Flashforward [Turtleback]

Robert J. Sawyer (Author)

Product Details

• Turtleback
• Publisher: Demco Media (April 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0606186417
• ISBN-13: 978-0606186414
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 4.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (156 customer reviews)

More About the Author

Robert J. Sawyer -- called "the dean of Canadian science fiction" by the OTTAWA CITIZEN and "just about the best science-fiction writer out there" by the Denver ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS -- is one of eight authors in history to win all three of the science-fiction field's highest honors for best novel of the year: the Hugo Award (which he won for HOMINIDS), the Nebula Award (which he won for THE TERMINAL EXPERIMENT); and the John W. Campbell Memorial Award (which he won for MINDSCAN).

Rob has won Japan's Seiun Award for best foreign novel three times (for END OF AN ERA, FRAMESHIFT, and ILLEGAL ALIEN), and he's also won the world's largest cash-prize for SF writing -- the Polytechnic University of Catalonia's 6,000-euro Premio UPC de Ciencia Ficcion -- an unprecedented three times.

In 2007, he received China's Galaxy Award for most favorite foreign author. He's also won twelve Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Awards ("Auroras"), an Arthur Ellis Award from the Crime Writers of Canada, ANALOG magazine's Analytical Laboratory Award for Best Short Story of the Year, and the SCIENCE FICTION CHRONICLE Reader Award for Best Short Story of the Year.

Rob's novels have been top-ten national mainstream bestsellers in Canada, appearing on the GLOBE AND MAIL and MACLEAN'S bestsellers' lists, and they've hit number one on the bestsellers' list published by LOCUS, the U.S. trade journal of the SF field.

Rob is a frequent keynote speaker at conferences, teaches SF writing occasionally, and edits his own line of Canadian science-fiction novels for Red Deer Press.

His novel FLASHFORWARD (Tor Books) was the basis for the ABC TV series of the same name. He enjoyed spending time on the set and wrote the script for episode 19 "Course Correction."

His WWW trilogy, WAKE, WATCH, and WONDER (Ace Books), is all about the World Wide Web gaining consciousness.

Next up is TRIGGERS, April 2012. Set in Washington D.C., TRIGGERS is a science fiction political thriller about the nature of memory.

For more information about Rob and his award-winning books, check out his web page: http://sfwriter.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

92 of 100 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good story, poor piece of writing, December 29, 2007

By 

Heather D. Gallay (Boston, MA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Flashforward (Mass Market Paperback)

In the very near future of 2009, two physicists working on a complicated experiment accidentally thrust the collective consciousness of the entire world ahead twenty-one years. Although the "flash forward," as it's later named, lasts only minutes, the aftermath is catastrophic. Not only are millions of people killed in accidents caused by their sudden and brief departure from the present (i.e. plane and car crashes, falls down stairs, etc.), but those who survived find themselves emotionally rocked by their respective (and sometimes shared) glimpses of the future. The two scientists are left to piece together what happened, while also trying to figure out whether or not the future they all saw was fixed or just one of many possible outcomes.

I enjoyed this book very much: the story itself was fascinating, and thought-provoking, and the author is clearly an intelligent man with an intriguing imagination. However, I had a big problem with the execution of the story; Mr. Sawyer's a great storyteller, to be sure, but an awkward, almost amateurish writer. While the book was an easy, accessible read, I found it to be equally as clunky and frustrating in parts -- especially his shockingly excessive use of the word "doubtless," which was so abundant that it became distracting and, toward the end, grated on my every nerve. (How his editors let it go to press with such a glaring flaw is beyond me.)

Still, I recommend this book to anyone who's interested in time travel and is looking for some light sci-fi reading. And, in spite of my feeling toward the author's technical skill as a writer (or lack thereof), the story itself was compelling enough to make me consider the idea of reading some of his other books.

74 of 87 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars NOT for fans of the TV series!, April 29, 2010

By 

A. Regolino (New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Flashforward (Paperback)

If you are a fan of the TV series, DO NOT buy this book. I am not saying this so that you can avoid the possibility of learning something you shouldn't know about what's coming up in the series. I, and I'm sure others too, started reading it with that very same motive once the mid-season hiatus took place. And I can assure you, you will NOT learn ANY of the series' many secrets if you read this book. The two are as different as can be, and the only character from the book that has any prominent role in the series is Lloyd Symcoe, and his character and its circumstances are VERY different. The creators of the TV series simply took the initial idea from the book but have developed characters and situations that are entirely unique. After getting hooked on the TV series, I must say that I find the book to be very disappointing. The series drives on intrigue, suspense, action, mystery, but the book is grounded in very dry science. The selection of the main character says it all: the TV series puts a federal agent at the heart of the story and watches as he tries to uncover secrets (a very wise choice), while the book revolves around the scientist who caused the "flash forward" and his team of scientists. I can't spell it out any clearer. While I do not wish to put down the novel or the novelist (who I applaud for his capable handling of very highly scientific concepts), I am more impressed by the way the show's creators have adapted it into something much more. This is a very good example of how to take someone else's fascinating idea and turn it into something that a greater audience could appreciate.

34 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Not well done at all, August 31, 2009

By 

Louis R. Primus (Hatboro, PA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Flashforward (Mass Market Paperback)

A good idea, but handled wrong. Much of it isn't very believable, and I've read some pretty far-out stuff that was made believable by skilled authors. The characters are definitely cardboard cutouts, as many other reviewers have stated. I'm not even sure the author had a clear idea who they were. (You get the idea that Lloyd Simcoe is generally reserved/timid in the beginning of the book, but then later on he walks out on a press conference, unflustered, saying something like, "That's it. I'm outta here." I think I laughed out loud at that.) The dialogue is just sad, and there's very little action. The writing is pretty terrible too, with cliches littered here and there---and a decent editor was certainly called for.

I thought the concept was good. But, as I said, the execution was poor. I would have liked to have seen how everyday citizens reacted to their future visions, and how they tried to change them or help them come to fruition. Less pseudoscience, more fiction.