Well, I finally read my first Stephen King. I felt guilty reading a book by King’s son when I had never read anything by King himself. It’s silly; I know. I like thrillers, and I am starting to get less scared of reading horror. But I am also still a pretty big chicken. When I was looking for my next book to read, there was a lot of hubbub about the J.F.K. files being released to the public. So, with all that in mind, I picked up 11/22/63. It was a good choice.

Jake Epping is an English teacher who is at a crossroads in his life. He is divorced and feeling a little lost. Al Templeton, the local diner’s owner and Jake’s acquaintance, approaches Jake with a task; go back in time through the diner’s storage room, and save J.F.K. from assassination. Sounds easy enough, right? But the past is obdurate. Jake finds himself in 1958 with a new identity, a new haircut, a flashy new car, and an impossible task. What starts out as a cut and dry mission, turns into a love story with many very real dangers.

I instantly connected with Jake’s character. The prologue has Jake sitting at a desk, grading high school students’ papers. As a teaching assistant, I could relate to Jake’s feelings on grading and his dark humor. Jake is a smart character, a good man, humorous, and just very normal. He’s a fairly average guy in an extraordinary situation. I guess I don’t need to tell you how well King can write characters, but I liked a lot of the people in this book. It was one of those novels that you don’t want to end because you have to say goodbye to characters that feel like old friends.

Big surprise, but the plot was stellar as well. The almost ridiculous beginning hooked me because it was so out there, but somehow so acceptable too. A guy who owns a diner has a portal to the past inside a storage room. It sounds crazy, but it works. Once Jake goes to the past, things really take off. It doesn’t seem so crazy any more. It all feels real. I’m too young to have grown up in the 50’s and 60’s, but the book still felt nostalgic. I can see why many older people loved this time period with the all the dancing, good food, and neighborly attitudes. However, King did not hold back from the harsh realities of racism and sexism that permeated this era. It’s sickening at times, but it just goes to show that there has never been a time or place that was a utopia for everyone.

OK, so, what’s wrong with this book? Well, not much in my opinion. I gave it five solid stars on Goodreads. Still, I think it is very difficult to write a time travel novel. The hardest part is probably ending one. The ending was the worst part of this novel, but that’s not to say it was bad. I cried during the last few pages of 11/22/63, and I was happy enough with the ending. I certainly could not have written it better, but… well… I guess you can read it yourself and make your own judgment. It was still worth reading this 800+ page book.

Yes, I am a new fan of Stephen King. He can definitely write, and from what I can tell, he fathered some great writers too. I would like to read more from King, but I’m not sure I can handle something too scary. Suggestions are welcome!

Are you happy with your life? Jason Dessen’s life has turned out well. He believes he is happy with his wife and son. They live a comfortable life. Jason and his wife sometimes wonder how their lives could have been different if they made different choices, but we all wonder about what-ifs, right? Jason goes out to celebrate his college friend’s scientific achievement (an award Jason himself could have won… perhaps), but he never makes it home. He is abducted and when he regains consciousness he is in a world not unlike his own.

I have been in a reading slump lately and I knew I needed something to jolt me out of it. This book did the trick. It is extremely fast-paced which usually isn’t my thing, but it works well here. There some twists and at times the novel blew my mind. It was fun and it might make you think about the universe as a whole or your own life choices. I feel like I can’t say too much without ruining bits of the novel so I will keep my review fairly short and vague.

I would not call the writing amazing. It gets the job done. It is dialogue heavy and not particularly lyrical. The broken sentences creates a sense of urgency that adds to the pacing. The characters- apart from Jason and his wife- are not engaging. The plot carries this novel, but at times I had to suspend my disbelief. I’m not an expert in the science this book touches on, but it was hard not to imagine some plot holes. Simply put, I enjoyed this wild ride.

I received this as an Advance Reader Copy (releasing September 16th 2016) from a Goodreads giveaway so take all my opinions and observations with a larger grain of salt than usual.

I have pretty mixed feelings about this novel. Within it are three connected stories. The first is about a woman named Alice who worked for a pharmaceutical company that developed a creativity enhancing drug. After her company acts questionably she decides to quit, hide out in the wilderness, and turn them in. The second is about a man named James who is hired to be a “literary detective” who discovers more than he bargained for. The final story is about Celia whose father drastically changes after meeting a strange artist. The artist also begins taking a disturbing amount of Celia’s life into his work. The stories are connected by themes of politics, religion, and science to name a few. Each story approaches these topics in different ways and each one almost feels like a different genre.

Alice’s story is more horror-like and is surprisingly less scientific. The plot took a turn I wasn’t expecting, but I liked it. It also has a lot of interesting visions, symbolism, and imagery. It blurs the lines of reality and imagination which I usually love, but in this case it is a little confusing to read. I am also confused about some Alice’s actions. She samples the drug herself which just doesn’t seem like a good idea- especially in her isolated situation. Though I liked this story I wasn’t overly impressed by the execution of the idea. The twist is unexpected and a little strange, but if you go in knowing the story is somewhat like a horror piece then it isn’t very original for that genre.

