In a future when Earth is a toxic, abandoned world and humanity has spread into the outer solar system to survive, the tightly controlled use of time travel holds the key to maintaining a fragile existence among the other planets and their moons. James Griffin-Mars is a chronman--a convicted criminal recruited for his unique psychological makeup to undertake the most dangerous job there is: missions into Earth's past to recover resources and treasure without altering the timeline. Most chronmen never reach old age, and James is reaching his breaking point.
On his final mission, James meets scientist Elise Kim, who is fated to die during the destruction of an oceanic rig. Against his training and common sense, James brings her back to the future with him, saving her life, but turning them both into fugitives. Remaining free means losing themselves in the wild and poisonous wastes of Earth, and discovering what hope may yet remain for humanity's home world.
About the Author
Wesley Chu was a finalist for the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer. His debut novel, The Lives of Tao, earned him a Young Adult Library Services Association Alex Award and a Science Fiction Goodreads Choice Award Top 10 slot.
Industry Reviews
"Smart, fast, and fun." --New York Times bestselling author of the Lightbringer series, Brent Weeks; "Time twisting action-adventure as only Wesley Chu could imagine it. I enjoyed it a lot. Read this book!" --Author of the Hugo and Nebula Award-winning Ancillary Justice, Ann Leckie; "A powerful and compelling search of the past for redemption in the present, by turns thrilling and sweet and gut-wrenching." --New York Times best selling author, Kevin Hearne; "A gripping, taut space opera about keeping hope in hopeless circumstances. Immensely enjoyable." --Author of City of Stairs, Robert Jackson Bennett; "Chu has taken a simple, brilliant premise and built upon it an epic universe full of thrills and wonder." --New York Times bestselling author of The Darwin Elevator, Jason M. Hough; "More than a compelling, innovative take on the perks and pitfalls of time travel - Time Salvager is a sharp study of how human nature might prove mankind's salvation, or eventually doom us all. This is world-building that will make you fear for the future. In a good way." --Author of Maplecroft, Cherie Priest; "A clever, cautionary sf tale with cool gadgets, characterization that surprised me in the best possible way, and multiple cunning twists." --Author of the Crown of Stars series, Kate Elliott; "With time travel, force-field kung fu, and a huge helping of wit, Wesley Chu transmogrifies a bleak long-whimper apocalypse into vicious, high-octane fun." --Author of the Craft Sequence, Max Gladstone; "A fast-paced ride that offers a fresh spin on time travel, combines it with a high-stakes plot and genuinely innovative action, and spices the blend with a healthy dose of irreverent humor." --Author of Kushiel's Dart, Jacqueline Carey; "Exciting, interesting, and never forgetting the fun of ideas, this is brilliant new stuff." --Author of London Falling, Paul Cornell; "A time-warping science fiction thrill ride." --Author of the Sabrina Kane series, Jaye Wells; "Gripping." --Hugo Award-winning creator of Schlock Mercenary, Howard Tayler
