I like science fiction and time travel. I like the premise of a time when time travel is common and specific rules have been made made to cover it. I like the idea of competition where more than one person may be back to the same time, desiring the same artifact. I like exploring the concept of changing an act in the past causing history to splinter off.

I was not prepared for how much of this novel took place in 535 Rome. Many historical facts are shared in this section and I felt the momentum of the plot slowed down because of it. Readers who like historical fiction may like the novel, especially if they are interested in that Roman time. I would have liked more of the actual time travel experiences and perhaps a little more of the technology involved.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.

This is quite an adventure. I would be great if you could travel through time to see what it was really like in the past. Rabbit has been going back in time for years, but one particular time, he lost the man who went with him. He felt very guilty, and it did affect the funding. He is wondering if he will continue to have a job. When asked to go back in time to get a menorah, he jumps at the chance to right a wrong. There is woman who has been showing up at the same place for the last few times and he doesn't know what her agenda is. While in the past, he runs into someone he never thought he would see. When he goes back to his time, things are in chaos and he and his team are under investigation. Rabbit needs to go back to a time close to the one he was at before, but that is against the law. Can he chance it? Will he be able to get the menorah this time? Will he even return?

I love a good time travel story, and Splinter Effect immediately caught my attention with its intriguing premise. Smithsonian archaeologist Rabbit Ward travels to the past on expeditions to retrieve artifacts just before they are lost to history. While he’s exceptional at his job, he’s haunted by a past failure—twenty years ago, he not only lost the menorah of the Second Temple but also his mentee, Aaron, who became stranded in 455 Rome.

Now, with new evidence placing the menorah in 6th-century Constantinople, Rabbit gets another chance at redemption. However, things quickly spiral out of control. Not only is an unlicensed and frustratingly capable rival, Helen, also hunting for the artifact, but Constantinople itself is on the verge of revolution. The city’s oppressed Jewish population is ready to rise, dangerous factions are at play, and someone is willing to kill to claim the menorah. With Rabbit’s past failures looming over him and new dangers at every turn, time might finally be up—not just for his redemption, but for his life.

One of the most intriguing aspects of Splinter Effect is the world it builds around time travel. In this alternate universe, time travel is legal but prohibitively expensive, meaning only the wealthiest individuals and organizations fund expeditions—often for their own benefit rather than academic research. This adds an interesting layer to the story, highlighting the ethical and financial struggles surrounding time travel.

While most of the book follows Rabbit’s quest to retrieve the artifact in 535 Constantinople, there’s also a secondary storyline involving Aaron, the time traveler left behind in 455 Rome. This aspect of the book was compelling, but I wish it had been more developed. There’s a sense of mystery surrounding Aaron’s fate and how it ties into Rabbit’s current mission, which kept me guessing. That said, my inner detective was way off in trying to predict how things would unfold!

Rabbit is a well-developed protagonist, embodying that classic Indiana Jones mix of intelligence, adventure, and personal flaws. His rivalry with Helen adds an entertaining dynamic, as they reluctantly work together while constantly trying to outmaneuver each other. However, beyond Rabbit and a few key characters, the rest of the cast felt a bit underdeveloped—more like background figures than fully realized individuals.

The book is packed with historical details, which will likely be a treat for history buffs. Rabbit constantly rattles off obscure historical facts about the people, places, and politics of the time. While this adds authenticity and depth to the setting, the frequent info dumps occasionally disrupted the story’s flow. For those less invested in Greek and Roman history, these moments might feel more like interruptions than enhancements.

The pacing is generally steady to fast, with plenty of action, intrigue, and shifting alliances. The second half of the book, where Rabbit and Helen navigate the treacherous world of Constantinople while scheming against each other, was particularly engaging. Despite a few minor frustrations—such as the sometimes heavy-handed historical exposition and underdeveloped side characters—the story kept me hooked.

