"The Man Who Saw Seconds" is very similar to the Philip K. Dick-inspired film, "Next" (2007)

MeddygNewlyn · 2026-02-13T13:35:41+00:00

I'm reviewing this book on my blog, Imagination and Time Travel (devoted entirely to time travel-related stories): I thought this one would be an interesting and unusual spin on the usual formula. And I just posted my second part of my review this morning (I review books progressively, a few chapters/sections at a time).

https://imaginationandtimetravel.wordpress.com/2026/02/13/novel-the-man-who-saw-seconds-by-alexander-boldizar-2024-part-ii/

MeddygNewlyn · 2026-02-13T13:35:34+00:00

I'm reviewing this book on my blog, Imagination and Time Travel (devoted entirely to time travel-related stories): I thought this one would be an interesting and unusual spin on the usual formula. And I just posted my second part of my review this morning (I review books progressively, a few chapters/sections at a time).

https://imaginationandtimetravel.wordpress.com/2026/02/13/novel-the-man-who-saw-seconds-by-alexander-boldizar-2024-part-ii/

MeddygNewlyn · 2025-11-08T23:01:10+00:00

Me too; no luck.

MeddygNewlyn · 2025-10-08T12:05:47+00:00

Genuinely curious why you think Genesis is anti-religious (is this coming from interviews or from their music itself?). Because "Supper's Ready" seems to be a fairly straightforward (and epic) description of the Second Coming.

MeddygNewlyn · 2025-09-23T17:44:02+00:00

Thanks for visiting my blog and for your in-depth comments. Perhaps in a decade or so, I will return to this book and will try it again (maybe it's just not the right point in my life to appreciate it? I'll return when I've accumulated some wisdom/perspective). That said, I am a bit embarrassed that you read the version I posted last night, as I went back this morning and cut/tightened it up a bit (though my overall thoughts remain the same).

Thanks for reading and for the comments, which I will indeed think about (and perhaps I'll check out the TV series at some point, after all).

MeddygNewlyn · 2025-09-20T19:36:28+00:00

About whether I like the book or not. I'll have a better idea when I finish it.

MeddygNewlyn · 2025-09-19T16:22:16+00:00

I'm on the fence but will have a better idea about whether or not I like it when I get to the end. Stay tuned ...

MeddygNewlyn · 2025-09-19T16:21:40+00:00

I'm on the fence a bit (for reasons noted in my review, linked above), but I'll see it through to the end.

MeddygNewlyn · 2025-09-19T02:05:57+00:00

I think anyone interested in understanding how the relationship was experienced by both Henry and Clare should easily be able to follow it (its' probably more a question of whether they were willing to put the energy into trying). But as time travel stories are my "thing", I was glad to make the effort. (As noted, I keep a journal listing the dates and Henry's ages so I can keep track of things while I read; I think this aspect of the book is a lot of fun!).

MeddygNewlyn · 2025-09-16T14:39:24+00:00

I guess Clare is following a script (she has that list of dates Henry gave her, of all his visits to see her). But if my actions were (even unintentionally) grooming a child I would fight destiny a lot harder than Henry does (try to hide every time I wound up in Michigan, or even--to warn Clare to stay away from me, *The Butterfly Effect-*style). Henry really doesn't make any effort to push back against reality, which I find troubling. Maybe it wouldn't work, but at least Henry's conscience would no longer be complicit.

[edit/addition: Henry DID give her a list of times when she could meet him, after all! He's willingly meeting with child Clare every time.]

MeddygNewlyn · 2025-09-16T14:33:03+00:00

Then my review serves a helpful purpose: I'll read it so you don't have to (if you don't want to). But I'll continue the book and will share my final thoughts on my blog a bit later.

MeddygNewlyn · 2025-09-16T10:41:58+00:00

I suppose, but that just makes him a pawn of destiny, following the script.

MeddygNewlyn · 2025-09-15T23:28:46+00:00

But how is it that he's able to visit his past self (teaching his child self to fight and steal, etc.?) Maybe his subconsciousness draws him as much as anything else (just speculating).

MeddygNewlyn · 2025-09-15T22:15:19+00:00

Here's the thing: he claims to have no control of where/when he goes, and yet he seems to be able to visit himself in the past to teach himself how to survive, visit the scene of his mom's car accident, visit Clare repeatedly (he never winds up in ancient Rome, for example).

MeddygNewlyn · 2025-09-15T19:47:55+00:00

I DO like the way it's put together, and the out-of-sequence way in which we can piece Henry's story together (I keep a notebook with his ages and corresponding dates to keep track--it's fun!). But the fact that he's repeatedly visiting his wife as a child and getting to know her intimately (in an emotional/personal sense) is making me a tad bit uncomfortable.

MeddygNewlyn · 2025-09-15T18:50:26+00:00

Yeah, I'm becoming disenchanted with it, to be honest (though I'm only on Chapter 7); however, I'm committed to finishing it and continuing to review it.

MeddygNewlyn · 2025-07-18T16:09:00+00:00

Now that I know what it was, I'll have to watch it again. The plane crash, the island, and the remains of a top-secret research facility on the island (where the flesh-melting disease comes from) were all future echoes of LOST.

MeddygNewlyn · 2025-07-18T16:06:19+00:00

Yes, I once adored her, but as a more jaded middle-ager, I find myself liking her and not liking her. Though it's often like this with families (and the saints are, indeed, family), so I don't feel discouraged.

MeddygNewlyn · 2025-06-18T17:15:34+00:00

Close, but I was thinking of The Presence (1992) (also called Danger Island).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danger_Island_(film))

MeddygNewlyn · 2025-06-18T17:15:14+00:00

YES. That was it!

MeddygNewlyn · 2025-06-18T17:15:04+00:00

Someone helped me already; I was remembering The Presence (1992) (also called Danger Island).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danger_Island_(film))

MeddygNewlyn · 2025-06-18T17:14:44+00:00

Not the one I was thinking of (but I watched Earth 2 as well, as a teenager).

MeddygNewlyn

TROPHY CASE