Marian Creighton is running out of time. Her exhaustive research into a cure for her sister's genetic disease comes to a sudden halt when she learns that her father is in a coma. She flies to his home in Canterbury, where she discovers his latest findings. Believing he has found holy water containing traces of the Tree of Life, he leaves Marian clues that suggest he has time traveled to the Middle Ages to collect more water and bring it back to the present. Using his research, Marian follows him back in time and lands in the middle of a violent rebellion. She encounters knight William Durham and marries him, ensuring her safety. As Marian hunts for the healing water, she finds herself divided between her mission to save her sister and her new husband. Readers will cheer for Marian's sharp wit and courage as a contemporary woman coping with medieval gender restrictions. Fans of time-travel romance will be captivated by this sweeping tale full of suspense and intrigue and eager for the second book in Hedlund's Waters of Time series.

When Marian receives a call informing her that her father is in a coma, she races to London. She and her father had spoken on the phone only the day before, when they discussed a cure for Marian's sister's cancer. Marian had approached the topic scientifically, while her father had wanted to seek cures from the Tree of Life and a saint's holy water. When Marian gets to London, she delves into her father's notes with the help of Harrison, a family friend, and realizes that her father has discovered a way to bridge gaps in time by splitting his body between two realities using the holy water. Marian's experiments with the technique take her to 1381 England. She must figure out how to return to the present--that is, if she wants to return, since she's met the man of her dreams in 1381. The book's only jarring note is an Asian driver named Bojing, a two-dimensional character who seems to serve no purpose; he's the only person of color mentioned. VERDICT Hedlund (An Uncertain Choice) uses time travel, biblical knowledge, and history to create a thriller that will appeal to fans of Dan Brown's The da Vinci Code. Recommended for libraries where Christian speculative fiction is popular, since this novel might not appeal to Hedlund's usual readers.--Melanie C. Duncan, Washington Memorial Lib., Macon, GA