The ending was a definite highlight, leaving me with a good feeling and a smile. Overall, Splinter Effect is an entertaining time-travel adventure with an intriguing premise, solid character development for Rabbit, and a well-researched historical backdrop. While it didn’t completely blow me away, it was still a fun and worthwhile read.

This is an action packed novel by Andrew Ludington about a time traveling archaeologist “Rabbit” Ward who goes into the past to procure and hide precious artifacts that then can be retrieved when he returns to the present. For a first novel I found it to be well written and the story flows nicely. Twenty years earlier his mission to find a famous menorah and save it from the Vandels who were overrunning Rome and taking all the valuables, was a huge failure. Not only did he not save the menorah he also left behind the son of his sponsor. Was he dead or fated to live in old Rome? Rabbit didn’t know but it wore on him ever since. His last few missions were interrupted by a “stringer” an illegal time traveler, who stole part or all his findings. This caused his sponsorships to wane was he to be forced into retirement by lack if funding? He soon found evidence in a mummy that the menorah he did not get was not lost but in Constantinople when the Romans conquered the Vandels. They had brought it there along with all the other treasures to march it through the streets in victory. With an unusual anonymous sponsorship Rabbit has a chance to redeem himself. In Constantinople everything does not go smoothly. He spots his rival she has been following him, the Jewish population is oppressed and looking toward revolution, there is a faction that is looking to do him harm. One night they catch him watching a warehouse and chase him & he falls into the sea. He can’t get himself up the sea wall but sees a light flickering. He makes it just as the cold water seems to be winning only to find the stringer there to save him. Of course, there is a catch, she wants to team up to get the menorah then when they return they each go their own ways to see who gets to it first. He agrees they work together but can they get the menorah and get back to their transfer spots in time to get home or will they be destined to live the rest of their lives in the past or worse.
Thanks to St Martin’s Press, the author, and Net Galley for allowing me to read an advanced copy for me opinion.

Splinter Effect by Andrew Ludington is a fantastic, adrenaline packed debut novel. I really enjoy a great time travel book that is a mashup of different genres. Splinter Effect is the perfect blend of science fiction, history and thriller. I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough to get to the conclusion of this action-packed book. A huge thank you to St. Martin’s Press/Minotaur Books, the author and NetGalley for the advanced digital copy of the book.

In this adventurous story Rabbit Ward is a time traveling Smithsonian archaeologist who is on the hunt through time to find precious artifacts before they are lost forever to history. However, Rabbit is still haunted, and carries plenty of guilt over his own past mistakes from many years ago. He lost a treasured menorah, and his young protégé Aaron. When new evidence of the menorah surfaces the chase is on to retrieve it. But when Rabbit returns to the past chaos ensues, everything that can go wrong does. As danger closes in will he be able to reclaim the menorah and redeem himself before time actually runs out?

Splinter Effect is an enthralling, highly entertaining, fun debut novel with a satisfying ending. I couldn’t put this excellent book down, and I definitely cannot wait to read more from Andrew Ludington.

Rabbit Ward is a Smithsonian archaeologist who travels through time to secure precious artifacts moments before they are lost to history. Twenty years ago, he lost the menorah of the second temple and his mentee, Aaron. The menorah might be in 6th century Constantinople, and Rabbit sees it as redemption. As soon as he arrives, things go wrong. He's not the only one after the menorah, and Constantinople’s leading gang is after Rabbit. He's desperate to recover the menorah before it's lost again, but time isn't on his side.

The idea of time travel in the service of historical information and archaeology is a fun one. There are laws and conventions about its use, and of course, there are private interests as well as government contracts. The title comes from the idea that altering the past creates a new reality, a splinter of the original place the time jumper came from, which then is its own timeline. Rabbit is called to find the menorah by a manifest in a mummified rabbit, and he enters the past to try to find it. He knows the time period well, making both allies and enemies as he looks for its location, trying to keep a step ahead of his rival. It's more dangerous than he thought, both for himself and the allies, and even the rival.

