Save Him by William M Hayes is a thrilling tale of time travel. Rydel Scott is a genius, a scientist who works at a secret military lab. Completely by accident, while working to save soldiers wounded in the field, he stumbles on a way to travel through time. His sister, Karen, a nun, is dying and on her deathbed, she tells Rydel that she has a message for him, a message from God telling him to save Jesus Christ. Traveling back in time, Rydel aims to do just that but, as everyone knows, one slight change to the past can change the future forever and never in a good way. An elite military unit follows him through time, trying to stop him before he can change history and destroy millions of lives. With a unit divided by their faith, they have a choice to make – the fate of the human race or that of Jesus Christ. Will they choose to save Him or save the world?

Save Him by William M Hayes is an original story and one that I thoroughly enjoyed reading. It’s a thriller packed with action, packed with discovery and one that has a nail-biting finale. The main story took a while to get started but everything you read before it is totally relevant. The characters are a group of very different people, all easy to relate to and likable, and you will find yourself divided – do you root for Rydel or do you get behind those trying to save humankind? The story flowed really well, plenty of detail, plenty of action, no small amount of suspense, all wrapped in one unique package. I can honestly say I have not read a story like this before and I will definitely be reading more from Hayes. Highly recommended for those who want a great story to get stuck into – just don’t expect to put it down until you get to the very last page.

Save Him, by William M. Hayes, is a lot of fun to read. As if Michael Crichton wrote a screenplay for Mission Impossible. Maybe with Q from James Bond thrown in for good measure. Let’s start with him. In this case, Rydel Scott is a most likable, nerdy, quiet mannered genius who invents many plot-related devices guaranteed to make this MI team – here called simply The Unit – as effective a special ops cadre as any SEAL or British MI6 gang comprised of top-notch fighting men and women. Like masks that morph into local features, controlled and altered by someone far away. And instant translators. All well and good. But when a nasty incident during one mission reveals a newly designed salvation chip’s extraordinary ability to transport a person through space and time … well then, all holy fun begins. Literally.

Save Him is the totally appropriate if perhaps ironic title of William M. Hayes imaginative thriller, which moves locomotive-like from a secret-government-base-research-facility to a black-ops-foreign-operation to a lone-likable-man’s desperately risky attempt to save the life of Jesus Christ. Of course, he travels back in time to do so. After all, Rydel Scott discovered (or was God-chosen to discover) how to manage that improbable feat. And off he goes. And things get quite weird afterward. A reptilian girl. A rabid man-dog. Stuff like that. One would think perhaps such a tale might become unreadable. Surprise: Mr. Hayes’s writing is mostly very good. Despite an extremely high incredulity factor, the reader’s interest remains fixed by the story’s high-octane momentum. Hayes actually pulls this off. In any event, it’s a whole lot of fun.

Save Him is a powerful work of thriller fiction, written for adults by author William M Hayes. Combining time travel fiction with thriller and religious themes, this intense dramatic work centers around an amazing discovery by military scientist Rydel Scott. When Rydel unleashes the power of time travel, his sister’s final wishes ring in his ears: he must go back and save Jesus from the cross. But even as he tries to embark on his mission, a team of special soldiers is sent out to prevent him from doing so, in case the change in the course of history is too catastrophic. But amongst the team itself, faith and belief in what is right are also in question.

Author William M Hayes has created a fascinating conceptual combination of faith-based discussion, action-adventure and time travel mayhem with all its complexities and implications for the future. The clash of ideas between characters is well achieved through realistic and thought-provoking dialogue, as well as close narration that allows us into some of the characters' heads a little deeper. Colonel John Adams comes out a star with some fascinating moments of character development against his perceived rival Commander Catlin. The scenery and atmosphere of Jerusalem and other biblical locations are beautifully described and brought to life with vivid accuracy, making the time travel element all the stronger. Overall, Save Him is an accomplished work of fiction for its psychological and narrative qualities but is also a tense thriller with exciting ideas and a fast-paced plot that rockets to a sharp, surprising ending.