I thoroughly enjoyed this story! Nobel prize winner Andrew Danicek has built a “time machine”. He sets up a team and after a series of positive tests decides to bring a prominent historical figure to the future, Julius Caesar.
So now you have a man who lived 2000 years ago, walking around in our time. One of our other MC’s Cassandra is picked to be his “hostess” because she’s fluent in Latin. But nothing goes as planned!
Caesar can’t remain in our time, because they don’t know how and if it will influence the future. But will they be able to, with everything that has happened?

This book sounds amazing, as in its story, and really it is. It doesnt get bogged down in the science, but there is enough there to make it sound plausible, and that is all you really need. The writing is good, descriptive but not flowery, and the characters are fun, if you love them or hate them. I did not see elements of the ending, and I loved being surprised by that. This is a must read!

The premise of A Coin for the Ferryman is an intriguing one, especially for anyone interested in Ancient Rome. What would one of the most famous ancient Romans think of today’s modern society? I felt that Edwards gave us compelling characters in Caesar and Cassandra, but so many others fell flat for me. And the introductory chapters, especially the parts with the 1970s archaeologists, felt unnecessary. However, the book really picked up for the last third or so, and I found myself saying “just one more chapter” over and over, well past when I should have gone to bed! Thank you, NetGalley, for providing the book in exchange for an honest review. #netgalley #acoinfortheferryman

I love time travel novels. This book by Edwards does not disappoint. The writing style keeps one captivated throughout the book. I was surprised to the last page.

4.5 stars.

This novel surprised me.

My interest was piqued by the synopsis. A time machine brings Julius Caesar into the present day for a four-day visit? Sounds good to both my science-loving side, and my history loving side.

I was expecting something a little dry with lots of history and scholarly references. Something smart, and a little clinical.

What I got was a rich novel that I couldn’t put down.

It was definitely smart. But rather than clinical it was personal. This was all about the characters, for me, which I loved. It was beautifully written, and a unique story.

The pandemic has been hard, and reading this novel turned out to be a bright light.

I got to experience wonder, and awe, the satisfaction that comes from dedicating oneself to a scholarly pursuit - to dedicating oneself to high level values.

There was adventure. Uncertainty. Drama. Hope. Philosophy. Messy, imperfect humans just being messy, imperfect humans.

It reminded me a little bit of The Overstory by Richard Powers, in writing style. Lighter in terms of the narrative. Storytelling which can be complicated, using a gentle, nuanced voice.

So happy I found this novel and had the pleasure of reading it.

Thank you to NetGalley, Megan Edwards, and Imbrifex Books for providing me with an ARC in advance of the March 1, 2022 publication date so that I may provide my fair and honest review.

If you could pick anyone in history to talk to, who would it be? Well, what if it could happen?

A Coin for the Ferryman blends philosophy, sci-fi, and a whole lot of drama into an entertaining read! It's great (and consistent!) that Cassandra's name and the title of this book tie in with Greek mythology. After all, they were planning to pluck Julius Caesar out of time!

Speaking of, I love the concept of the book. Time-travelling shenanigans? Playing around with history and historical figures? Sign me up! Plus, the attention to detail regarding the dangers of time-travelling and said-plucking-out-of-time, from things such as being vulnerable to diseases or altering history, adds to the tension.

That being said, it took some time for the book to gain momentum. Around the end of the first quarter 'till the middle, the plot was unfolding a little slower than expected due to some stray subplots that might've been better acting as backstories. But, right after that things took a turn and the action kept coming!

P.S. That surprise twist at the *very* end caught me off-guard (But I should’ve known!)

Thank you to Netgalley and Imbrifex Books for providing me with the e-arc.

Thank you netgalley for providing an ARC in exchange for a review

What would happen if scientists brought Julius Caesar to the 20th century?

While Julius Caesar isn't my favorite historical figure from this time, it makes sense that he was the chosen by scientists to bring to the present : he's well known, and his life influenced many others.

The plot of this book is very interesting, there are many characters, points of views and periods covered, but the author manages to keep it clear and interesting.

The latin-nerd in me is very happy!

