Springing into World War II

Since my earliest days as an author, I have had a strong interest in World War II. In The Mine, my first novel, I sent Joel Smith, my protagonist, back to 1941 Seattle, where he confronted a peacetime draft. In Mercer Street, the Peterson ladies saw New Jersey on the eve of the war. In Indian Paintbrush, the Carsons, my time travelers, experienced the homefront in Arizona in 1943 and 1944.

In Hannah's Moon, The Refuge, and Duties and Dreams, I put characters in harm's way. Ron Rasmussen survived the sinking of the USS Indianapolis. Jordan and Jeremy Lane witnessed Pearl Harbor. Emilie Perot, a French resistance fighter, battled the Nazis.

In The Time Spring, I do even more. I throw my protagonists into the fight in the biggest way possible. I make them a part of history.

Like in Class of '59 and the Stone Shed books, two young men form the foundation of my latest novel. They bring a modern perspective to a historical period they knew only through books and movies.

In May 2026, Nick Robinson and Zach Taylor, recent University of Florida graduates, discover the magic of a local spring that can send swimmers through the ages. Along with Kayla McIntire, Zach's fiancée, they get a glimpse of Florida's primitive and sometimes scary past.

Then an ill-advised trip separates the trio. Nick and Zach find themselves in 1943, without a way back. Within weeks, they enlist in the U.S. Army Air Forces and jump into the world of World War II. Kayla, a college senior, finds herself in a spot in 2026. Like Douglas and Donna Maclean in the Stone Shed series, she cleans up a mess left by two time travelers as she searches for ways to bring them back.

If these themes sound familiar, they should. In The Time Spring, I borrow from several of my favorite novels, including The Fountain, The Patriots, and Duties and Dreams. I take the best ingredients from my first twenty-six novels and incorporate them into my twenty-seventh.

That said, The Time Spring does break new ground. Unlike earlier works, which focus on soldiers, sailors, and even civilians on the homefront, it celebrates airmen, specifically the crews who served aboard B-24 Liberators in the U.S. Army's Eighth Air Force.

It also gives readers a glimpse of Norfolk, England, which hosted thousands of American airmen during the war. It views 1944 and 1945 through the eyes of combatants and those who supported them.

The Time Spring is my second-longest book at 146,000 words and my first stand-alone novel since Hannah's Moon. It goes on sale today as a Kindle book at Amazon.com and its many affliate sites.