BookView Review

Orton’s third Madders of Time novel opens several doors into humanity’s uncertain future. Isabel is trapped among hostile survivors at a Denver airport overrun by killerbots. Elsewhere, sixteen-year-old Lucas attempts to repair a failing time loop with the help of scientist Sabina Lovelace. In another reality, James Nadales has built a comfortable life with his wife and young twins until a mysterious sphere crashes in Siberia and Soviet agents come looking for him.

Orton knows how to make a mystery out of the smallest things. An unexpected message, a seemingly impossible invention, and clues scattered across different eras raise questions that reach far beyond their immediate circumstances. The strange discoveries accumulate, drawing readers into a story in which the significance of an event may become clear only much later.

James’s predicament provides some of the strongest suspense. His seemingly ordinary family life stands in sharp contrast to the devastation elsewhere, and the arrival of Soviet agents brings an immediate, recognisable danger to his doorstep. Orton also handles the changes in setting with assurance, moving from secret laboratories to ruined landscapes without losing the urgency of the unfolding events. The pleasure here is watching separate pieces of an enormous puzzle begin to connect, often in unexpected ways.

A smart, entertaining science-fiction thriller with plenty of nerve and imagination. invitation to keep learning, changing, and growing.

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