I wasn't sure what to expect when I opened this book and I'm happy to say that I was pleasantly surprised! As a fan of time travel and ancient history, I loved *almost* every moment of this book. While some bits were a bit slow-paced, they fit well within the framework of the story and served to build up to those moments that made the wait worthwhile. My sole gripe was that most of the characters were somewhat unlikeable, but then again, who ever said that characters had to be likeable for a story to be good? My favorite character was undoubtedly Julius Caesar himself. Despite being a historical figure that I despise (I mean, the guy colonized half the world), I found his characterization here to be quite endearing. Edwards didn't recreate some cheap, gimmicky knock-off Julius Caesar, she brought the real one to life. He was calculated and cunning, just like his real-life counterpart, and I loved how he was portrayed as a human being more so than an antique statue brought to life. I would have loved for the other characters to have the same level of development and detail as Caesar and Cassandra had, but alas, c'est la vie. I loved how Edwards weaved in bits and pieces of history throughout the novel, which brought the history itself to life as well. And I was glad that the romance aspect was mild, as I was afraid it would consume the entire plot. A very enjoyable read that I would heartily recommend to anyone who's fascinated by ancient history and the concept of time travel.

An interesting premise not dissimilar to Timeline by Michael Crichton. In this, scientists in a secret lab successfully lift Julius Caesar out of history moments before his murder on the Ides of March and bring him to the 21st Century for 4 days before returning him to Ancient Rome. It's a fun if preposterous lead - the characters' behaviours are a bit 2- dimensional and the main character completely unbelievable as a gorgeous showgirl plucked from Vegas to study Latin. It's daft but enjoyable..

My interest was piqued by the synopsis. I liked the idea, and it was full of all needed “spices” for a good novel: philosophy, history, sci-fi, and a lot of drama. Caesar is one of the greatest characters in human history.
A great portrait of the figure of the one who knew how to rise from complete darkness to become the richest man in the world and has a power capable of ending the Roman Republic. At his death Caesar dominated almost the entire known world and this charisma lasts after more than 2,000 years. I liked how the author made him more human and showed a very sensible face of the entity.
It was so much fun to just imagine how Caesar would react in today’s modern society and how his attitude might be translated to our modern times.

What a fun book - the premise is a great one to start with, the characters are interesting with good depth, and the writing is solid. It was so fun to think about how Caesar would react today, and how his attitude, worldview, everything would translate to how we live now.

This is just a really fun book that flips a few tropes around, with a somehow endearing Caesar (which honestly, is not how I generally would have ever thought Caesar would be) who was still calculating and cunning. I loved how history was woven throughout, that I would recommend to a lot of people but especially those looking for a different type of historical fiction, has a bit of a latin nerd inside them, and has a very clever twist that I really enjoyed. Absolutely worth a read.

Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC.

A coin for the ferryman had me hooked until the last page and for good reason. Edwards creates an incredible atmosphere while at the same time, teaching about historical events. Admittedly, despite being a Classical Studies major, I do not know a lot about Ancient Rome or Julius Caesar and this has definitely opened my eyes to many different things that I didn't know about happened in Ancient Rome (or that I simply knew of but did not know the details). I definitely had a very enjoyable time with this book and will be buying it and checking out more of Edwards' future books!
Thank you to NetGalley for an e-ARC

The well crafted story of " a coin for the ferryman" is a great entertainment, The synopsis introduces the intrigue, and then it is a guessing game ! The book is to be enjoyed bits by bits, just to have the fun to try to guess what will happen next. I am hoping for more now, Megan Edwards produced the best time travel story I ever read !
I want to buy a pile of books to offer as gifts !
All my opinions are mine, I received an advanced copy from NetGalley.

I feel like this book had so much potential it just didn’t hit the right spot for me. Other people would 100% enjoy it but for me it was too complex & tedious throughout. There was a lot of jumping back and forth between past and present and honestly i was lost 99% of the time. Absolutely loved the concept & idea of it i just didn’t personally vibe with the writing style.

