The Observer Effect (Joseph Bridgeman, #3)

by Nick Jones

Time calls the shots.

Unwitting time traveler Joseph Bridgeman is adjusting to life in the present and wondering if his traveling days are behind him. But when he’s contacted by The Continuum, an organized group of time travelers based in the future, he learns his career is just getting started.

The Continuum needs Joe’s help. One of their operatives is missing, last seen in nineteenth-century Paris and they believe Joe’s ability to see the past might be the only way to find him. Teamed up with Gabrielle Green, an acerbic, wisecracking traveler, Joe heads back to 1873 on his most dangerous mission yet, one that will take him deep inside a burning opera house.

But how will Joe succeed when his new companion clearly hates his guts, the missing traveler disappears the second anyone sets eyes on him, and a familiar foe threatens to trap them in the past for good? With help on hand from his best friend, Vinny, and mysterious clues hidden in his sister Amy’s paintings, Joe must hone his gift, develop new skills, and figure out a way to complete his mission before the blazing inferno comes crashing down around them all.

• ISBN10: 1665048336
• ISBN13: 9781665048330
• Publish Date: 15 March 2022
• Publish Status: Active
• Imprint: Blackstone Publishing
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 344
• Language: English

Reviews

[annieb123]

Originally posted on my blog: Nonstop Reader.

The Observer Effect is the third Joseph Bridgeman time travel mystery by Nick Jones. Released 15th March 2022 by Blackstone, it's 344 pages and is available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats.

I have always loved time travel stories. I devoured every episode of Dr. Who, Star Trek, every story and book about time travel with gusto. Obviously some were better than others, but I loved (and still love) them all. This series is one of the better representatives of the genre. It's full of fun history and watershed moments for the reluctant hero, hapless but plucky Joe, to right and to try and help untangle. He's an unlikely everyman hero, really relatable, muddling along the best he can manage and trying to fix what he can fix.

The writing is solid and additionally filled with small comedic moments that made me grin. Mr. Jones managed to write believable flowing dialogue which is never choppy or uneven. The action flows and in between fighting for his life, Joe has a fair number of quiet scenes where he interacts with his family and friends and grows as a character.

It's an ensemble cast and like lots of very well written quest stories, every part is integral to the whole. The plot, denouement, and resolution are quite cleverly constructed and I'm looking forward to the next book in the series with anticipation. It's *full* of time paradoxes and the way the characters solve them are clever and believable (in context).

The unabridged audiobook has a run time of 12 hours 7 minutes and is capably narrated by Ray Porter. He does an impressive job with wide ranging geographical accents and genders. I absolutely love his voice for Vince, who reminds me a lot of my very fond memories of Brian Glover in Mystery! as Magersfontein Lugg (Campion series). When the book started, I was afraid that Mr. Porter's very gravelly baritone would be too strong for the part (I "hear" Joe up in my head as very put upon and almost whingey sometimes) but I soon warmed to him and he's very versatile and definitely enhanced the read a lot. Sound quality and production values were high throughout the recording.

Five stars. Fun, clever, and entertaining. Five stars also for the audiobook version.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.