Peter F. Hamilton has proven himself a modern master of epic space opera, carrying the tradition of far-future empire building begun by Heinlein and Asimov into the new millennium. But Hamilton is also a master of the short story, and when he tackles one of science fiction’s most enduring themes—time travel—the result is as provocative as it is entertaining. It starts in 2007 with a break-in. The victim: Marcus Orthew, the financial and technological genius behind Orthanics, the computer company whose radical products have delivered a one-two punch to the industry, all but knocking PCs and Macs out of the ring. The perpetrator: a man obsessed with Orthew. Just another simple case of celebrity stalking—or so everyone assumes at first, including Metropolitan Police Chief Detective David Lanson. But when Lanson interviews the suspect, he makes a startling claim: Orthew is from the future. Or, rather, a future—a parallel timeline. Thus begins the ride of a lifetime for Lanson, as his pursuit of the facts tumbles him headlong down a rabbit hole—and the hunter finds himself hunted.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
29 of 29 people found the following review helpful
Format:Kindle Edition
This story grabs you for a wild ride through a police investigation where nearly everyone thinks the 'perp' is just a nut case. One cop digs deeper, and gets his own hit of 'nervana'. It leaves you thinking, what might I do given the same chance?
It has just enough information to get the story across clearly. There are no wasted words. To me, that makes a good short story. When the story is still in your mind hours/days later and causing you to ponder issues that would not be on your normal train of thought...then it becomes excellent. I look forward to reading more from Mr. Hamilton.
It has just enough information to get the story across clearly. There are no wasted words. To me, that makes a good short story. When the story is still in your mind hours/days later and causing you to ponder issues that would not be on your normal train of thought...then it becomes excellent. I look forward to reading more from Mr. Hamilton.
17 of 17 people found the following review helpful
By Caroljane
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
The detective is talking to a break-in suspect, someone obsessed with one of the world's greatest geniuses. Perhaps he is a stalker?
The suspect is talking time machine and time travel... but not quite in the usual manner... his version of time travel has a twist. He's talking like a completely crazy man.
This short story is tightly wrapped and very enjoyable. A good, self-contained story which is very believable.
A fun read! I highly recommend it. :)
The suspect is talking time machine and time travel... but not quite in the usual manner... his version of time travel has a twist. He's talking like a completely crazy man.
This short story is tightly wrapped and very enjoyable. A good, self-contained story which is very believable.
A fun read! I highly recommend it. :)
13 of 13 people found the following review helpful
By Echoes
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
This story grips your attention from the moment you start reading. It is entertaining and very well written and the ending is perfect.
The only downside for this Kindle Version is the actual story only takes up 24% of the content, the other 76% is a promotion for his new book, The Mandel Files, Volume 1 which is actually just the first two stories of his Greg Mandel series Book 1. Mindstar Rising (1992), Book 2. A Quantum Murder (1994) and Book 3. The Nano Flower (1995)
The story was great and it was Free so no complaints and I hope everyone will download and read this one.
The only downside for this Kindle Version is the actual story only takes up 24% of the content, the other 76% is a promotion for his new book, The Mandel Files, Volume 1 which is actually just the first two stories of his Greg Mandel series Book 1. Mindstar Rising (1992), Book 2. A Quantum Murder (1994) and Book 3. The Nano Flower (1995)
The story was great and it was Free so no complaints and I hope everyone will download and read this one.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
good
i get this for free, what else i can expect from this book, haven't read it yet, just get it first, then i can read it later.
Published 25 days ago by crazy buyer
5.0 out of 5 stars
Review of If at First...
A fun little short story, well worth reading. The twist at the end leaves you wanting the story to be picked up later on. Read more
Published 27 days ago by Kyle
3.0 out of 5 stars
Decent Fun Read, but Lacks Depth
I enjoyed the concept of this story. "Policeman investigates the possibility that a famous inventor is actually from another timeline/dimension" is a good foundation for a plot. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Dr.Gonzo
3.0 out of 5 stars
Free Ebook short story
Perhaps because I read this story with a Kindle app on a smartphone, the story seemed to end abruptly, or perhaps be missing the ending. I haven't had time to red it again.
Published 1 month ago by G. N. Christensen
4.0 out of 5 stars
Not very original but still enjoyable read
The premise of this story is perhaps new, from the mind of Hamilton, and full of energy, but it was TOO SHORT. I would have enjoyed this more if it had been more lengthy. Read more
Published 1 month ago by J. S. Harbour
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excelent.
I'm a big fan of Peter Hamilton
He is a great master of science ficton. This one is now in my list of better novels.
He is a great master of science ficton. This one is now in my list of better novels.
Published 2 months ago by Cesar Martin
5.0 out of 5 stars
Good book
this was a free book so I had no charge. the process for getting books on Amazon is easy to do.
Published 2 months ago by Keith Burr
5.0 out of 5 stars
If at First
Peter F. Hamilton has taken up the mantle of Frank Herbert when it comes to space operas. He defines hard core tech. with great stories.
Published 3 months ago by GE
5.0 out of 5 stars
Very Fun Short Story
I picked this up because it was a free short story and I wanted to test out how well the Kindle App worked on my BlackBerry (which works amazingly well!). Read more
Published 3 months ago by Bj
5.0 out of 5 stars
Can't wait for the movie
Steve Gibson was kind enough to introduce me to Peter Hamilton. This is an especially imaginative tale. I wish it was longer
Published 3 months ago by John Milton
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