Fantastic, Thrilling and Unique.................
A Coin for the Ferryman by Megan Edwards is a fantastic time travel thriller fiction. The plot has everything, from time travel to romance. But, the best part of the book is its climax which will keep you thinking about the plot for a long time. The author has amazingly plotted thrill, adventure and romance in one book. Also, diverse characters make the story more interesting. I would give the book 5 stars.

Time travel x Julius Caesar = one interesting concept; the moment I saw the description for this book, I knew I just HAD to read it. This multiple POV story takes scifi-fantasy realism and interweaves it with historical retellings of Caesar's life, bringing a touching tale with rich depth of character. This was an enjoyable read, at some times fantastical in the most comical way. I did feel that some moments that were supposed to be climactic and consequential to the plot fell a little short—at times I found myself having to flip back a few pages, confused after missing an important plot point. However, the rest of this tale was a delightfully whimsical read, and brought a breath of life through an intersection of topics that usually remain exclusive to academic fields.

We've all been asked at one point, who would you invite to a dinner party, dead or alive?
Andrew Danicek, is a Nobel Laureate who creates a time machine to bring back Julius Caesar from the minute before he dies at the Ides or March.
The book flows like a river through it's twists and turns, while never losing sight of it's main goal.
The characters are well written, and the plot is easy to follow, although the only hole I can see is when Andrew searchs for Andrej, the German boy he stood in for. Why didn't it occur to him to search for Dieter?
This is a beautifully written book that I shall be buying when it's published.

A group of scientists get together in 1999 to conduct a time travel experiment, ringing a person from history into the current times. Cassandra is a young scholar fluent in latin, a skill that is required for bringing Julius Caesar into the future, as she solely is able to communicate with their guest.

When Ceasar arrives, things don't go according to plan. Where they expected to converse and understand more about Caesar's time, the experiment goes wrong and Cassandra and Ceasar are on the run from people wanting to hunt down Caesar.

It has what you would expect, a bit of fish out of water, and whilst other books (eg. 'Look Who's Back') have dealt with the historical figure/fish out of water with a bit more humour, this book takes us through a romance which frankly, we could have done without.

There's a few things that were teased at the start that just didn't go anywhere, which was a shame.

Overall, it was interesting, but the emphasis on a cliched romance left behind some other elements of a story that could be been explored.

Thanks to Imbrifex, Netgally and Ms. Edwards for a free ARC copy. The book started a bit slow and it was hard to fit Caesar inton the story. Once he appeared, the story became exciting and started to speed up a bit. The author did a good job breathing Julius Caesar back to life. This is not the first book about Caesar but this is surely something different. This book is for history buffs and thriller lovers.

I was very intrigued by the summary, and I did enjoy the story.

At the beginning of the book we were introduced to so many characters, and they were all in different situations…It was a little confusing and a bit overwhelming. However, once I knew the characters better it was easier for me to follow. There was a lot of back story in this book and sometimes it felt unnecessary.

I did like the time travel aspect of it. I did wish there was more time with Caesar. I wish his and Cassandra’s relationship was more fleshed out.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

I'm a huge fan of both time travel and Roman history - and overall I really liked this book, tho I wish the character development was more fleshed out. Some of the characters felt one dimensional. Overall I enjoyed it very much.

This book hit all the right notes for a travel book. From timeline to other time travel, historical fiction was impressed with how she pulled this story together. It was an enjoyable read I recommend for others. It becomes a little predictable in the plot but was still a pleasure to read.

What if you bring someone back from the past? But what if you knew you had to send them back to their sure known death? This is a great read. It grabbed me immediately and I couldn’t put it down. Definitely a read for anyone interested in interactions with the past.

I was absolutely gripped from the first page. The characters are immersive and captivating and the story moves along at the perfect pace. I absolutely could not put it down!

Cassandra Fleury, a 20-something-old Latin and Greek student at USC, is brought on as the youngest member of a team headed by the Nobel prize winning scientist Andrew Danicek. The IDES team is tasked with bringing Julius Caesar to the 20th century, pulling him moments before his death on the Ides of March, to ask him some of history's burning questions and then promptly return him to the exact moment in time he was taken from. After a kidnapping attempt on Caesar, Cassandra is the only one who can help return him to his time, and death.

