Double Shadow

A Splinter Effect Novel #2
By Andrew Ludington
** Publication Date 21 April 2026 **
4 stars


The nice thing about reading a series is not having to learn all the characters from the start. You have some inkling, even if time has passed since the previous novel, of whom you’re working with. In a series the stories follow a specific pattern. In a way it’s like visiting a town you know well.


The Splinter Effect series revolves around a time traveler named Rabbit Ward. Rabbit specializes in what is called chrono-archaeology, or travel to a previous time to recover an artifact. Rabbit speaks many dead languages and is well versed in history, so his travel to these spaces is not suspect. However, he sometimes comes up against some pretty fierce characters that don’t want to see him succeed. He’s not just a time traveler, but in many ways a spy and criminal as well.


This trip has Rabbit chasing down his adversary Helen from the previous novel.  He only knows that a cryptic message was left for him, sending him on a goose chase to 68 CE. This is the time when Jerusalem and Rome will do battle. When he runs into an earlier version of Helen, who hasn’t met Rabbit yet, he knows what their future holds. She is on the trail of a murdering time traveler called Einar Eshek. Together they will try to trap this sadistic killer. There might be a bit of buried treasure and a little romance in the works as well.


These novels are endlessly fascinating with their deep dive into history. As not a huge history buff, I like learning about things I may have missed in school. It’s also a lot more interesting when you add in time travel and intrigue. Helen and Rabbit are a great pair. Ludington has done well to match the wits and gifts of them. As always there are a host of bad guys to tackle along the way as well.


I enjoy these books. They can be a fun departure from traditional fiction. This one is no different. Also, while it does help to understand the premises behind current time travel, reading the first novel is helpful, but not entirely necessary.