Review copy was received from Publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Wormhole by Eric Brown, Keith Brooke Narrator: Eric Michael Summerer
Published by Tantor Audio on May 21, 2024
Genres: Mystery, Science Fiction Fantasy
Length: 11 hours, 57 minutes
Format: Audiobook
Source: Publisher
Goodreads
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2110. Earth is suffering major resource shortages, and the impact of climate change is peaking, with much of the planet's equatorial regions turned to lifeless desert and populations displaced. Colonies have been established on Mars and the Moon, but these cannot hope to sustain any more than a scant population of hundreds of citizens.
Attention has turned to the need to discover an extra-solar colony world.
European scientists, using discoveries made at CERN, have identified the means of creating a wormhole in the space-time continuum, which would allow interstellar travel. However, to do so they must first physically transport one end of the wormhole to where they want it to be, so setting up a wormhole will always rely on physical travel first of all.
A ship is sent to Mu Arae, earth-like planet discovered 10 years before. It is a journey that will take 80 years, the crew, who will eventually set up the wormhole on the planet, kept in suspended animation. But only a few years into the trip, catastrophe strikes and the ship blows up en route, killing all aboard.
2190, eighty years after the starship set out.
Gordon Kemp is a detective working in the cold case department in London. Usually he works on cases closed ten, twenty-five years earlier. Now, however, he has been assigned a murder investigation closed, unsolved, over eighty years ago. What he unearths will change history and threatens everything we know about what the powers that be have planned for Earth. The tragedy that befell the ship 80 years before is not what it seems and the past and the present are radically different to what everyone on Earth believes. We made the journey. Why has it been kept a secret?
A cold case in the future sends a middle-aged detective and his younger superior on an investigative adventure that will reveal secrets from eighty years in the past that have consequences for the present. Both authors and narrator were all new to me, but I couldn’t pass up this sci-fi thriller after reading the blurb.
Wormhole is a standalone cold case police procedural mixed with a sci-fi thriller set on the earth of the future and a planet with colonization potential. Eighty years before, a science exploration ship carrying the science and ship crew in suspended animation set to arrive at Mu Arae experiences a catastrophic fire and is destroyed, but just days before one if its members was involved in a murder investigation regarding her husband.
Now, events have taken a turn, and a tired, washed up police detective gets sent through a wonder of tech, a wormhole, to go to the planet under secret orders regarding an 80 year old case remaining unsolved. Meanwhile, his boss and partner is back on earth, defying their superior who shut down her part of the investigation, and pulling up disturbing evidence that was either suppressed or not followed up on properly. They’re up against a cover up at the very least and someone doesn’t want the case reopened, but wants a quick scapegoat pinned with the crime.
Meanwhile, on the planet, Detective Gordon Kemp discovers his orders are even more suspect than he originally thought. Too many anomalies and little is as it was portrayed. His orders were clear, but he does some lateral thinking and is determined to get at the truth even if his career and life are on the line.
I really love when a sci-fi is given a lot of depth to the establishment of the setting and backdrop and science. This futuristic earth fit well with what one would imagine for our future geopolitically, socially, culturally, and environmentally with the setting being mostly London and the British Isles for earth. But, wow, did they do fab at the sci-fi tech of space travel, wormhole, and alien planet exploration. Much thought went into how it would be done and what would always have to be considered even down to exposure and different evolutionary process even if the planet has a similar enough environment and atmosphere to be considered for colonization. And, the adventure of a planet’s mysteries and the intrigue from the situation Gordon is investigating made this a heart-thumping thriller, too.
There are multiple points of view. Gordon Kemp, his partner Dani, a scientist Rima, and a few others which helped see the situation from a cop as well as scientific perspective that I really loved. The characters were developed well and relationships were given due attention. I was deeply vested in this story and sobbed my eyes out at one point when the villains were particularly villainous.
Wormhole was a fabulous surprise and all I hoped it would be when I got a look at the blurb. A superb sci-fi and easily one of my favorite listens for the year. Those who like police procedural mystery, intrigue, and sci-fi thrillers really need to get this in the listening queue.
Narration:
Eric Michael Summerer was a new voice to me, but I easily took to his way of narrating. The story gets off to a slower start with the need to introduce this futuristic world, the characters, and the situation before steadily picking up the pace and the suspense action. He carried it well and then drew me in completely with voicing all the characters and the narration so that a good story was made even better.
Listen to a clip:Â HERE
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As a lifelong reader, it was inevitable that Sophia would discover book blogs and the joy of blog reviewing.Sophia is a prolific reader and audiobook listener which allows her to experience so many wonderful books, authors, and narrators.Few genres are outside her reading tastes, but her true love is fiction particularly history, mystery, sci-fi, and romance.Though, sorry, no horror or she will run like Shaggy and Scooby.
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Wow! This does sound like a great read. Going on my TBR list.
I’m so glad to put it on your radar, Olivia! 🙂
This sounds like it would make a really good movie. Setting up a wormhole sounds dangerous.
Oooh, yes, I think so, too.
Wow, this sounds amazing! I think I’d love this thriller. I’ll see if my library carries it.
Yes, I was excited to come across this one. Hopefully, your library carries it.
Mystery and SCIFI. Fun!
You said it, Carole!
The sci-fi aspect sounds good even if I’m not sure the rest is my cup of tea. Great review!
Both are very strong features so if mystery investigation isn’t fun then this is a probably not one for you.