The majority of the story takes place in 1999 and is set between Las Vegas and California. Roughly the first 20% of the book drags and every chapter seemingly shifts POV to a different character we know little about. After a rough start, the story improves drastically and we start to really understand, and remember, the characters we've been introduced to. While it is not without faults (there is an uncomfortable amount of looking at women through the male gaze), it's definitely worth checking out.

Is it far-fetched? Of course, it's time-travelling Julius Caesar. Is it always historically accurate? Eh. Does the author take many, many liberties? Most definitely. But, is it fun? Absolutely.

As a Classics student I did not know what to expect going into this. It's hard to separate historical fact from fiction, but Megan Edwards has presented a story that is fun and delightful to read. Apart from the confusing aspects of time-travel in this book, the only super unbelievable thing was that a 20-something-year-old with only high school knowledge of Latin was more of an expert of the dead language than two PhD holding professors from a prestigious university who have decades more experience.

I really quite enjoyed this tale!

It was a little slow starting but once I got into it, it was hard to put down. I mean, time travel, who doesn't love it! Certainly a twist from the usual time travel but imagine what we could learn if it happened.

Overall I found it an interesting, well laid out story. And the ending didn't disappoint! Thank for to NetGallery for an advance copy for an honest review

Thank you to Imbrifex Books for giving me this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this! A Coin for the Ferryman is an interesting blend of Greco-Roman History and sci-fi that will delight any fan of both. The novel follows a team of researchers who restore Julius Ceaser right before his death at the Ides of March to listen to his perspective on the event. The only problem is how to get him back. The novel is a fascinating insight into Julius Ceaser and an entertaining read. I recommend it for people who are interested in Roman history and the life of Julius Ceaser.

This is the best book I've read ALL YEAR. It was SO GOOD. I swear to god I haven't read a book this good in so long I actually cried when I finished it. I'm not at all exaggerating. This is a new favorite book of all time for me. Whether or not you were considering reading this book, just do it. It is so enjoyable and interesting and intriguing from the very start. Honestly, my only criticism is that she should have married Alexander and her not doing so makes absolutely no sense. In my head and in my future physical copy this is in fact what happens.

When an archaeologist discovers an ancient Roman coin on a Roman archaeological dig that turns out to have been minted in 1996, her colleague and erstwhile lovers decides it's a prank and then cuts her out of his life.

After her death, the heroine of this tale, Cassandra (hmmm!) realises the truth. The possibility that the ambitious CEO of a small multinational company might have successfully brought a key shaper of history from the past to the present for a few days is something she would know about. As a talented speaker of Latin, she was employed to communicate with Július Caesar on his sojourn in the present. Her stunning beauty surely had nothing to do with it....

Hard science-fiction aficionados may be disappointed: the logistics of time travel are kept relatively hazy, though the ugliness of only being able to translate either animal or human shortly before their appointment with sudden, violent death, has nothing nebulous about it. Then, there is the familiar trope of the Mad Scientist, for whom sentiment means nothing. The writer's understanding of the realpolitik of hustling and power dynamics in the world of business is sharply portrayed. Keeping the Ceasar project secret proves to be as difficult as might be imagined, as (greedy) other interests emerge from the woodwork Soon, Caesar and Cassandra are fugitives, as she struggles to get him back to his own time.

Ah yes, Caesar. Again, this writer recognises that a general and despot of this magnitude might proves to be more complex and devious than imagined - and potentially that much more difficult to contain.

Even with the pointed awareness that even today, women are still judged more by their looks than by their talents, there is an element of good-old glamour within the story-telling. Cassandra's first and only date as a call-girl means her sugar daddy is a sugar daddy who expects nothing in return as he sends her to university and beyond. She dines in the best places on exquisite food, mingles with the best-dressed super rich, gets to hide out in the most luxurious hotels.

The suspense remains taut enough to keep those pages turning. If this is likely to appeal on the strength of what has been written here.....you know who you are.

3 stars

In a lot of my reviews, I talk about how the blurb and/or concept of a book is so good before talking about all of the ways that the book let me down. In some ways, A Coin for the Ferryman follows that trend. However, the concept really does carry this somewhat overbloated book enough for it to warrant 3 stars from me.

