TimeSplash - Graham Storrs

    2013; 280 pages.  New Author? : Yes.  Genre : Action-Adventure; Time-Travel.  Overall Rating : 8*/10.

    Let’s do a Timesplash!  This involves being “lobbed” back to another time (but in the same place) where we “bricks” can wreak havoc on history and then watch the Time/Space continuum get all wibbly-wobbly as it self-corrects our mayhem.  Our little jaunt will only last an hour, after which we will experience a “yankback” to our original time.

    That’s okay though, cuz when the “backwash” from our actions - and the Time/Space’s reactions - hits the present time, we’ll get to experience more wibbly-wobblies.

    Ah, but the farther back we get lobbed, and the more ruckus we create, the stronger the backwash.  It's possible that things could get out of hand.

What’s To Like...
    The reader gets to go along on two timesplashes.  The first one is somewhat short (both page-wise and time-jumping-wise), but gets you familiar with the mechanics of the lob.  The second one is more extensive, and takes you back to the early 1900’s.  In addition, the book’s "natural" time-setting is 2047-2050, so Graham Storrs has to develop a futuristic-yet-believable world.  It’s all well-done and satisfyingly detailed.

    What really sets this book apart is its treatment of the Time Travel paradoxes.  Whereas most stories in this genre try to avoid the “what if I kill my own mother before she has me” situations, TimeSplash revels in them.  It’s an ambitious undertaking, and succeeds admirably.

    TimeSplash is also a tale of adventure, with the thrills-&-spills starting from the get-go and never letting up.  There really aren’t any slow spots.  Everything builds to an exciting climax.  There is a sequel, but this is a standalone novel.  There’s even a budding Romance for the ladies, and methinks that will be more fully-developed in the sequel.

Kewlest New Words (all Britishisms) ...
Prat (noun)  :  An arsehole; a fool.
Titfer (noun)  :  Cockney for “hat”.
Dobbed in (verb)  :  Ratted on
Mug’s Lark (phrase)  :  (I couldn’t find a meaning for this anywhere)

Excerpts...
    The Institute was a low-security establishment and its patients were allowed many freedoms and comforts.  Sandra, for instance, had her own small room, with a bed, chest of drawers, wardrobe, and tiny en suite bathroom.  It was a humane and well-run establishment and Sandra had been planning to escape from it since the day two prison officers had brought her there from the juvenile remand centre in Plymouth.  (loc. 1072)

    “It is important to stop the bricks from launching more attacks,” Bauchet said.  “It is the most important matter facing humankind at the moment.  Do you not agree?”
    Jay tried to weigh it against curing cancer or stopping poverty, ending the Sino-Indian war or beating the latest flu pandemic, but quickly gave up.  It was well up there with the rest, wherever its exact place in the running order was.  So he said, “I suppose.”  (loc. 2317)

Kindle Details...
    TimeSplash sells for $3.69 at Amazon.  Its sequel, True Path, sells for $4.99.  Graham Storrs also has a half-dozen or so short stories available for the Kindle, priced mostly at $0.99.

“Nice punch, beanpole.”  “Thanks, strumpet.”  (loc. 4320)
    Prude Alert!  This book contains violence, bloodshed, torture, molestation, and even a little cussing.  Religious Prude Alert!  You may be upset by the identities and motivations of some of the baddies.

    For the rest of us, TimeSplash is a well-written, well-structured book, where the violence fits in nicely with the overall theme.  Recommended for lovers of both Action and Time-Travel stories.  8 Stars.  Add a half-star if you like tales that are written in English (as opposed to American) and set in the UK.  For whatever reason, I seem to be drawn to British authors.