‘Time Travel for Beginners’ by Matt Harry Is a Timeless Romp

He did it again. Matt Harry returns with another installation from the Codex Arcanum series and fools readers into believing they’re about to gain valuable instructions. Instead, under the guise of an entertaining story, we dive into an engaging adventure, learning plenty about time travel but emerge with zero practical tools to actually travel through time.

The crew is back in this tale, this time following protagonist Perry Spring eight months following the adventures of Sorcery for Beginners. But don’t worry, while there are references to events in the previous book (like the fact that Perry and Owen are dating), this story fills in the necessary details. Including the ongoing battle between practitioners of magic and the Euclideans, the evil corporation determined to wipe out magic from the world.

If you read his earlier works, the format should be familiar. In addition to the story—which is fresh, with plenty of twists and turns to keep you turning the pages—there are four types of breakout sections that instruct the reader on all things magic:

• Sorcery for Beginners (which purports to give useful “lessons” to students but craftily doesn’t disclose anything I could actually use to travel to time except one second at a time in the forward direction, which I had already been managing just fine);
• Enchanting Details (fun facts and asides in pretty borders);
• Time Travel Tips (which yes, would have come in pretty handy if the book actually was a how-to guide); and
• Beware the Euclideans (helpful tips I’ll be sure to keep in mind once I crack the code, because I can’t help but suspect the answers are in there after all, right?).

Now, I feel it’s only fair to warn you that you might actually learn something. Some of the Sorcery for Beginners sections are stealthily teaching you complex scientific concepts that time travel is built upon. That’s right. Sneaky Matt Harry is actually marketing a blasted textbook disguised as a novel! That’s right, if you’re the kind of person to stealthily read novels in class by hiding it behind textbooks (is that still a thing in this digital age?), don’t be fooled into reading this book in class.

If you’re looking for adventure, this book has it. If you want time travel, well duh. Science? Check. A primer on concepts that have confused you in other time travel tales? Absolutely. An evil organization bent on mass destruction? Check. Romance? Check. Chase scenes? Yep,  got that too. Actual details on how to travel through time? No. I would give it one fewer stars because of this egregious omission, but it’s not like it’s a surprise. I would be a fool to expect Harry to suddenly disclose these secrets when he wouldn’t reveal actual sorcery spells in Sorcery for Beginners. Frankly, I’d suspect him of being a Euclidean, except if his mission is to eradicate magic, then publishing a book about the topic seems misguided.

In summary, Time Travel for Beginners by Matt Harry is an intriguing, intelligent adventure with engaging characters, solid storytelling, and time travel tips galore. If this is what you seek, read this book. If you’re looking for actual instructions on how to travel through time, consider yourself warned.