I mean, it's just so creative. Time traveling Julius Caesar moments before his assassination into the present day? Are you kidding me? In the first two chapters, Edwards really builds up the suspense around this idea by giving us both Caesar's and our protagonist Cassandra's perspectives. From there, however, things do go a bit downhill. There is so much exposition for this huge cast of characters and 50% of it could honestly be cut. Because the novel is so plot-driven, we don't really need every single character's backstory for us to become invested. Honestly, the only thing that kept me going was the promise of this insane time travel plot.

Actually bringing Julius Caesar into the present day is definitely cool and I would say that it is the high point of the novel. Again, however, we have another section that flatlines a bit after a big moment. Considering how wildly the time travel is presented in the first half of the book, it read throughout the second half as a very casual event. All of the high stakes moments involved with what is supposed to be this massive double cross therefore didn't completely hit for me. The choice to completely shift the framing device at the very end of the book is also quite disconcerting and would have been more effective if it had been established as such from the beginning.

All in all, I wasn't completely let down by this book. I enjoyed having it on as I went about my day. I just felt like so much of the book was taken up by needless character information that left little room for the author to actually unearth all of the immense potential that this concept had to offer.

Thank you to NetGalley and Imbrifex Books for an ARC of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review!

I really enjoyed reading this, it starts a bit slow but things speed up quickly and the whole premise is really rather interesting.

A Coin For the Ferryman

by: Megan Edwards

Publication date: March 1, 2022

Review date: November 26, 2021

Many thanks to NetGalley, Imbrifex Books & Megan Edwards for allowing me access to this arc. I’m leaving this review voluntarily. Hi

A Coin For the Ferryman is quite possibly the best book I’ve read so far this year.. I loved Everything about this book & would definitely recommend it to history & fiction lovers alike.. Time travel was never a big interest of mine but Megan Edwards truly is a gifted writer who made it a fun & interesting topic. I’m looking forward to reading more of her work. I give A Coin For the Ferryman 4.5 stars & hope you enjoy this book as much as I did.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

#ACoinForTheFerryman #NetGalley #ImbrifexBooks

I really liked this book, and it was different to most of the other books I’ve been reading lately. In this book we follow Andrew after he builds a time machine and starts to experiment with it. He sets up the IDES project and after multiple positive tests he decides to bring a historical figure to present day, the one and only Julius Caesar. The experiment is successful and they transport Caesar to present day mere moments before he was supposed to be assassinated, but now that he’s here, how on earth are they going to get him back? If Caesar stays in the present day what consequences will there be for the past, and how will it impact on the future?

Although the start was slow, this book was a really fun read and I ended up flying through it from around chapter 10. Definitely recommend this one for a bit of light reading to break up a longer book.

really well imagined? i'm not sure how to describe it, maybe i liked it so much because it reminded me of the librarians from tnt. classics fans are gonna love it.

The first chapter of this book really intrigued me. It was quite an interesting read. If you like historical fiction with a bit of fantasy this might be worth giving a shot.

I chose this read because of my love of both time travel and alternate history literature. In this different spin on time travel efforts the experimenters chose as their first human trial one of the most famous historical personalities, Julius Caesar. Their decision was made without prior certainty that Caesar can actually be returned to his time without detriment to our time. Julius Caesar when provided the opportunity to communicate his own version of his historical accomplishments instead develops a romantic attachment to his interpreter. After their heroic time travel technical accomplishment, the scientific cadre loses their focus entirely enjoying social events, and useless attempts to monetize the presence of Caesar even at the horrific risk of destroying our entire time fabric. I felt the trivialization of such a monumental time travel event lessened the thrill of reading about the achievement.

