Killing Time

Name: Killing Time
Author: Jodi Taylor
ISBN: 9781035404964

Time Police · Novel 5 · 2024

Luke and Jane are aboard a ghost train moving through time, caught with an old enemy and in disagreement with each other.

Book 5 of 6 in The Time Police

AI-generated illustration inspired by Killing Time; not a book cover.

What it’s about

Luke and Jane are aboard a ghost train moving through time, caught with an old enemy and in disagreement with each other. Lieutenant Grint and other officers must reach them before the train is lost permanently.

Back at headquarters, Matthew works to follow their movements through the Time Map, while an experiment involving Mikey exposes something meant to remain concealed. Killing Time brings a travelling emergency together with the effort to locate and recover the people caught in it.

The train gives the mission a concrete focus; the divided team and the trouble at headquarters mean that finding it is only part of the difficulty.

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Can I start here?

This is book 5 in its series. Start with the first novel for its clearest introduction.

Reader questions

Do I need to read the earlier books first?

Yes, for a first visit to this series. This novel is the 5th numbered novel, rather than the opening volume. Read from book one to meet the recurring people. Their introductions belong within the developing series sequence. The series guide separates those novels from optional shorter adventures.

Source: joditaylorbooks.com

Who narrates the Killing Time audiobook?

Zara Ramm narrates the linked UK audiobook of this novel. Choose the exact edition for this recording. Other formats can carry the same title. The Audible product link identifies the performer. Follow the listening guide to continue in numbered order.

Source: audible.co.uk

Where this fits

This novel follows About Time and precedes Out of Time in the six-book Time Police sequence. Start earlier if the team is unfamiliar, because the rescue involves relationships and an enemy already carrying history.

Santa Grint can be read between the fourth and fifth novels as an optional short detour; it does not replace either numbered instalment.

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Why readers love it

Our view

the rescue premise is a strong reason to pick up this fifth novel once you know the officers. It gives the abstract danger of getting lost in time a physical shape that is easy to picture: a train that will not wait for its pursuers.

Luke and Jane’s disagreement adds a second pressure inside the same confined situation. We would recommend this setup to readers who enjoy teams working on opposite sides of an emergency, with some trapped and others trying to reach them.

Matthew’s tracking task offers a different role from simply joining the chase.

Listening notes

The listed Zara Ramm audiobook runs thirteen hours and fifteen minutes and is unabridged. For listeners following the numbered adventures, this comes after About Time’s twelve-and-a-half-hour recording. The next full novel is Out of Time.

Choose the individual this novel listing when buying or borrowing audio so the train adventure is kept distinct from the shorter Time Police stories.