Time in Bob Howard's universe is ticking away. It's not all hearts and flowers, but still a good read. I did find myself flipping numerous pages of explanatory text I didn't need (because I started early with The Atrocity Archives). Stross writes these tales as free-standing stories which is a plus for new converts, but (as discussed by other reviewers) the explanatory text gets tedious if you've been reading them as they come out over the last decade. I just used the NEXT button a lot faster in places. This book could be 2/3 it's current size. No easy answer, but still glad to give Charlie my $$.