TIME TRAVELER 1492

A Silicon Valley app developer continues his time-traveling literary adventures in the second installment of Oberst’s adventure series, set in the 15th and 21st centuries.

Californian tech inventor Rand Roberts, jaded after the theft of his smartphone application by venture capitalists, seeks solace in a backpacking trip to the Grand Canyon. A near-fatal fall into rapids reveals to him a secret cave—and the secret of time travel. He’s transported to 1491 Ireland, where he’s nursed to health by a young woman named Gwendolyn. He eventually operates a then-revolutionary printing press and becomes implicated in complex castle politics. Rand aims to revolutionize knowledge across England by printing ancient Greek and Roman texts in English, making them available to all; he also wants to marry his love, Princess Marie. Meanwhile, he’s unaware that Ireland is in political turmoil after the assassination of King Edward and the ascension of child-king Patrick; Lord Reginald and Lord Boston are hatching a sinister plot to overthrow the rightful heir. The book thus follows two parallel storylines: Rand’s travels to Salamanca, Spain, where the university holds tomes of ancient texts he hopes to print, and the political goings-on back in Bunkillarny, involving the scheme to overthrow the king. Rand’s adventures bring him into contact with several historical figures, such as Queen Isabella of Spain and Christopher Columbus himself, armed only with a 20th-century smartphone with a download of Wikipedia. This story’s unlikely swashbuckling hero has a satisfying yet suspenseful resolution at the end of the book. Overall, this work is full of intriguing historical personages and details, and classic historical fantasy fodder is effectively combined with Silicon Valley references, as when Rand comes in contact with real-life printer and publisher Wynkyn De Worde, whom he compares to “Gates and Jobs, Bezos and Zuckerberg.” Given the historical context, the novel tries to contend with difficult topics, such as the violent conquest by the Spanish, but comes across as somewhat morally ambiguous. Still, the protagonist’s enthusiasm for democratizing ancient knowledge is contagious and a well-incorporated central theme.

A creative fantasy rendition of past-meets-present.