by Shanna Lauffey

This episode really kicks the series into gear. Marcus gets a lot of character development and both he and Kallie broaden their travels to places that the author has obviously been to and knows well.

There's a lot of excitement and firepower in this one. I don't want to give spoilers but we get to travel through multiple states and move right into the enemy's den. There's more demonstration of the potential of short term time travel and ways it can be used to get away with all sorts of things.

An amazing adventure in a series that just keeps getting better with every installment!

by Alwyn Hamilton

After reading the first story in this series, I really wanted to continue. The first chapter of this second volume recaps some of what went on in Rebel of the Sands and reminds the reader of the most important characters from that book. Then we're quickly into new adventures.

There is continuity in that the rebellion is still striving to overthrow Ahmed's brother and the beautiful mythology begun in the first book continues and expands, but the action is turned up a notch and some new perspective comes into Amani's adventures. In many ways this story is even better than the first one! It also recaptures the exotic, mock-Arabic atmosphere of the first book and the fascinating variations on Djinni magic are very imaginative.

Amani is put in one situation after another that looks like she may not be able to get out of this time, and some old friends and acquaintances reappear with new significance. The story had me gripped and wanting to just keep reading all the way to the end, apart from one very dramatic scene that was so powerful that I had to put the book down for a few minutes to assimilate the rush of emotion.

The story gave me a real roller coaster of emotions from joy to tragedy. It also had me constantly wondering who could be trusted and who couldn't and was full of surprises!

The end wraps up the current situation, but leaves us in a place where there is definitely more to tell. I often complain about that in first books but I don't mind it so much in a second book because I've committed to the series of my own free will then. The next book is predicted for 2018 and I will have to wait

This series is some of the best Fantasy I've read this century. I can't recommend it highly enough.

by Shanna Lauffey

This is the final episode of a ten volume series. I should say serial because it's continuous and the books are best read in order.

I seldom read a series all the way through, but this one kept my interest and left me feeling very satisfied. Probably the most climactic drama was in episode nine and the series could have stopped there, but having read this one now I have to say, yeah it was needed.

There are some new elements in Kallie's life as well as connections to old ones. Her character development is nicely evolved in this one and all the loose ends of the series are tied up neatly. I was happy to see Marcus back in the picture and I finally understand Connor, who has been a bit of an enigma in recent episodes.

I do wonder about back story on some of the peripheral characters, but that just shows how invested I got into this world. If the author ever writes more stories about these characters like Anne Rice did with some of her vampires, I'll definitely want to read them!

by Shanna Lauffey

This is the fifth book in the series and the plot convolutions just get more interesting. One of the high points of this episode is that we finally meet Harlan, the time traveler Physicist who has been mentioned a few times since the beginning.

I love good science in a time travel novel and this one has obviously been well researched. I found myself looking up information on particle physics and finding books referred to that really exist. I now know a few names of top real life scientists in the field of temporal physics!

The beauty of it though, is that the story flows neatly despite the scientific information and it is accessible to the common person. I've never studied physics, but I followed just fine.

Apart from that, the character development continues to grow. There were multiple points of view and I'm starting to really get to know the subtleties of Marcus. We also get a look into some of Kallie's background and the changes that have happened over time with Connor start to come into focus.

It's tricky to review a book this far into a series because I don't want to write spoilers for previous episodes, but the plot deepens and takes some interesting turns. These are just getting better as they go along.

If you like time travel stories at all, read this series!

by Mary Stewart

This is the second book of the Merlin Trilogy by Mary Stewart. It begins where the first book left off, taking us through the lead up to the birth of Arthur through to the moment he is recognised as rightful king.

Most of the story focuses on Merlin himself and his travels as he keeps track of what is going on in the kingdom, making a point of learning what factions are loyal to the king and which pose a threat or which petty kings become overly ambitious when the only son of the High King is not visible to the people.

Like the first book, there are accurate historical references couched within the fantasy element and the story is told in first person in a rich storyteller's tone. The discovery of the legendary sword Excaliber (aka Caliburn) is pure artistic licence, but believable as any of the less practical legends or more so and pulls the story together so that the accepted elements of the Arthurian legend remain mostly intact.

Stewart veers off the traditional track a little with her characters, changing the parentage of Morgan LeFay and splitting her into two characters to fill different purposes. In this her version is entirely her own. She quotes a legend at the end to support the character of Morgause, but gives no reference and I've never seen it anywhere else.

In the latter part of the book, we get to know Arthur as a young man a little. I did feel this part became rushed and the last couple of chapters seemed to skim past the well known elements of the legend far too quickly. Despite my misgivings about the changes she has made to those legends, Mary Stewart tells a deeply atmospheric story and I've enjoyed reading it very much.