While there was the constant threat in the past/present as Rabbit tracked down the menorah, he didn't try to change history. His guilt over the past followed him, and the final quarter of the novel sees all the threads come together. Once it does, I had to keep reading to see how it would end. I really enjoyed the story, and the author pulled off the ending. It worked and was very fitting. Definitely worth the read!

Jodi Taylor's St Mary's series might need to smarten up their extremely British...let's be honest, English...monomania if Rabbit of the Smithsonian catches on. Much as I love Max, Peterson, and Markham, they need some competition, and here they've got it.

Opening at (one of the several events leading to) the burning of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Library_of_Alexandria" target="_blank">Library of Alexandria</a> was a genius bait-and-switch. By itself that is an event I would, and have, eagerly read a book about, but here it's only a teaser for Rabbit and his relationship to the Smithsonian. Time travel, inherently threatening to powerful people, is here presented as a tech tightly wrapped in rules. Of course these favor the status quo, and the very, very rich. But I repeat myself...Rabbit's a nepo baby with some time-travel failures behind him including a search for the maguffin in this book, the menorah stolen by Rome from the Jews. It's a real white-whale tale, and not just for Rabbit.

Helen, his antagonist, is also hot for this (solid-gold) candelabra of god's. She's not at all as well-developed as Rabbit is, and frankly I hope they drop her in any future iterations of the book...I didn't like Clive Ronan either (IYKYK). Their reasons aren't explored. I don't think they matter. After all, it's made of gold so greed's more than enough. Here's probably a good place to note that the world as we know it is part of a multiverse. In this splinter (note resemblance to title), there's legal-but-restricted time travel. In others, there's none whether legal or not. You see how immense this storyverse is? Imagine for a moment the things a writer can do in this sandbox!

Earlier versions of this idea have mostly centered around the Time Patrol (<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poul_Anderson_bibliography" target="_blank">Poul Anderson</a>) or The Paratime Police (<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H._Beam_Piper#Paratime" target="_blank">H. Beam Piper</a>) tasked with preventing anyone from causing time loops or retrocausal gubbins or generally being dickish to our hominin ancestors. (I think it's telling that intertemporal stories about <i>Homo sapiens</i> interacting with any earlier species, or even earlier time in history, all contain some fraud or slavery elements.)

Here the only thing remotely criminal is, arguably, the richest benefiting from Rabbit and his ilk going into the past to retrieve things that're lost to history by idiotic violence, sheer human stupidity, or Earth's natural processes (eg, earthquakes or fires). I'm not squeamish enough about this to give the book a black mark. I *am* squeamish about young, hot Helen being Rabbit's nemesis and Doctor PJ being his girlfriend, because absolutely nothing can be left un-romance-ified and of course that means heterosexual. Ugh. There went a half-star. (Though, to be fair, there are hints that Rabbit himself might be, um, heteroflexible.)

The other half-star disappeared because, though I liked the richly detailed world of 536 Constantinople a lot, I'd've liked more people instead of labels talking. It feels more like infidumping when I have no idea who "the customs official" or any of the other so-yclept faceless ones are. Still, four stars is the absolute minimum a book with this ending could possibly receive. Even moreso because, if this isn't a series-starter, I'll eat my hat for breakfast without ketchup.

I'll be right here waiting for more Rabbit. Without a ketchup bottle.

Splinter Effect is a book I wouldn't normally gravitate towards, it involves time travel and I don't tend to pick up books that involve time travel. But, I was given the opportunity to read this book, and it does have one thing I love, and that is history and it sounded so interesting. I am glad I read this one!

Most of the book takes place in 535 C.E. Constantinople. A period of time I really know nothing about.

This book involves time traveling archeologists who recover and conceal important historical artifacts to be recovered when they return to the present. Our main character, Rabbit Ward, is gone back in time to recover a precious menorah. In doing so he encounters many dangers and is racing against the competition.

This book is action packed and the historical aspects are fascinating. As I got to the end, I couldn't put it down.

