Katie Siegel takes on time loops, heartbreak and murder in Out of the Loop, a wildly inventive new cozy mystery.
For over two years, Amie woke up on September 17. No matter what she did or didn’t do, no matter who she spoke to or how far she traveled, Amie could not escape September 17. Until she did.
When Amie finally wakes up on September 18, she’s overjoyed and incredulous. She doesn’t know what landed her in that infernal loop, and she doesn’t understand how she got out. She’s just thankful she finally escaped. But before Amie can make the most of her freedom, she learns that someone murdered her neighbor, Savannah, the day before—on September 17. Was Amie put into the time loop to prevent the murder? Or was she released to solve it? After all, no one knows that day like Amie.
Out of the Loop is wholly original and satisfying. Katie Siegel executes the time loop concept well, striking the perfect balance between explaining the loop’s rules without getting bogged down by them. More importantly, this plot device is central to the mystery. It’s not just something that happened to Amie before she begins sleuthing; Amie’s experiences across the two-year loop help her better understand her present and solve the crime.
This book is more than just its time-defying concept, though. Amie’s relationships with her ex-girlfriend, Ziya, and her neighbor David are integral to the story. Amie and Ziya broke up three months before the loop happened, and they’re trying to figure out how to be in each other’s lives when they still hold complicated feelings. David is Amie’s older, cranky neighbor who spends his time building Rube Goldberg machines; he’s also her chosen family, and the way Amie and David support each other is deeply moving.
Despite being stuck in the loop for over two years, Amie doesn’t really begin to grow or learn from the experience until she makes it back to the present. From there, it’s satisfying to watch her evolution from a young woman who’s scared to make a mistake to one who fearlessly pursues justice and a better life for herself in Out of the Loop.