In order to make this an objective review, I tried to find some negatives or things that could use improvement, but I haven’t been able to think of any.

He’s not always right, and his flashed of insight are well explained as he goes about saving the day using mostly his brain, not brawn.

The metaphor he uses for his prodigious brain is ants: tiny memory ants carrying pieces of information back and forth. Mike (short for “Mycroft,” for obvious reasons) is written in a way that makes him easy to follow and understand. That’s not always an easy task: after all, we all remember the cringe-worthy, chipmunk-like character of Wesley Crusher on Star Trek: TNG. Perhaps the main challenge was writing the protagonist in a way that would be easy to relate to and show just how brilliant he is. (Which are amazingly well written, by the way.) The dialogue sounds unforced and natural, with regular, everyday interactions interspersed between mysteries and action scenes. From grumpy scientists to Star Trek-obsessed technicians, by the end of the book you feel like you’ve known each of them for ages. The seemingly benign technology has a strange origin, stranger implications, and it just might destroy the world as we know it – and it’s up to Mike Erikson to save the day.Įach of the Fold’s characters is well developed and given their own personality, which, unfortunately, isn’t something one can see in every sci-fi book. Writing anything about the “how” behind his teleportation machine would bring spoilers, so suffice to say that it doesn’t quite work the way you (or any of the characters) would expect. (Who among us hasn’t heard “Beam me up, Scotty”?) In his usual manner, however, Clines takes that concept, turns it inside out and changes it into something completely novel and unrecognizable. After all, teleportation is one of science fiction’s most popular tropes. His well-established routine changes when an old friend from DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) pays a visit and asks for a favor… A team of scientists developed a teleportation device that works perfectly fine, but something might be off about the scientists themselves. Instead of developing his talents, however, he teaches English in a small high school, choosing to lead a normal life instead of that of a dissatisfied genius. In addition to having sky-high IQ, he also has perfect recall.

He goes by “Mike,” which is a nickname for a nickname, and he’s one of the smartest people in the world. His latest novel, “The Fold,” follows that pattern and may be his greatest book yet. Peter Clines’s books are always addictive, unpredictable and beautifully crafted.

The fold clines