2020 SEMI-FINALIST FOR BOOKLIFE PRIZE AWARD
"Oleksiw's searching literary novel focuses on an inexplicable childhood incident that forever connects two friends and bridges the past and future. Sci-fi, fantasy, and coming-of-age elements richly intermingle within a framework of literary fiction."- Booklife Prize Critics' Report (October 2020)
The Story
As a child, Billy believed in black holes and time travel. Now, in his thirties, Billy is the reclusive creator of a popular comic book. On the eve of its final edition, Billy's behavior grows erratic as he mysteriously requests assistance from the retired psychologist who evaluated him ten years earlier, Dr. Carrie Woodson.
Time's Musicians is the story of two eccentric outsiders, Billy and John, who meet at summer camp. Both brilliant, they reunite as college roommates seeking answers to life's great questions. A "prank"by Billy changes their relationship and future forever. Carrie's quest for the truth leads her to realize the boys' friendship was more complicated than anyone imagined. What would cause Billy to turn on John, pure jealousy or worse, insanity? Will Carrie finally solve the puzzle before it's too late?
Time's Musicians is a suspenseful, coming-of-age story exploring the eternal search for light within the darkness of the human condition. In between moments of silence, there is a song awaiting musicians to play it.
The Reviews
"The prose in Time's Musicians is vivid, tense, lyrical, and rich, with memorable and unnerving insights. Deeply philosophical, ambiguous, and profound, this narrative starkly defies genre categorization and stands apart as exceptionally unique."= The Booklife Prize Critics' Review
"Time's Musicians is a suspenseful musing on existence, relationships, truth, and purpose, offering a satisfying conclusion, along with plenty of profound questions that will persist long after reading the last page" –Self-Publishing Review ★★★★½
"A complex, well-written story of boys coming of age and the darkness they must face."– Wishing Shelf Book Review ★★★★★
"Time's Musicians is a suspenseful novel whose characters search for redemption, hoping to solve long-standing mysteries." - Clarion Foreword Reviews