This is an excellent debut novel for Andrew Ludington and I look forward to more by this authour.

Thank you to Minotaur Books for the advanced digital copy of this book. My opinions are my own.

For more reviews and bookish posts visit: https://www.ManOfLaBook.com

The Splinter Effect by Andrew Ludington is a time travel novel, involving an archeologist looking for a lost menorah. Mr. Ludington is an American author; this is his first novel.

Rabbit Ward, a Smithsonian archeologist travels back in time through a sponsored expedition to secure precious artifacts. But academia is not the only one looking for those objects, Helen, a thief sponsored by rich moguls is also on the prowl.

Attempting to make up for his spectacular failure two decades before, Rabbit is going to get the menorah in 6th century Constantinople. However, he is still haunted by the death of his mentee, Aaron, during his last attempt to secure the artifact.

This is a fast-paced adventure, that takes off from the first page, and keeps going until the end. I can’t believe this is the author’s first book he pulled off the time travel and history narratives brilliantly.

I especially enjoyed how Andrew Ludington envisioned the time-travel society. Traveling is highly regulated because it uses a small nuclear reactor, you cannot travel to the same place twice; non-profit and for-profit industries are competing for artifacts. You cannot bring anything back with you, the archeologists or thieves need to bury the artifact and hope it won’t be found for thousands of years when they go back. And the travelers’ age in real-time, if you go back for several weeks, and come back a second after you left, you’re still several weeks older.

The title, The Splinter Effect, refers to the theory that if travelers change something, reality splinters, but they’ll never know. They just continue to exist in the same timeline.

The book is methodical and clear, the backstory is interesting and doesn’t interfere with the main narrative. Quite the opposite, the backstory is just as exciting as the hunt for the menorah.

This is a solid book, the action sequences are fun and exciting. I liked the characters, both Rabbit and Helen as well as the supportive cast. It’s quick and enjoyable even if you’re not fully invested in the science fiction or historical fiction genres.

Andrew Ludington’s debut novel, “Splinter Effect”, takes us into the fascinating world of the Roman Empire, 535 CE, and modern day archeology enhanced by time travel. Transporting back in time to learn where to find archeological treasures in the present can be exhilarating—and deadly. As the government moves deeper into chronoarcheology, so do bad actors, creating dangerous situations and intrigue. The book is a refreshing spin on the traditional genre of time travel, and a fun read. Rich in historical details and well written, I highly recommend it to those who enjoy history and/or suspense.

Thanks to NetGalley for the book!

This is a very interesting book. I love this idea of being able to travel back in time to grab historical items, and to learn about history. I also loved that Rabbit was kind of able to deal with some past mistakes that had been haunting him over his career. I also enjoyed that this book was realistic, in the manner it was laid out, as realistic as a time travel book could be. I already have started recommending this book to a couple of different people who I think will just fall in love with this book and its concepts.
Thank you so much to St. Martin’s Press and Netgalley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this title.

Time travel is crazy in Splinter Effect. Andrew Ludington takes us on a wild ride into the past. Dr. Rabbit Ward has been time traveling for thirty years. Laws are in place regulating time travel, but now “illegal” travelers are competing for artifacts. Complications ensue for Rabbit as one traveler stalks him and steals the artifacts before they can retrieve them in real time.

I love the history told here. It was fascinating and I do have to say that I agree with one of the audience members that a historian should go back in the past because of the knowledge to be learned. Wow. The descriptions are beautiful. I wanted to go back in the past too except history is not kind to women (shrug).

The action is plentiful. The author keeps us hopping. I kind of guessed the “big twist”, but the ride is still a good time. If you like Alan Quartermaine type stories, then read Splinter Effect. I can’t wait for the next wild ride as Goodreads says this is the first in the series.

