BooksScifi

Quantum Coin by E.C. Myers.

Ask and you shall receive. When I reviewed the first book in this series, ‘Fair Coin’, I hoped that this would not be the last of Ephraim and his parallel world adventures. Thankfully, E.C. Myers heeded my call or perhaps knew the potential of the universe he created, and set to work on ‘Quantum Coin’.

 

A year has passed and Ephraim has stopped travelling throughout the multi-verse, settling down to a normal teenage life with girlfriend Jena. However, when her duplicate from one of the parallel worlds drops in unexpectedly, he’s forced to flip the coin yet again in order to save not just his universe, but all of them.

Myers raises the stakes with the second book in this series. In the previous book, the author took us sideways and kept familiar elements almost as a reassurance but in ‘Quantum Coin’, he flips us backwards and forwards and moves at a pace that leaves no room for distraction. For a young adult novel, it’s unforgiving, you need to really keep focused and it certainly doesn’t patronise or over-simplify for its audience.

Although the action mostly focuses on Ephraim, there is more of an ensemble feel to this book. Analogs Jena and Zoe clash over the lead character, while the original Nate features more than he did in the first book, creating a nice team effort.

Again, Myers shows he has the ability to do what so many authors aren’t able to: provide a satisfactory ending to a book. Everything comes full circle, although as with my review of the first book, I hope that this is not the last we see of Ephraim.

This is a must-read for anyone who enjoyed ‘Fair Coin’. Although I certainly would recommend against anyone thinking that they can just jump straight into this book without reading the first one. Trust me it’ll be worth the wait.

Aidan Fortune

September 2012

 

(pub: Pyr/Prometheus Books. 324 page small hardback. Price: $16.95 (US). ISBN: 978-1-61614-682-5)

check out websites: http://www.pyrsf.com/ and www.ecmyers.net

AidanFortune

Once called a "fountain of useless pop culture knowledge", Aidan is an unashamed geek, grateful that he is allowed share his opinions on a global scale. A journalist by trade, Aidan is a massive fan of comics and recently set up a comics group in Brighton in order to engage more with like-minded people. His home is subject to a constant battle of vintage paraphernalia and science fiction & fantasy toys.

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