I would like to thank NetGalley and Imbrifex Books for the chance to read this book . I am sucker for time travel stories. I read any that come my way, and so I have read some good, some bad and some ugly. This book doesn't fit easily into any of my categories. The first part was very good, as the characters were introduced and set up, the middle was a but vague and muddled, and the end was quite satisfying. There are a lot of characters, some of which we meet with a lot of exposition , and never see again. There are others that I really wanted to learn more about. The basics of the story are that in the late 1990's, a team of scientists and latin scholars meet to collaborate on a time machine, the purpose of which is to transport Julius Caesar from Rome, moments before his death, to modern day Pasadena,to spend 4 days talking to him, and learning from him , and then return him to Rome, and his death. Cassandra Fleury is a beautiful blond who lives in Las Vegas and who wants to return to college to continue her Latin Studies. Through a series of events, she is given that chance after a meeting with a billionaire philanthropist. While she is pursing her studies, she is recruited for the time travel project.I enjoyed this early part of the book, as it set the stage , gave us information about the participants and the project in a straightforward manner. The middle part , however, after Caesar comes to America, is a bit confusing and more than a bit ridiculous. There are car chases, double crosses, helicopter shootouts- really more befitting a James Bond movie . I found it hard to believe that Cassandra would immediately become a master at evading criminals through the streets of Pasadena. The end was good , if a bit predictable. There was an epilogue which was clever and satisfying.I am giving it 4 stars, because it was clever and audacious. It did not adhere to "conventional" time travel stories , which have all things changed to due a visitor from the future. The people who met Caesar, were changed, which is explained at the very end. I enjoyed it.

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.

A very interesting book. I studied Latin for 4 years in high school and loved classical civilizations so this book is exactly what I enjoy. I love the details about Rome and all the historical facts. Love the insights into Roman history as well. I enjoy the twist at the end too.

Thanks to the publisher for providing an arc.

(4/5) A time machine brings Julius Caesar into the present for a four day visit, but things never go exactly to plan when you're dealing with the most well known Roman citizen in history. This book is perfect if you're a fan of both time travel and Roman history. I felt like the pace of this book was overall well done, and it didn't get bogged down in small scientific details/explaining every possible loophole or potentially disastrous outcome. There were some slow points, especially early on in the book, but after I reached 50%, I couldn't put it down. I also appreciated having many narrators (though I found some more compelling and well-rounded than others and at some times the characters and storyline felt two-dimensional). Overall, a fun read to start 2022!

A very unique take on a time-traveling narrative. Lots of hidden "Easter eggs" both in "present day" and in the past.
We all know what happened on the Ides of March - now meet the team of the IDES lab who plan to take the opportunity of that day to bring Caesar - briefly - into our own time! The plan is laid out, the team assembled, and the day arrives. - all will go according to plan, right....?
As I began reading this book, I was definitely taken with the range of characters, their backgrounds, and how they would play into the climax we all knew was coming - Julius Caesar brought to our time, thus the second half of this book threw me for a loop. Out of all the characters, the core of the story is Cassandra and Julius. In many way, this book has something for everyone - drama, sci-fi, historical fiction, action, mystery, and romance. You'll even learn some Latin along the way. A good book that you could easily recommend to anyone.

I first want to say how much I appreciated the premise of this book. It's such a clever and fun idea and the story that follows is an immensely fun thought-experiment of sorts that imagines Julius Caesar coming to the future for a few days. With that, I largely enjoyed reading this book. I do feel that it could've been a bit shorter, with the story occasionally offering up too much backstory or other flashbacks that felt like it slowed down the plot at times. Overall though, I did have fun reading it, and it tells a good story.

I saw, I read, I LOVED this book. Imagine, if you can, traveling back in time or better yet being able to bring someone from the past to the present time. A Coin for the Ferryman allows you to do just that in a very convincing way. What I loved about this book, primarily, is that all the ethical questions I had were answered by characters in the book who had the same questions. The scientific questions I had - how can a person survive in this time period - as one example were answered. It was amazing how easily I believed that Caesar had actually stepped from the past into the future. And, he reacted exactly as I thought he should but even better. He acted like someone who ruled an empire, he acted like a survivor. The only negative or drawbacks was the amount of people that I had to keep track of in this book. I actually had to start from the beginning (twice) to keep up with the names, and the dates. Some of the people and events, in my opinion, were merely fillers and not necessary. The characters with similar names (Alexander and Andrew) were a hindrance, and the side stories although not annoying got in the way of the read. I enjoyed the romance with implied versus graphic sexual content, I liked the friendship, and I really appreciated that the protagonist finally realized what I had realized all along - the experiment with someone else's life without knowledge or consent was cruel, and no better than kidnapping. I loved the way the story ended, and if possible would love to see a time-travelling sequel.