What if one could travel back in time and save artifacts lost to time? The caveat is that you can not alter events or the timeline will splinter, and you might forever lose the item gone back for. That is the premise of this story about a time traveling archeologist. Throw in a woman doing the same thing for an organization with its own nefarious agenda. The story does give some highlights of one point of time in history. Definitely action, adventure, and suspense as the reader isn't sure if everything will come out ok in the end. It's an enjoyable read.
I received an ARC copy from NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions are my own.

Splinter Effect is a time travel novel, with a twist: historians go back in time to find historical objects that were lost to history, hide them somewhere, then return to their own time and dig them up for display. The time travel equipment they use is strictly regulated, and travelers can only return to their own time via a specific decay point - the same point from which they entered the past. Miss your decay point, and you'll live out your life in the past... or so the science says; no one has ever tested it, because the risks are simply too high. Likewise, travelers are not to make any significant changes to the past - which is why they look for lost treasures - lest the time line splinter and create a new reality.

Dr. Robert "Rabbit" Ward is one such traveler, seeking a lost menorah from the time of the Romans, around 550 CE. But his first attempt at retrieving the menorah goes horribly wrong, including leaving his mentee in the past so he can get back himself. Will a second attempt be more successful? You'll have to read the novel to find out.

This novel is appropriate for older teens and adults, in part due to the political implications of some of the story; those unfamiliar with the history of the Jewish people during Roman times may have difficulty understanding some of the finer details, and some may find it difficult to read.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book provided by Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

In Splinter Effect, Rabbit Ward is an experienced time traveling archaeologist who has made one too many mistakes in his past. A mentee, the impetuous young son of his founders, has been left in the past. A rival has stolen half of his treasures on his most recent visit to the past. He has one last chance to redeem his reputation. On this trip, he is looking for the Jewish menorah of the Second Temple in 535 BCE Constantinople. Rabbit will meet many famous people and have many adventures during his search for the artifact.

I loved the idea of mixing a Dan Brown history-based thriller with a science fiction plot. However, this book lagged quite a bit with long passages about ancient history that I personally didn’t care about at all. There was very little explanation of how the modern world discovered and regulated time travel. In fact, the present had almost no world-building at all.

As a science fiction fan, I wouldn’t recommend this book. It works for thriller fans who are willing to skip long paragraphs of historical data. Splinter Effect will suit historical fiction fans especially those interested in Ancient Greece and Roman history the best. For me, 3 stars.

Thanks to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for providing me with an advanced review copy.

Andrew Ludington’s "Splinter Effect" is a masterfully woven narrative that elegantly dances between the past and the present. This dual-timeline approach provides a rich tapestry of events that keep readers engaged from start to finish.

Set against a backdrop of mystery and intrigue, the story follows the protagonist's journey, revealing secrets and unraveling truths that have been buried for years. Ludington's ability to seamlessly transition between timelines is impressive, offering glimpses of the protagonist’s past while juxtaposing them with the present-day consequences of those actions. This structure adds depth to the characters and amplifies the emotional impact of their journeys.

The writing is crisp and evocative, with vivid descriptions that bring each scene to life. The pacing is well-maintained, ensuring that the reader is never lost or overwhelmed by the shifts in time. One of the standout aspects of "Splinter Effect" is Ludington’s character development. Each character is meticulously crafted, with motivations and backstories that feel authentic and compelling.

This debut novel is set in a world just like our own, but where time travel exists and is used mostly by government agencies and private sponsors to recover artifacts. Main character Rabbit is an archaeologist still haunted by losing a young coworker twenty years ago on a mission to ancient Rome to recover a special menorah from Jerusalem. When he finds out there is another possible mission to retrieve it from ancient Constantinople, he gets himself involved but things are complicated as many people are vying for it.

This was such a fun read, combining historical fiction, adventure, and time travel. Imagine if a Dan Brown book was crossed with the tv show Timeless. I literally know nothing about ancient Constantinople but this book made me feel like I could picture it and I enjoyed the many twists and turns of the plot. Would make a great tv show or movie, and I’ll definitely be on board to read the sequel this book seems to be setting up for.

