It had been a while since I read one of Jodi Taylor’s Chronicles of St. Mary’s, so I went to her blog when I finished the sthort story (really a novella), Lights! Camera! Mayhem! I wasn’t at all surprised to find that Terry Pratchett had referred a reader to her books before he died. The entire time I was reading this, I thought of him. If you liked Pratchett’s books, you might want to try the Chronicles of St. Mary’s, beginning with Just One Damned Thing After Another.

“The Chronicles of St. Mary’s series follows a bunch of disaster-prone individuals who investigate major historical events in contemporary time. Do NOT call it time travel!” It’s time travel. I love that there’s a cast listing at the beginning of the story Dr. Maxwell narrates the latest disaster set at St. Mary’s. The cast of “Tempora, the Time-Traveling Tourist” is to film at St. Mary’s. Astrid Gustrafsson is the star of the show Since this one is to be set in Troy, one of the staff with a crush on the leading lady offers to take her back to Troy to see the actual site. Whoops! When he returns with a wild tale of losing Astrid in Troy thanks to an eagle, it’s up to Dr. Maxwell to head the small team to retrieve the actress.

Of course, nothing is easy for the staff of St. Mary’s. The team must infiltrate a city at war, find Astrid, rescue her, and return safely. And, of course, there’s that eagle.

Lights! Camera! Mayhem! is a lively and fun as Taylor’s other works. With all the short stories and novels in the Chronicles of St. Mary’s, along with the Time Police spin-off, there’s plenty of reading if you enjoy the first books.

Lights! Camera! Mayhem! (Chronicles of St. Mary’s) by Jodi Taylor. (Kindle version, 2024)

FTC Full Disclosure – I bought a Kindle version.