I didn’t enjoy James’ story as much. I read the first half and skim-read most of the second half. It is the longest story of the three and I also feel that it is the most boring. There is a detective style mystery that unfolds, but it didn’t keep my interest very well. It reminds me a little of something inspired by 1984 with its technological and political invasiveness. I simply didn’t find myself caring about the thin characters or their problems.

The final story about Celia is again part mystery, part science, and part religious. Hard to explain, but the last story circles back around to the first story while also hinting at the second. Again, I am not on board with the decisions some of the characters make. Celia and her father have some personality compared to the characters in the other stories at least. I somewhat enjoyed this story, but like with the first one the ending takes a strange turn. As with the other stories it is difficult to be sure of what is real and imagined.

The novel as a whole is just OK. I feel like it may not be my thing. It sounds good from the blurb and many of the ideas are interesting, but I don’t feel like they are executed in an engaging way.

I have been wanting this book since I heard about it. The blurb describes is as “a decopunk pulp SF alt-history space opera mystery set in a Hollywood—and solar system.” Yes, yes, yes. Director Severin Unck, daughter of the famous director Percival Unck, never returns from shooting her last documentary about a colony on Venus that mysteriously vanished. Severin is a realist while her father enjoys making movies about the fantastic. Her search for the truth might have led to her death… but is she truly dead?

The world in this novel is so amazing. Though much of technology and culture is stuck in the early to mid 1900’s with silent black and white movies, nickelodeons, flappers, radio dramas, and the glitz of early Hollywood… space travel is common place. In this alternate reality the planets in our solar system are habitable and teeming with native flora and fauna. The creativity, descriptions, and storytelling bring this vibrant world to life. The world was great, but I want more of it.

The way the novel is written is through film scripts, audio logs, and radio commercials. In the beginning I found this a little confusing since there are jumps back and forth through time as well as some scripts being fictional while others are nonfictional. Though this is an interesting way to present the story I feel like I could have gotten more out of it if it were just written like a regular novel. The descriptions are sometimes [bracketed] and separate which feels very… disconnected. I’m really torn on the presentation of the narrative. On one hand it is very neat to imagine parts being on old film with skipping, distortions, and played on old projectors. It adds a meta-atmosphere for sure, but I also feel like I am missing out on the actual world (with its fashionable and necessary Plutonian masks and the extremely useful “whales” from Venus) in which everything takes place.

Still, it was an absolute joy to read. If I went back and reread it (and I do want to) I know I would understand the subtleties and time jumps much more. This is another novel I wish I had a book club to comb through it with. There is so much depth. The plot loops around itself, makes you question truth and reality, and the underlying commentary blows my mind. It ends like a good movie- not every question is answered in full, but it just makes you hunger for more.

I have to admit that I didn’t have high expectations for liking this book. It did not sound like something I would be into, but it was cheap so I gave it shot and I’m glad I did. In the not too far future a disease, called Haden’s, spreads across the globe that either kills, immobilizes, or changes the brain structure of those infected. Those who are immobilized lose complete control of their bodies, but they remain conscious resulting in “lock in.” Most people who are locked in can still move about the real world using “threeps” which are robots they can control with their minds. Those who survive the disease and are lucky enough not to be locked in can serve as consciousness hosts so that those immobilized can experience the world through a human body. This very strange, but very realistic world presents many problems for our Haden’s specialized FBI agent main characters. Think futuristic Sci-Fi Law and Order: Special Victims Unit.

If you’re a little confused by the synopsis I wrote, don’t worry. It is hard to explain everything in a small space and it takes some time to get used to the world and its vocabulary. Luckily Scalzi is pretty good about explaining things without it feeling too much like an info dump. There are some places in which the characters are putting together the pieces of crimes that feel a little information heavy, but it did not distract me too much. All in all, the world feels real. It’s essentially a possible future of America complete with political and social unrest surrounding the issues of Haden’s rights and government funding for their care. Maybe that sounds dull, but I found the book to be surprisingly interesting as a whole. One complaint I have is that the ending was a little quick and conveniently wrapped up. The characters have some personality, but anyone beyond the main two characters is mostly forgettable. The most interesting part of the novel by far is the world Scalzi has built.

Readers who are already into science fiction probably won’t find too much surprising or original about this novel, but since I have just begun to dip my feet into the genre I found it to be very unique. The story is fast paced (except for the aforementioned piecing together of evidence scenes). Sometimes the names of people and the technical mumbo-jumbo confused me. And maybe the political corruption and computer science parts of the novel are unrealistic, but I’m no expert in those areas so I couldn’t say. Either way, I found this to be a page turner and a much needed breath of fresh air in my reading.