npr book review lead me to read the first chapter, which lead me to add this to my books to read: s a young laborer helping to build the New York subway tunnels in 1900, Peter Force encounters a beautiful but tattered-looking woman who claims to be from a different time and place. Their growing friendship — and ultimately love for each other — lead the two on a path to save the world from the effects of time travel if a machine that makes it possible falls into the wrong hands. Flaming casts Nikola Tesla and Thomas Edison as rivals eager to claim this scientific invention, while financier J.P. Morgan covets its potential moneymaking possibilities.

Combining real historical figures with fictional characters gives the story a layer of wonderment about what's real — or at least possible. You've got to love a book that messes with your mind and then leaves you smiling and pondering at the end. It's not often one can say this, but the ending of this book is just perfect.