One other thing I'm having a problem with is the time travel aspect. When she talks about how this works, with the "net" and some other aspects (trying hard not to give anything way) I wonder if there are other books she's written about this that would explain how this works, and she's expecting the reader to know this already.[/quote]
It's been a long time since I read Doomsday Book and To Say Nothing of the Dog, but I seem to recall the time travel stuff being explained in them. Blackout is set in the same universe, but I don't know if the same characters are used. I loved those books, so a quick reread seems in order!

Also finished Roma and will be writing a review - definitely better than Empire. Starting Gilgamesh and a non-fiction book The Spartacus War.