I love time travel books!
This book felt like a history lesson at times. I was really wanting more time travel. I did think the last third of the book was more interesting. There were surprises I wasn’t expecting. I would be interested in seeing where this series goes.

A thrilling archeological adventure with a side of time travel, capitalism, and systemic religious oppression. I loved the concept of this one - chronoarcheologists trained not just in history but in combat go back in time to find precious objects that have been lost in time, hiding them in a place they can be dug up in the future. Of course, this all works because they aren’t changing things that are well known in history, they are simply relocating objects that they know have been missing for centuries, aka doing what has already happened. These objects were always lost/hidden, they just didn’t know where to find them until they sent the archeologist back to do the losing/hiding.

Of course, sometimes you might accidentally change something major, and that’s when the splinter effect comes in - the timeline splinters, and from that point forward, everything in that past is a new timeline, and when you jump back, you’re in your original timeline, with no access to the splintered universe. So you can’t just, say, go back in time and kill Hitler, or steal the Mona Lisa, or tell Hamilton not to throw away his shot. There are real limitations and ramifications for messing things up in the past.

And it’s not all fun action and adventure - if you don’t make the jump point back in time, you are stuck forever, and if you leave someone behind, you live with that guilt forever. Our “hero” Rabbit isn’t always a likable character, but you can see why he acts the way he does and how he changes throughout the course of this book, as he is truly forced to confront the ramifications of his lifetime of work and had to decide what kind of person he wants to be from that point on.

I loved getting to spend time with our mysterious co-archeologist, Helen, and my primary complaint about this book is we don’t get to know her nearly well enough. The things she says to Rabbit hint at her connection to people from his past and some sort of reason she might be working illegally when she has the knowledge and skills to be legit, but we don’t get any answers, even when Rabbit interacts with people from her secret organization.

As for the primary mystery of this book, I don’t want to spoil any of the twists and turns but there are definitely some that I did not see coming, but make total sense plot wise (and I’m sure other less oblivious readers will catch on before I did). I loved going back into the past and experiencing with Rabbit what it might be like to live in a different time and place. There would be some advantages to knowing what was coming, obviously, but there would also be plenty of things that would be difficult to adjust to. The menorah as the primary objective was an interesting one - an object of religious, political, and artistic significance, both in the past and present, would be a great find, and you can see how people could become fanatically obsessed with recovering it.

All in all, this was an easy adventure to read, and I’m hoping there will be a sequel or a series of some sort, because I want more Helen!

Thanks to NetGalley and Minotaur for an advance copy of this book for review purposes. You can grab it in stores or your local library beginning this week!

Splinter Effect by Andrew Ludington

This was a very promising debut!
I have been trying to read outside my comfort zone - I try to make sure I don’t get into a rut where I only read the same authors all the time. Also, I’ve been reading a lot of fantasy lately and I decided to more actively seek out more science fiction books.

So a few months back, when I got an email from NetGalley telling me I was auto-approved for a bunch of books by authors I had never heard of, I decided to say “what the heck!” And I downloaded all of them, thinking maybe I’d find something good, maybe I wouldn’t. So I was very pleased when I started reading and realized/remembered that this was a time traveling archeologist book!

In premise, this book felt like it was trying to be Connie Willis mixed with Indiana Jones.

Now, I absolutely adore Connie Willis and her Oxford time traveling historians, and the premise revealed in To Say Nothing Of The Dog that items about to be destroyed in history can be removed from their original time and brought back to the present/future. At first I thought this book might be in conversation with that book, but I don’t think so. I don’t think this author is that familiar with a lot of other SF books, because this book often felt like a trope-fest crossed with a Byzantine history course - But fun! I’m not adequately conveying how much fun this book was or how much of a page turner it was. Even though the main character was too morose and too good at everything, and the twist was able to be seen a mile away, and the science of the time travel did not seem well thought out, I didn’t want to put this down! I really enjoyed it, flaws and all, and look forward to the next book in the series.