What would Julius Caesar, one of the most famous ancient Romans, think about modern society? A Coin for the Ferryman is a creative and entertaining mingle of Greco-Roman History and science fiction that will delight any fan of both. Pinky swear. But, don’t worry, I will explain further.

The narrative involves nearly a dozen characters whose lives intersect because of the dream and will of one determined scientist. Nobel laureate Andrew Danicek hires an elite team of academics, plus Cassandra, a young woman who can speak Latin, to work on a time travel experiment. But he doesn’t want to just bring anyone into the present from the past. He would like to meet Julius Caesar right before his death in the Ides of March.

The start was slow-paced but enjoyable, with fleshed-out characters and interesting backstories. One of the introductory chapters might feel unnecessary, but everything will make sense in the end. We just have to wait for the bigger picture. And, personally, I really liked to see all the little pieces getting together as the story progressed.

When things were established, it read like an action movie, with plenty of suspense and, more or less after 60% of the book, even the blossom of a romance. Most of the story takes place in 1999 and is set between California and Las Vegas. There’s a lot of different POVs, which I thought it was cool and well-executed. I didn’t dislike any character in particular; Faith seemed insufferable for most of the book, but there are actually a lot of good reasons for it. My favourite chapters were probably the ones that focused on Cassandra and Julius Caesar. And, I really have to say it, Caesar was endearing as hell. I loved his cunning side.

About the sci-fi part, I didn’t expect the author to show us all the intricacies of a time travel experiment, but I would have liked to know more about the science behind the project. Despite that, the characters were vividly drawn, as I already have highlighted, and it was a fun adventure. There were enough twists, double-crosses and secret agendas (though I would have liked to know more about people's intentions behind it).

The conundrum about the moral and ethical problems involved in disrupting a life was probably one of the key themes of the story. And I think Caesar's last scenes with Cassandra and the rest of the IDES team give us a lot of food for thought on that matter. But I was also expecting a lot more focus on it. I really wouldn’t mind if Megan Edwards wrote another hundred or two hundred pages.

Thank you to NetGalley and Imbrifex Books for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Note: Thank you to Netgalley & the publishers for allowing me access to this arc!

My review
Overall, this is a good read. I may not have loved it, but you might! I think it is important to say this because the author clearly worked hard on this book, which shows in writing.
However, after reading the intriguing premise, I really wanted this book to be great as a history major. Unfortunately, I was a tad disappointed. It was good, but it didn't blow me out of the water as I had hoped! The book's first half was good, but the second half, not so much. I've read many books that are the opposite, so I was surprised that I was forcing my way through it.

The Good Things
1. The title: talk about CATCHY!
2. The premise is extremely creative and has the potential to be a FANTASTIC story once edited to avoid over-bloating.
3. I tend to be picky about writing styles, and the author is skilled. The book was devoid of any clear writing errors.
4. The climactic event - I don't want to go into too much detail and end up spoiling anything- is great! If the rest of the book read in the same manner, I'd have given it 4-5 stars! 


The Bad Things
1. I feel like there were things at the start of the book that sort of, spurted out?
2. There are many parts of the book that are SLOW. And I have both a history and an English degree, so I've taken part in many slow reads.
3. It COULD use a better cover. I only say this because I have many friends who refuse to read books that don't have a great cover.
4. The climactic event I mentioned above was GREAT, but following it? Not so much. It was a tad too underwhelming for my taste.
5. I feel like Caesar's reaction -or lack thereof- to time traveling isn't as realistic as I would have liked. Obviously, this is a work of fiction, but I would have preferred the character's reaction differently.
6. Around halfway through, I started getting a little bit confused. I feel like the author was almost trying too hard to push an exciting story without focusing on things that don't necessarily help the story. 


My Final Rating:
☆☆☆ (Goodreads)
☆☆☆ (Blog)
☆☆☆ (Amazon - will post the review as soon as the novel is released)

A captivating historical fiction. A team of scientists time travel Julius Caesar before his assassination. Bringing him into the 21st century. I’ve never read anything quite like this novel.

