Twenty years ago, a time capsule was buried in front of the courthouse. Though it was supposed to contain exactly twelve items, one small boy notices it contains thirteen. That is seemingly a quite meaningless bit of trivia until a score of years later when the capsule vanishes and a series of murders are committed following a blinding flash of light over the burial site.

All the deceased contributed something to the capsule. Lead investigator Knox Davis finds himself working with FBI agent Nikita Stover, a woman who contains as many mysteries as the case. Investigation of her reveals that she has to be a fake, there is no record of her existence. However, Nikita has a very simple answer, she has not yet come into being; she is from the future, sent back to the present in order to stop a killer who wants to keep time travel from being invented.

Item thirteen was the key to unlocking that secret in the future. As the two work together, old pains begin to heal in both their hearts, but the present is all they have. When the case ends, Nitika will return to the grim world from which she came.

Linda Howard is a true treasure. Her writing immediately draws you into the fast paced plot. Vibrant characters enhance the suspenseful, well thought out storyline. There is a freshness to Killing Time that is lacking in many novels of this type. Even with all the mystery and action, the human element is never overshadowed.

First let me say that Linda Howard's Cry No More is one of my all time favorites, and I've read a great many of her books and enjoyed them immensely. This book represents a bit of a shift in her suspense writing, adding a time travel twist somewhat reminiscent of Son of the Morning. While I can't say this is as gripping as Cry No More, it is still an interesting read.

On Jan 1, 1985, a time capsule was buried in front of a small town county courthouse in Kentucky, to be opened in 2085. The next day, the High School Coach, one of the attendee's of the burial, is found hanged and it's deemed a suicide. Fast forward to June of 2005, the now Chief County Investigator Knox Davis is interrupted from his paperwork by a Deputy with a simple question regarding the "hole" in front of the flag pole. Upon investigation, the hole is revealed to have been the burial place of the time capsule and later that night another of the attendee's of the original burial is discover dead, murdered in his home.

With the suspicious arrival of Nikita Stover at the murder scene, Knox's curiosity is kicked into high gear. An attempt on her life puts her smack dab in the middle of the entire investigation. Her badge and gun look legit, but there is just something Knox can't quite put his finger on and with closer inspection discovers her ID is not legit, but will her explanation help or hinder the case. Will showing Knox items from her time convince him she's telling the truth, or will he lock her up for impersonating and FBI agent.

As another murder victim is reported, also coincidentally an attendee and contributor of the time capsule burial, the puzzle pieces are starting to show themselves but still, the reason remains a mystery. Another murder, and another attempt on Nikita's life forces Knox to take them both into hiding for a time. Can they solve the puzzle, stop the killings and find the capsule before Nikita becomes one of the victims? And if they do, what happens then to their fledgling relationship?

The story has several unexpected twists, and makes the unraveling an interesting read. The story deals with a couple of current hot button topics but to reveal them here would spoil at least one of the twists. While its not as gripping as a couple of her other novels, Killing Time is nevertheless a good read and explores some rather interesting premises about time travel, its consequences and situations that we might very well face in the future. It's not a long book, but would be great for a summer weekend read.