Ace Hall: December 2008 Archives

It is inexorably obvious that British born New York Times and USA Today bestselling author A. J. Hartley has an affinity for archaeology, as his books take readers on a visually explosive rollercoaster ride that melds fact and fiction.

Hartleyʼs newest thriller, What Time Devours unleashes protagonist Thomas Knight from the crypts of standalones. It seems over the two-book series Knightʼs arc revolves around his acceptance of his destiny, as he goes from a down-and-out teacher, contemplating suicide, to a trail-blazer covering the globe, solving mysteries.

In A. J. Hartleyʼs previous novel, The Fifth Day, Knight has an estranged relationship with his brother but when his brother is killed, feels like he owes something to him and follows a trail of secrets to unveil what happened. Now, after having that mystery behind him, we see Thomas Knightʼs arc develop more as A. J. Hartley brilliantly takes us into his third novel, What Time Devours. Hartley draws the reader in with a centuries-old mystery that surrounds a long-lost rare, priceless Shakespearean play. To find it, Thomas Knight will have to enter a beguiling story which drags loss and death after it like one of Shakespeare's tragedies. It is a mystery, Thomas Knight finds, that is bound to time and all it devours.

A. J. Hartley has authored three novels published by Berkley/Penguin: The Mask of Atreus, April 2006, On The Fifth Day, July 2007 and now his third What Time Devours, January 2009. He also has a fantasy series coming out in February 2009, published by Tor books, entitled Act of Will. Visit A.J. Hartley's website at www.ajhartley.net.

Contributing editor Ace Antonio Hall is the former Creative Director for The Hollywood Actors Academy. He is the author of Distorted Minds and is working on his first novel, a futuristic thriller called DEAD WORLD LIVING.