that allows them to communicate is a major factor without the reader ever really caring about why it works. There is a sequel due out next year, so this has the potential to be a fun crime series with a twist.

This didn’t do it for me, I’m afraid. An intriguing premise but amateurish writing and plot inconsistencies contributed to it being a bust. Big pet peeve: no explanation of how they were able to communicate across time, and both of them readily accepted it and began in-depth conversations using Jack’s journal. Biggest pet peeve: every single time it switched POV, not only was the character's name listed as the chapter heading, but the beginning sentence started with “Riley Finch did etc etc” or “Detective Jack Winston etc etc.” It started out as an annoyance and quickly became impossible to ignore. Yes, we know by now those are their first and last names, and we, the reader, can follow shifting points of view. No need to bludgeon us with redundancy.

Harsh but honest review, my apologies.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book.