So You Had to Build a Time Machine by Jason Offutt
Narrated by: Emily O'Brien
Publication Date: July 21, 2020 - Available Now!
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Description from NetGalley...
“Skid doesn’t believe in ghosts or time travel or any of that nonsense. A circus runaway-turned-bouncer, she believes in hard work, self-defense, and good, strong coffee. Then, one day, an annoying theoretical physicist named Dave pops into the seat next to her at her least favorite Kansas City bar and disappears into thin air when she punches him (he totally deserved it).

Now, street names are changing, Skid’s favorite muffins are swapping frosting flavors, and Dave keeps reappearing in odd places like the old Sanderson murder house. And that’s only the start of her problems. Something in the world has gone wrong. Terribly wrong. Absolutely f--ked up.

Someone has the nastiest versions of every conceivable reality at their fingertips, and they're not afraid to smash them together. With the help of a smooth-talking haunted-house owner and a linebacker-sized Dungeons and Dragons-loving baker, Skid and Dave set out to save the world from whatever scientific experiment has sent them all dimension-hopping against their will.”
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Thank you to @NetGalley #camcatpublishing @ibpalovesindies for the digital ARC in return for my honest review.
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My thoughts...
So, a baker, a scientist, a haunted house tour guide and a Hello-Kitty-shoes wearing circus woman walked into different worlds...it’s not a joke. It really happened in this time-travel story filled with white-coat wearing praying mantis, Mordor Orcs, Klingon and radioactive dinosaurs. One of those books I’m glad I listened to because the narrator was great, and I really got into the story and was very entertained. This is a laugh-out-loud, crazy, action-packed book. It became convoluted and confusing a couple of times, but do not fret. Just ride-along because it was a great thrill ride. If you are a fan of Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency, role-playing games or the brilliant @jasperfforde you might be entertained by this. It was the kind of weird science I enjoy.

I'm always ready to read a book about time travel. It's been my favorite genre since childhood. This book has a great synopsis. And Klingons, Orcs, dinosaurs and a giant praying mantis that used to be something else. I actually can't get that scene with the praying mantis out of my head! There is action, tight situations and humor. Anything you could ever want from a time travel book. The Miller waves were a great invention by the way.
I did get a little confused occasionally. I had some difficulty keeping track with the timeline. And the reason the time machine was built was somewhat hazy. All in all this is a very good read. I listened to the audio book and the narrator was awesome.
Thank you NetGalley and CamCat Publishing for a copy of this book.

“Skid lay on her stomach, her head turned toward the light. I broke it. I broke my ankle. How the hell am I supposed to save the universe with a broken ankle?”

So You Had To Build A Time Machine is the fifth novel by American author, Jason Offutt. The audio version is narrated by Emily O'Brien. It all starts one Friday night when Skid punches the guy who is trying to chat her up at Slap Happy’s Dance Club, and he disappears before her eyes. Dave says he is a theoretical physicist, and apparently works for a government lab. So maybe it actually started before then?

Brick is on a blind date with a woman who’s not returned from the bathroom (not again!) when he sees the scientist guy fall out of nowhere into the bathroom corridor: he’s dirty, smelly and injured, and shouts a warning before vanishing into thin air. Trouble is, that’s BEFORE he sees Skid punch the same guy, much cleaner, at the bar.

Cordrey Bellamy is leading a ghost tour at the Sanderson Murder House when Dave Collison materialises out of thin air into the hall, right on the spot where Delbert Sanderson murdered his son, Tommy back in 1984. So while his ghost tours are all tricks and con, this is a bonus he is delighted to accept, especially when one of the group identifies him as Tommy Sanderson.

These are not the only strange things they observe, and soon Skid, Brick and Cord are comparing notes until they catch up with Dave, who lays the blame at the door of his boss. Before long, they are heading for that lab: “I can’t believe that with a scientist, a baker and a—” he paused and looked at Skid in the rearview mirror “— a potentially dangerous felon, that I’m the voice of reason. And I cheat honest, hard -working suckers for a living. In no way should we be doing this.”

From there, a rollercoaster ride takes the reader through multiple worlds and times. If it becomes too convoluted to keep straight in the head, the best advice is to go with the flow and enjoy a fun ride that includes orcs, enormous sentient insects, nine-foot-tall non-human primates, fire-breathing radioactive dinosaurs, Klingons, ghosts (maybe), Nazi soldiers, a zombie circus master, alien people-eating mushrooms and a great, horned lizard or two.

Offutt’s characters include an ex-circus knife-thrower, a mad scientist and a former bricklayer who bakes muffins, is a Dungeons and Dragons fan and comes extremely well-prepared for a quest. Hugely entertaining.
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and CamCat Publishing.

This was a fun, exciting story that grabbed me from the beginning, and kept me captivated! The story is insane, I mean, really it's just one wild ride! There is time travel, dinosaurs, alternative dimension, it's just packed with craziness. I would suggest picking this one up, and just buckling in for the ride. You can't try to make sense of it because it's filled with so many outrageous things. It's an extremely fun story, and I recommend it for any time-traveling sci-fi lovers!

I was provided a gifted copy of this book for free. I am leaving my review voluntarily.

This was an awesome adventure with elements and references to some the greatest stories, games and movies around. An adventure for the kid in any of us who has ever wanted to save the day, sword fight, or even face our biggest fears head on. Now I must go catch up on the sleep I missed trying to finish in one sitting this fast paced and twisty tale with a great ending.

Please ignore the rating, I can't send the feedback without a star rating.
I love the title and the quirky description of this book sounded like something I would enjoy. Time travel can be such fun if done right, and I wanted to find out why Dave deserved to be slapped.

I would have loved to listen to the audiobook, but unfortunately I was out of luck. For some reason I can't seem to get it to work. When the download is 100 % complete and I try to listen to it the Netgalley app merely starts downloading it again from 0%. I gave up after three rounds of this.
I am new to the Netgalley app so it's possible I did something wrong.