BLUF: Five flippin’ stars. Go get “The House on Constantinople” if you like time travel books with a hint of romance.

I’ve had a lot of problems reading lately, I’m not sure why. I’ve been a life-long voracious reader, and for some reason my old crutch has failed me as of late. It could be I have too many commitments, it could be the old gnawing low-grade stress, it could be the siren call of Apple News. In any case, it’s a thing, and it’s annoying.

So, when I got word of Howard Wetsman’s new time-travel book on John Birmingham’s website, I was interested and I bought it with the forlorn hope of ever getting it off my pile of shame in my Kindle.

I’ve loved time travel books since I was a kid. I remember getting a dog-eared copy of “A Wrinkle in Time” from my middle school library. If you haven’t read it, it’s a classic.

So is Mr. Wetsman’s book. It’s that good. I’m not going to put any spoilers in here, but let’s just say the book is a partial examination of a historical figure in an obscure but important piece of human history. He did a great job of research into this person, but not at the expense of ever coming across as pedantic or mired in exposition.

His characters were great—realistic, likable, and relatable. He provided just enough depth to them to move the narrative forward and see the world through their eyes. There was one section with a slightly confusing POV shift, this is an easy pitfall for a new author. However, I cut him slack over this because I know from experience how easy this is to do with a multi-arc story. Going forward, I’d recommend adding fleurons or spacing if a POV shift is intended. This is an easy visual clue for the reader. But let me emphasize that this was a minor bug, not a persistent problem. In no way did this minor flaw detract from the reader experience, which in my case was very positive.

The narrative itself was compelling, driving, and addictive. This is the first time in a very long time that I blew off my normal bedtime to blaze through to the (satisfying) end. I started after dinner and finished around midnight. It was weird—I couldn’t stop. The phrase “I couldn’t put it down” is frequently overused, but in this case applicable.

I took a few breaks to walk my dog, but that was about it.

So, there you go. Your experience may differ from mine, but Doc Wetsman’s book has earned placement in the select few books that I know I’ll re-read.

Other authors I’ve read and re-read- Haldeman, Stirling, Turtledove, Birmingham, and Scalzi.

Wetsman—in his debut novel, no less, has earned a place for me amongst the authors above.

This is impressive.

Recommend.