Paul Tomm, recently graduated from a prestigious private New England university, is somewhat aimlessly passing his days as a reporter for a small-town newspaper in Connecticut. He works for a decent editor and has a sort of stability, but even if he’s unsure what he wants from life, it’s probably something else.

A reclusive professor from his alma mater who’s taken semi-retirement in Paul’s small town passes away, and Paul is assigned the task of writing the obituary. Contacting the professor’s neighbors, he meets Hannah Rowe, a local (and invitingly single) school teacher, the only person who had any significant social contact with the professor. Paul’s interest in her soon passes from the professional to the personal.

At the same time, little things that have been amiss as he gathers information for the obituary soon become big things: death, timelines that don’t make sense, and the uncertain role Hannah plays in everything.

No plot surprises are given away by revealing that the professor was hiding a secret with a long history. Fasman’s narrative bounces between Paul’s investigation and historical interludes that begin to reveal the professor’s secret. From late-medieval Sicily to the Baltic and beyond, all manner of warriors and scholars get involved with protecting and passing it through the ages.

Needless to say, it’s a secret some are desperate to keep secret, and Paul’s life becomes dangerous as the truth becomes clearer.

It’s a fun puzzle to figure out, and Fasman has a deft narrative. In the end, however, there’s little to take away from the reading. The characters are only mildly engaging; I finished my reading with no lingering interest in their futures. The story tries to make points about mortality and devotion to secrecy, but there’s no real profundity here. It’s a fun tale, but that’s about the end of it.