Pandora's Time Machine transports the reader into the mercurial life of Dora Upchurch, a Portland graduate student who creates an "organic" time machine for an art history research project, despite roadblocks from an arrogant professor and the exploits of a shameless tabloid journalist. Viewed through the eyes of a lovelorn suitor, Dora's charmed life turns tragic when her time machine is portrayed as a Pandora's box, prompting friends and admirers to rally behind her in a poignant, yet laugh-out-loud finale.