Reflex: A Jumper Novel

One of the best writers now in the science fiction field is Steven J. Gould. Try Jumper, about Davy the inadvertent teleport, and its sequel, Reflex, defying all known laws of sequels by being just as good. Gould credits sf legend Alfred Bester's The Stars My Destination for inspiration, but I've read Bester, too, and Gould has spent a lot more time sitting around thinking about what life would be like if you could teleport yourself from one place to another in the blink of an eye. It isn't all roses. Gould also wrote Wildside (what would you do if you found a door into a parallel but alternate universe?) and Helm, about human beings escaping from an apocolyptic war on Earth to settle on another planet, only to discover they didn't leave war behind.

Its been 10 years since the events in JUMPER. For all that time Davy has worked for the NSA. Davy has always believed that it would be impossible to hold him prisoner given his ability to teleport, however he is about to find out how horribly wrong he is when a totally ruthless, wealthy and influential group of people drug and kidnap him to find out his secrets. Stranded in their cliff-top home, Davy's wife, Millie makes the startling discovery that she too can teleport - that it is something that can be learned by the brain if you do it often enough. Millie is determined to get her husband back despite the seeming lack of clues, and much of this novel revolves around tracking down Davy and Davy doing his best to give as little information as possible to his captors, while seeming to co-operate. Like all Steven Gould's work this novel is well plotted with a commonsense approach to problems. However, this novel has not fallen into the trap of some of his previous books by being over descriptive of technical details. Instead we have a very action based story that easily carries you to its end. It's a great, and suspenseful, and at times cringe-worthy, follow up to JUMPER, and given its ending can easily support another novel in this series. (However, be warned, if you really dislike torture scenes avoid this book)

In this long-awaited sequel to Gould's first novel, Jumper, the author finally returns to form. Ever since Jumper, Gould's novels have become less and less interesting with each work that has been published. However, Reflex is a welcome return to the type of writing that heralded Gould as great novelist with a bright future in science-fiction. In this sequel, teleporter David Rice is now married and living comfortably out of the public's eye. Every once in a while, he is hired by the NSA (National Security Agency) to do "favors" for them (i.e. - rescuing hostages, dropping off "packages", etc.). Little does he know, that there is a sinister group of people that are planning to kidnap him and force him to do tasks that would ensure their power throughout the world. Furthermore, they've developed a technology that would be able to keep David well within their reach. Little do they know, however, is that David's wife, Millie, can also teleport now. Once David goes "missing," Millie makes it her undying quest to find him and put an end to the devilish plot that unfolds. This is an excellent and exciting book from Gould. Even though teleportation has been covered ad-nauseum in so many other sci-fi books and movies, Gould brings a fresh new perspective to the concept that is both intriguing and thought provoking. After I finished reading this book, I wanted the story to continue.

Wonderfully entertaining experience. Converging plot lines make this an exciting and suspenseful novel. Easy suspension of disbelief creates a "James Bond" quality of excitement. An ending as exciting as the one in his book "Helm"! I was on the edge of my seat until I finished it!