Dawn Kimberly Johnson

Time travel is complicated. Not just the basic logic of it (how does it work and what about all those paradoxes), but also the consequences of interfering in history. This sequel of ‘One Constant’ focuses less on the mechanics, and more on what happens to the people who travel in time as well as those who are saved. In this specific case, the author has decided to follow a couple of men whose story started in book one, then continues in this sequel. But it is no longer just them who are affected. In a ripple effect, the events of previous trips to save Barnaby multiple times now affect not just temporal agent Charleston, the man who fell in love with him, but all the people in Barnaby’s and Charleston’s lives and a few more as well. This second book is a fascinating tale of a love that seems doomed, of people who struggle with the morality of saving some and not others, and a thriller-like story of Barnaby and Charleston fighting for their lives.

Charleston told the first part of the story, and he is still one of the two main characters involved in telling us what happens next. Some would say he has defied Fate by rescuing Barnaby more than once, but who is to say what Fate, if it exists, has mapped out for anyone? Seven years after his last “step” in time, a non-approved trip in time to save Barnaby from a loveless marriage, Charleston is ready to catch up with Barnaby in his own timeline. I guess my wish for these guys to get a break and for things to be a little easier was too much to hope for with these two. Right from the start the action explodes off the pages as they fight for their lives, get chased around the USA by assassins hired by a villain with an agenda, and only slowly begin to figure out who is after them. No less than a conservative senator is out to “erase” Barnaby and everyone else who has ever been “restored” by the team Charleston used to work for. A team that is about to be dismantled… Charleston’s determination to keep Barnaby alive and stay with him is palpable, and his desperation every time they hit a snag (which is frequently!) is heartbreaking.

Barnaby remembers every single time that Charleston has saved him from death. He has fallen in love with his “mysterious hero” but since nobody else has ever seen him (except his stepfather who has had a massive stroke), they all doubt his mental faculties. And when Charleston does appear, Barnaby is too busy trying to save both their lives to revel in having been right all along. Even though Barnaby is a “mere” artist, not a temporal agent who has been trained to deal with all kinds of tough situations, he is more than able to hold his own. He is not easily deterred from doing what he thinks is right, ably defends himself both physically and verbally, and is a true partner for Charleston – more than I ever suspected. He is also the one on whom the ultimate outcome of this story depends, and I liked that a lot. More proof that he and Charleston are meant to be together, no matter what some supposedly god-fearing conservative religious fanatic believes.

I loved the romance of this story and that I finally got to see and experience the happy end for Barnaby and Charleston. It took them a while to get there, and I was biting my nails most of the way, but this second story was even more moving than the first. The relief at the end was hard-earned, that’s for sure! As for the way the author engineered the finer points of the story and some of the more technical details – that was pure genius!

If you like time travel stories with several twists, if you are a romantic at heart, and if you prefer your stories with more than a touch of suspense, action, and emotion, then you will probably like this very touching novel as much as I did. Absolutely breathtaking!


NOTE: This book was provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.… (meer)