The characters were fleshed out and the story was imaginative.

Cassandra was a showgirl in Vegas who was chosen to study Latin, the idea of the sketchy lab room was not what I was expecting, but none the less it was enjoyable. She was a good fit to be the heroine.

It took me a while to completely finish this novel as the beginning is slow and when I say beginning - basically the first half of the book. Also the lack of emotional depth of Caesar was a bit too well done. He’s never seen the technology in the 21st century and it didn’t give him a big “wow” that I would expect he would have.

Overall, I would give this 4 stars. It was interesting, kept me captivated for the most part and I love the concept of how time travel is used in this book.

Thank you NetGalley for providing the story arc for an honest review.

3/5 stars

Thank you to Netgalley, Edelweiss+, and Imbrifex Books for the opportunity to read and review this novel.

A Coin for the Ferryman by Megan Edwards seemed like an interesting, light read that would have me learning more about mythology and Roman History. For these reasons, I decided to pick up the novel, interested to read it. And for that, I have many thoughts on the book.

Story: I have to say, the beginning of the book was confusing for me. I felt as though the different characters and actions were oddly introduced, and I was quite bored. For this reason, it took me quite a bit to pick this book back up after I read the first couple of chapters. To put it earnestly, I was bored and did not feel as though putting in effort towards the book.

But as I picked it up again, I became more and more intrigued within the plot and the framework for A Coin for the Ferryman. The mysteries of the story became fascinating and I was really enjoying the book now.

The story was okay, if I am entirely honest. It was light and pretty easy to follow once you got more into it, but I have to say, there were moments where it dragged or went off course. I wish that the story and plot was excecuted better, because I feel as though the premise was very interesting and could have been amazing. Overall, I do not have very strong feelings about the story for A Coin for the Ferryman.

Writing: Megan Edwards' writing was splendid. I was really happy with her style, it would make beautiful poetry, I believe. Coming from a logical standpoint, the writing was well done and nicely edited, made for nice reading. Within voice and style, I really did find her writing lovely.

Characters: The complexities of the characters within the book were half baked, it felt like. There was so much that could have been done, but I was still bored with the characters at many points throughout the novel. I think the story would have also been much better if the author incorporated character sub-plots. It just felt lacking.

To conclude, this book was okay. A Coin for the Ferryman could have been great; the beginning aspects were all there, it was just lacking in some ways. I think the writing was beautiful, which made up for some of my disappointment. Overall, I think this was very interesting, but needed to go in different directions. A solid 3/5 stars.

Thank you again for supplying me this novel and giving me the chance to read and review it, Netgalley, Edelweiss+, and Imbrifex publishing!

This was such an interesting read, and tackled time travel in a clever, new way. I really enjoyed the layout of the chapters and how short and easy to read they were. I loved the inclusion of classics and academia into the science world, and how all the different arcs came together. The multiple perspectives and timeline was confusing at first but once i got deeper into the book it was easy to follow. The science and idea of time used by the author made sense, and was easy to follow. This was a really creative story, and I am so glad I read it!

3.5/5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The premise of A COIN FOR THE FERRYMAN is a real bomb. A team of scientists uses revolutionary time-travel technology to bring Julius Ceasar into the future, snatching him from the past moments before his death. They are supposed to bring him back to ancient Rome, but plans like this are supposed to go wrong in sci-fi novels, aren't they?

This book is so much fun that I breezed through all 500 pages of it in a heartbeat. Ceasar, in particular, is well-written, the epitome of a charismatic, calculating politician.

I wish I could say the same about the other characters in the book, but I found them a bit flat, and I questioned half the choices they made throughout the story.

I highly recommend this book for fans of Michael Crichton and Blake Crouch.

I couldn't wait to read a fresh take on the time travel trope. History, science, and just a bit of outlandishness. A fresh and unique take. I really enjoyed it, and would definitely recommend this to anyone looking to read something outside the box. Just don't take the subject matter too seriously. Embrace the story for what it is, and enjoy all the absurdity it contains.

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.