Thomas & Mercer
352 Pages
I have a list of authors that I will always go to. Clive Cussler, Steve Berry, and Patricia Cornwell are some of them. I love the crime thrillers that Cornwell writes, so when I saw a new Cornwell book at the library, I had to bring it home with me. When I took a closer look, I realized that this was not the same Patricia Cornwell that I was used to. It was…. a science-fiction novel. Of course, good, old-fashioned, hard science-fiction is among my favorite genres. Quantum by Patricia Cornwell definitely looked like it would fit into this category. This could be a big win for this reader.
Captain Calli Chase has given up a military career and instead works for NASA in law enforcement. When an alarm in a little-used yet secret part of the labyrinth beneath a NASA facility draws her in to investigate, paranoid secrecy arises. Immediately afterwards, one of the contractors involved ends up dead in an apparent suicide. But is it all as it seems, or is it a set up? In the midst of all this, her twin sister, Carme, is wanted for questioning in the disappearance of yet another man. Calli has to juggle the two until they seemingly merge into a single investigation.
All this culminates in a failed space launch that doesn’t really have much to do with the rest of the plot. But it’s science-fiction, right? It needs space ships, even if they’re only mighty rockets exploding on the pad. The story doesn’t really go anywhere and is disappointingly disjointed. Additionally, there is no real ending to the book. It ends on a cliffhanger that is a blatant money grab for another book in the series. After reading her other works, I expected more from Cornwell.
I had high hopes for this book when I first picked it up. There were many ways she could have gone. In fact, when I first started reading it, I had a vision that her characters would have found themselves between two realities through quantum experiments. Instead we get a relatively tame outing that is nothing like any of Cornwell’s other works. And it barely falls into any science fiction category. Overall, it seems like a feeble attempt to enter a new genre.
Quantum by Patricia Cornwell was a disappointing book for me. The failure to actually tell any story was the biggest downfall for me. Begrudgingly, I read the second book in this series, Spin, when it first came out. While it was slightly better than Quantum, the sequel once again failed to add any fuel to the narrative. Next time, I think I’ll stick to the Scarpetta novels. I very much wanted this book to kick off an intriguing and exciting series.
I think die-hard Cornwell fans will have a difficult time with this book. This muddied mess is in contrast to the other book series that she has written. I’m not saying you shouldn’t read this book, but I wouldn’t make it a priority.
Craig Bacon really wants to find some great, hard science fiction novels. He will keep searching.