A cinematic novel with good historical context.

The short length of the novel did not bother me, though it’s part of a series, and the first book is 160 pages long. The perspective does not shift, so it is easy to follow along with the main character without being distracted by the camera zooming back to take in the other characters, as if the events were taking place in a snowglobe with the main character at the center.

You may have seen similar plots and characters before, but they work in the way the author uses them. Mainly, the way the author tells a story makes for smooth reading.

The plot is often advanced by dialogue, and the dialogue is not dry; it will give you a sense of character. The internal monologues are effective, and even charismatic.
It starts out with a deceptively realistic setting. The first person career-minded female narrator is a likable heroine.

The selling point for many will be the details that pinpoint time and place, setting the scenes in ancient times. There is a lot of fun to be had with this novel, written as it is, in a casual, easy-to-read style.

If you are overly concerned with explaining every aspect of a story, like how time travel works or how individuals are able to interact with past events and long-dead people, you will likely take umbrage at the many liberties this book takes. I would not call it a work of hard science fiction for that reason. It is rather a time-travel story with elements of romance, fantasy and historical drama. The focus is the history, not the science.

I thought it might have been even more interesting if the main character was transported through time and had to rely more on her wits to figure out what happened. Instead she has to doubt her companions, as any intelligent person would in her situation, but still cope with their agency for a while.

The author obviously enjoys history and wanted to pass on some of that enjoyment to the reader. I feel that the purpose of this book was to take a short trip through time and discover an adventure that is both exciting and which communicates a valuable message.

If you are a fan of Connie Willis’ Domesday Book, give this one a try.

PS> I received an advanced review copy for free in exchange for a review.
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[Disclaimer: I got this book via LibraryThing's Early Reviewer program]
The first thing to know about this book is that the title is misleading. True, the text explains why it says "phoenix", but the "fields of Mars" are not related to the Red Planet but just to the battlefields.
The book starts in the present days' Jerusalem (with some explanations which are a bit patronising for an European - this is the weakest part of the book), but Kyla Marshall, the main character got pushed back to 8 A.D. together with four soldiers. No, Jesus Christ is not directly related to the story: the soldiers must stop a rogue scientist who went back in time to spread a deadly virus among the Germans - does anybody remember the sentence "Quintili Vare, legiones redde!" spoken by Augustus? The story runs well, but I could not stand that the plot comes to Venice. True, Regio Venetia then existed: but it took four centuries for the city to be established... ( )

This is a placeholder review for PHOENIX: FIELD OF MARS, by Jackie Anders, which I received through LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program. Do not consider it a completed review until I assign it a star rating.