David Baldacci: Strangers in Time (UK 2025)

From the Publisher:
During one of the fiercest conflicts the world has ever known, three strangers' lives collide...
EVERY SECOND COUNTS
Orphaned with no prospects, Charlie Matters' life has always been a fight for survival. He miraculously emerges unscathed from the Blitz, but there's no telling when the next bomb will fall, and whether it will be the one to end his life.

Molly Wakefield's dreams of a joyful homecoming are all she's had to hold on to after being evacuated to the countryside five years before. But when she finally returns, Molly faces a London changed beyond recognition, and the devastating news that neither of her parents are there.

Charlie and Molly's paths converge at 'The Book Keep', where they find an unexpected ally and protector in the bookshop's owner, widower Ignatius Oliver. But the trio's newfound peace is jeopardized as past secrets catch up with them. Can they help one another survive this turbulent time? Or will they be ripped apart from the last people they hold dear?

Journey back to wartime London with Strangers in Time, a gripping wartime drama from David Baldacci, the internationally bestselling author of The 6:20 Man and A Calamity of Souls.

David Baldacci: Strangers in Time. Every Second Counts. Pan, ISBN: 9781035015801 (October, 2025), 496 p., £9.99.

David Baldacci: Strangers in Time (UK 2025)

From the Publisher:
In 1944, during one of the fiercest conflicts the world has ever known, three strangers' lives collide as they confront the raining bombs of their present and the explosive secrets of their past. Journey back to wartime London in this historical drama from the number one bestselling author David Baldacci.

Charlie Matters' life has always been a fight for survival. An orphan with no prospects. Charlie steals what he needs, living day-to-day until he can enlist in the battle against the Germans. He emerged from the Blitz miraculously unscathed, but there's no telling when the next bomb will fall, and whether it will be the one to end his life.

Molly Wakefield's dreams of a joyful homecoming are all she's had to hold on to after being evacuated to the countryside via Operation Pied Piper' five years before. But when she finally returns to the city. Molly faces a London changed beyond recognition, and the devastating news that neither of her parents are there-only her old nanny. Mrs Pride.

Charlie's and Molly's paths converge when they both seek solace at The Book Keep, where they find an unexpected ally and protector in the bookshop's owner. widower Ignatius Oliver. But the trio's newfound peace is jeopardized as the past catches up with them: Charlie's illicit activities have not gone unnoticed, an ominous shadow has trailed Molly since her return; and Ignatius is burdened by a secret that contributed to his wife's death. Can they help one another survive this turbulent time? Or will they be ripped apart from the last remaining people they hold dear?

David Baldacci: Strangers in Time. Every second counts. Macmillan, ISBN: 9781035015788 (April, 2025), 433 p., £22.00, eBook £11.99.

David Baldacci: Strangers in Time (USA 2025)

From the Publisher:
From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Calamity of Souls comes David Baldacci's newest novel, set in London in 1944, about a bereaved book shop owner and two teenagers scarred by the second world war, and the healing and hope they find in one another.

Fourteen-year-old Charlie Matters is up to no good, but for a very good reason. Without parents, peerage, or merit, he steals what he needs, living day-to-day until he's old enough to enlist to fight the Germans. After barely surviving the Blitz, Charlie knows there's no telling when a falling bomb might end his life.

Fifteen-year-old Molly Wakefield has just returned to a nearly unrecognizable London. One of millions of children to have been evacuated to the countryside Molly has been away from her home for nearly five years. Her return, however, is not the homecoming she'd hoped for as she's confronted by a devastating reality: neither of her parents are there.

Without guardians and stability, Charlie and Molly find an unexpected ally and protector in Ignatius Oliver, and solace at his book shop, The Book Keep. Mourning the recent loss of his wife, Ignatius forms a kinship with both children, and in each other they rediscover the spirit of family each has lost.

But Charlie's escapades in the city have not gone unnoticed, and someone's been following Molly since she returned to London. And Ignatius is harboring his own secrets, which could have terrible consequences for all of them.

As bombs continue to bear down on the city, Charlie, Molly, and Ignatius learn that while the perils of war rage on, their coming together and trusting one another may be the only way for them to survive.

David Baldacci: Strangers in Time. A Novel. Grand Central Publishing, ISBN: 9781538742051 (April, 2025), 433 p., $30.00, eBook $14.99.