I admit this one was a chore. I needed one month to outline it, two to research it, and another three to put it to paper — or what amounts to paper in the digital age. But it is done. Let Time Fly, the third and final novel in the Stone Shed trilogy, is now in the editing phase.
The book, which begins in November 1779, brings to an end the saga of Noah and Jake Maclean, young brothers who use an ancient family time portal to find love and adventure during the American Revolution.
Though the story starts with Noah and closely follows his journey as General George Washington's aide-de-camp, it focuses much more on his conflicted younger sibling. Now an 18-year-old apprentice in Philadelphia, Jake struggles with guilt and regret as younger, less capable boys march off to war. Like his soldier brother, he tries to find his place in a crude, violent world that still seems surreal.
As in The Patriots and The Winding Road, the first two novels in the series, Noah and Jake nurture their relationships with Abigail Ward Maclean and Rachel Ward, the lovely, spirited daughters of furniture maker Samuel Ward. They balance competing interests.
They also confront a growing threat from Malachi Maine, a sadistic British intelligence officer who is hell-bent on finding the brothers' secrets — secrets that could alter the outcome of the war.
At 116 chapters and 136,000 words, Let Time Fly is the fifth-longest of my twenty-six novels and the longest series finale. I hope to publish the finished work between Christmas and New Year's Day.
