Asher goes all out in this time travel novel, not being satisfied with going back or forwards in time but going into alternate time pathways as well. He creates mega-villians but his protagonist(s) are themselves flawed people and we watch as greater threats knock them off their fates and into new opportunities, with the "godd guys" not always acting so good. The tale Asher tells is labyrinthian and it takes an effort to track who is doing what to whom but it moves along and keeps you interested, with nuggets about earth's long term history sprinkled throughout.