The Time Collector: A Novel

A New York Post Best Book of the Week

One of BBC Culture's Ten Books to Read This Month

Roan West was born with an extraordinary gift: he can perceive the past of any object he touches. A highly skilled psychometrist, he uses his talents to find and sell valuable antiques, but his quiet life in New Orleans is about to change. Stuart, a fellow psychometrist and Roan's close friend, has used his own abilities to unearth several out-of-place-artifacts or "ooparts"—like a ring that once belonged to the seventeenth-century mathematician and philosopher René Descartes, but was found buried in prehistoric bedrock.

The relics challenge recorded history, but soon after the discovery, Stuart disappears, making him one of several psychometrists who have recently died or vanished without a trace. When Roan comes across a viral video of a young woman who has discovered a priceless pocket watch just by "sensing" it, he knows he has to warn her—but will Melicent Tilpin listen? And can Roan find Stuart before it's too late?

The quest for answers will lead Roan and Melicent around the world—before it brings them closer to each other and a startling truth.

"A rollicking adventure and the moving story of two stunningly drawn characters, chasing the answer to the question of what it means to be human." —Charlie Lovett, New York Times– bestselling author

"A mystical thrill ride . . . For fans of historical fiction who like a hint of the supernatural and cosmic connection." — Booklist