QUANTUM RADIO by A.G. Riddle

4 stars

I just LOVED the core premise of this sci-fi novel, where Dr. Tyson Klein, a physicist looking at the data from a super-collider experiment, detects extra subatomic particles that should not be there. Klein’s computer data algorithm has picked up a pattern in these entangled particles, which ends up seeming to a message from either another universe or alternative timeline. What a great concept that once we achieve a super high level of technology mastery, an instruction manual from the universe awaits us.

Klein, naming this communication a Quantum Radio presents his finding to a bored and skeptical group of colleagues. But immediately after, Klein returns to his apartment and narrowly misses being killed in the explosion of a delivered alarm clock. There appear to international teams all competitively focused on acquiring this information just for themselves or perhaps to keep it from getting out at all. Ty turns to an old colleague for help escaping and gets drawn into a U.S covert military operation to decode the data’s call-to-action message.

The book then abruptly switches gears to a time-travel, alternative-history adventure story, going back to time to WWI. Here, the story devolved for me into more of a Marvel-type superhero outing, with the stage set for future missions. Moreover, to get to the heart of this novel, you need to wade (or speed read) through extensive, detailed, tedious explanations of quantum science. And the delve into science takes precedence over Riddle delving thoughtfully into any of the characters.

But despite this, the book’s deep look at the future possibilities from quantum physics sparks your imagination and stays with you.

Thanks to Head of Zeus and NetGalley for an advanced reader’s copy.

Stacy DeBroff

Stacy DeBroff, founder and CEO of Mom Central.com and social and digital consultancy, Influence Central, is a social media strategist, attorney, and best-selling parenting author. A sought-after expert for national media, she trend-spots regularly with national brands and speaks frequently to national and international audiences on a wide range of subjects, including influencer marketing, social media, entrepreneurship, and consumer trends. A passionate cook, gardener, reader, and tennis player, she adores this new chapter of post-college-age parenting.