Review: Flooring the Accelerator?
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 12 9, 2013
Far Forward by Charles Francis Waller is a detective story with a futuristic twist, a tale of suspense, intrigue and time-travel with its own unique spin. Waller brings us through more than a couple of sharp twists that take the storyline through unexpected loops to a neatly wrapped ending. This is one that science fiction fans will find intriguing as well, reminiscent of classics such as Blade Runner as we follow hardboiled detectives along a trail that leads to technological mindfreak beyond anything they have ever encountered.Anna Katz breaks the mold as an over-the-top caricature of a female private eye. Passed from home to home as an orphan child, she meets Jack Combs in the military where they form a lasting friendship. Upon their discharge, they go to work for Stonewall Security where she lands a job as an operations manager. Her lifestyle is a sad reflection of her dysfunctional existence, revealing her as a workaholic, a nicotine and junk food addict whose feeble attempts at maintaining a jogging routine demonstrate a dying need to hang onto some semblance of self-worth. She takes a cynical pleasure in her adulterous relationship with Jack, whose marriage to a trophy wife leaves him spiritually unfulfilled. All of this is mirrored in their competency as a sleuthing team, relying heavily on their connections, timeworn procedures and sheer luck as they plod through the winters of their discontent.The world begins to implode around them as one of their major clients, Alexander Marzof, is murdered. The company owner, Vincent Stonewall, is assassinated in a bombing that brings the FBI down on Anna and Jack. The Feds are desperately scrambling for clues in what they suspect is a top-level conspiracy though they seem strangely unsure as to their approach and objectives. The partners find themselves on a very short list as another of their associates is killed, and Jack's wife Eve becomes listed as a possible bombing casualty. Anna finds herself in a race against time with only her and Jack's limited skills to rely on.It is here where the author sets the rollercoaster in motion as Ian Flynn enters into their lives with a mysterious Accelerator that holds the key to time travel. Waller's protagonists explore the theories behind the dimensional excursions that will impress even the most savvy Isaac Asimov readers. Anna finds herself facing alternate selves as a daughter she never had, Etta, enters the picture. It becomes a mind-bending conundrum as Anna tries to keep Flynn's device from forever deforming the basic principles that keep the universe intact as we know it.For suspense/thriller buffs and sci-fi fans alike, Far Forward by Charles Francis Waller is one you won't want to miss.