The Flight of the Silvers
I do a pretty good job of paying attention to what's happening in the book world. I may be constantly 2-3 years behind because of my tendency to wait for paper backs or even for books to make it to the used book store. But I at least know what's coming out and what everyone's talking about. So when my mother-in-law gave me The Flight of the Silvers for Christmas this past year, the biggest surprise of all was that I hadn't ever heard of it. Even though it was on a few "best sci-fi of 2014" lists.
I was actually blown away by how much I enjoyed this book. At the beginning of the story, the world ends. A handful of people are transported to a parallel Earth that's similar but different to the world their familiar to. They eventually come to find each other and learn about the key differences in the two parallel earths. They also discover some handy new powers.
On the new earth, a cataclysmic event in 1912 led physicists to a much deeper understanding of time than exists on our world. They eventually learned how to manipulate it and can create small fields where the flow of time can be slowed, increased, and even reversed. This mostly results in kitchen appliances that can restore overly-ripe food to a more edible state or assist in defrosting and cabs that can get you to your destination faster for an increased fare.
The people who have been transported to this new world, the silvers as they come to be called, can perform these time manipulations without the aid of technology. They quickly find themselves fighting off people who want to study them, other people who want to kill them, and more malicious people who plan to use them in a mysterious plot.
The characters are fantastic and watching them slowly go from strangers to family is a big part of why I like this book so much. The world is fascinating, too, and the author has a lot of fun playing with time in various ways. Even if it does lower the stakes somewhat when you realize that there's usually a way to prevent the death of a main character.
The biggest problem I have is that this book is merely the first in a series that is projected to be 3-5 books long. Because I definitely don't need to be getting invested in another series right now, but I will almost certainly pick up the second book as soon as it's out. I just need to know what happens next.
I was actually blown away by how much I enjoyed this book. At the beginning of the story, the world ends. A handful of people are transported to a parallel Earth that's similar but different to the world their familiar to. They eventually come to find each other and learn about the key differences in the two parallel earths. They also discover some handy new powers.
On the new earth, a cataclysmic event in 1912 led physicists to a much deeper understanding of time than exists on our world. They eventually learned how to manipulate it and can create small fields where the flow of time can be slowed, increased, and even reversed. This mostly results in kitchen appliances that can restore overly-ripe food to a more edible state or assist in defrosting and cabs that can get you to your destination faster for an increased fare.
The people who have been transported to this new world, the silvers as they come to be called, can perform these time manipulations without the aid of technology. They quickly find themselves fighting off people who want to study them, other people who want to kill them, and more malicious people who plan to use them in a mysterious plot.
The characters are fantastic and watching them slowly go from strangers to family is a big part of why I like this book so much. The world is fascinating, too, and the author has a lot of fun playing with time in various ways. Even if it does lower the stakes somewhat when you realize that there's usually a way to prevent the death of a main character.
The biggest problem I have is that this book is merely the first in a series that is projected to be 3-5 books long. Because I definitely don't need to be getting invested in another series right now, but I will almost certainly pick up the second book as soon as it's out. I just need to know what happens next.
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