"Guardian," Angela Knight

Pros: Wonderful time-traveling action/adventure with plenty of sizzling romance!
Cons: None
Rating: 5 out of 5

Review book (uncorrected proof) courtesy of Penguin Group.
Expected publication date: 5/5/2009.
Visit Angela Knight online.

Angela Knight first hit my radar with her novel Warrior, which I received for review last Spring. It’s a novel that takes place partially in our modern world, and partially not. In our future, time-travel is real, as are genetically engineered humans, cyber-enhancement, and so on. The job of the Temporal Enforcers is to make sure time travelers don’t screw up the past. This is an easier job than it sounds, simply because altering history is much harder than one might think. It still has plenty of dangers, however. In Warrior, Temporal Enforcer Galar saved the life of a modern-day artist who was targeted by a fanatical Xeran killer—and no one is sure why. When Jessica begins to develop strange abilities of her own and a traitor turns up in the Temporal Enforcement Agency, things get downright dangerous.

Guardian picks up nearly where Warrior left off, but it does a good job of standing on its own and including enough explanation in case you haven’t read Warrior recently.

Galar is off on honeymoon with Jessica when the agency gets a lead on their errant traitor and a strike team is readied. Included are Riane, one of Galar’s team members, and her intelligent wolf companion, Frieka. The only problem is, someone sabotaged Riane’s suit—and she finds herself time-jumping over and over until her suit runs out of power and she’s left stranded in the past. At first it seems as though her ordeal might be a short one when the traitor finds and attacks her, but she’s joined unexpectedly by Nick Wyatt, a human who’s been targeted by Xeran assassins all his life. He’s inhumanly strong and quick, and possesses powers of healing she’s never seen before. He’s also in possession of an artifact that the Xeran want—desperately.

Neither Nick nor Riane is quick to trust outsiders, but they need each other’s help if they’re going to survive, not to mention figure out what’s going on and contact Riane’s people. Soon what starts as a seemingly harmless bit of lust on the run is turning into something much more, despite the odds that seem wholly stacked against them.

Angela Knight’s “Time Hunters” series is a shamelessly fun indulgence. Time travel is tough to work with, but I like Knight’s handling of it. These books are action-filled adventures with plenty of shoot-outs, physical battles, and larger-than-life struggles. The science fiction of the blend is more background to the adventure side than focus, and it blends well into the mix.

The characters are fun and enjoyable. Riane was an interesting side character in the previous book, and she’s a delightful main character now. We get to learn more about her own unusual childhood and about her bond with Frieka. Nick, too, has a few secrets of his own, some of which even he doesn’t know about. The two of them have very nice chemistry, and both the emotions and the sex between them are enjoyable to follow.

This book has something for everyone: adventure, time travel, bone-crunching action, creepy aliens, erotic sex, budding romance, and more. If that mix sounds like fun to you, then I highly recommend giving Knight’s work a try!