Foundation

by Marco Guarda

A detective investigating an impossible murder suspects a future corporation where believers are used for space travels.

What lies behind the seemingly impossible murder of a famous neuroscientist and his wife? What about the monster powers that were able to send a 350,000 ton cargo spaceship off course? What is Credence? What's it like being a Believer? What's the most terrible belief a Credence's Believer can believe?

These are just some of the many questions Detective Trumaine must find an answer to if he wants to solve the case. Follow him in a mind-twisting journey through lies, false clues, murder attempts and unexpected, thrilling reversals and reality twists. Intrude upon Trumaine's privacy, take an emotional ride into his personal and best-forgotten past to know what blocks him from finally reuniting with his beloved wife.

Enter the amazing Science Fiction world of Credence in the first chapter of the series: FOUNDATION.

Genres: Science Fiction

272 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 4, 2012

About the author

I've been writing little things for myself and for my friends for ages, but it wasn't since 2006 that I started writing consistently.

Three of my screenplays have placed and even earned some prizes at various competitions. Credence Foundation, born as a screenplay, hence born visually, has been turned into a book. Hoping it sees the light as a Sci-Fi / Action movie one day, I've started expanding my stories in the many branches of Science Fiction.

Feel free to join me in this crazy journey through the mind, the subconscious, technology, and mankind's fears and hopes, of course.

Reviews

[Sheila · Rating 4 out of 5]

I did not know what to expect from Foundation: Credence, Book 1, by Marco Guarda. What I got was an enthralling read. It is a futuristic sci-fi fantasy where people live on other planets besides earth. Ecological rules have changed. Where once corporations would rape the lands in their quests to find products to monopolize and sell to the Earth and other planets, now the laws protect the planets. Gone are many of the machines used for work and travel. Now minds thinking about moving a ship to another planet can move it from Earth to where it needs to go. In all of this, a murder is committed. The murder victim, Aarmo Jarva , is the man responsible for the development of this more peaceful way of life. He was a visionary who saw beyond what most men thought. But he was dangerous to the laws of the land, to Credence, and he had to be stopped.

When I started reading Credence I was not sure I was going to like it. The prose is beautiful. Words flow from the pen of Marco Guarda painting a wonderful picture. The murder and the hunt for the murderer is absorbing. I hated putting the book down (had to--had to get back to work.) I loved Christian Trumaine. He is a complex man. His life is not turning out the way he envisioned. His wife works off-planet in Aquaria, where there are very strict laws on the environment and citizenship. He cannot be with her full time because he is not a citizen of Aquaria. Tragedy has occurred to leave him little more than a shell--full of guilt, going through the motions of living, estranged from most people. His captain, Grant Firrell, along with the TSA and the Feds have given him hope that maybe he can become a citizen of Aquaria, if he finds the murderer. If he fails, he is the scapegoat. With very few clues to the murder, I figured he would remain on Earth.

Some of the other characters I was unsure if they were friend or foe. Who was working with whom? Who would stop at nothing to cover up the murder? To cover up what Dr. Jarva was researching? Why was it important? Noah Benedict, the head of Credence, and his assistant were helpful to Trumaine. Noah explained things to him and helped him to find the murderer at the beginning. Credence was not looking good at that point. The TSA and the Feds were threatening him with shutting down Credence if the murderer, who looked to be a part of Credence, was not found. Faith, a believer in Credence, also showed Trumaine things he did not know and, sometimes, did not want to remember or know.

Where I found problems was in the world building of Credence. Mr. Guarda needed to build the Credence world. He sometimes got wordy in trying to make the reader understand this world. I was confused when I was pulled out of the murder investigation for world building. Some of the passages contained too much information that did not have context with the story at the point of explaining the world of Credence. When the story went back to the murder plotline, I enjoyed the story much better. I also began to understand the world of Credence when Mr. Guarda naturally allowed the world building to be shown through the story.

Overall, I liked Foundation: Credence, Book 1. I am hooked and need another fix of this world. I hope it comes soon. This seems to be a series that will be interesting and unique.

[Randy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Foundation has an old-fashioned feel for me, from the milkman delivering in the neighborhood to the computer punch cards to the polite profanity and related areas(darn and the reference to the young woman who "dated" for money). New as well, we have cell phones, electric cars, DNA analysis.

It was all refreshing and I loved every bit of it.

Detective Investigator Christian Trumaine had a double murder to investigate. A married couple found in a self-contained bunker that had to be forced into. Two bodies were there, a married couple, an obvious murder. Except that security systems said the main door hadn't been accessed in ninety-six hours and the deaths were placed at about a day before. It had been discovered by the neighborhood milkman who found the previous day's delivery still sitting by the door where he'd left it.

How could it have been done?

Trumaine figured it could only have been Credence.

The Credence Corporation was responsible for moving spaceships from one point in the universe to another. Instantly. It didn't matter the distance. A group of true believers floating on couches in a huge chamber was the impetus.

They called it flushing.

The two bodies were Aarmo R. Jarva and his wife, he a famous scientist, the father of modern space travel, the developer of Credence. The medical examiner found another strange occurrence when he filed the death certificates. It was on record that the wife had died five years ago. Obviously a clerical error.

Credence surely bore investigation.

Trumaine was offered his fondest wish to figure it all out in three days. First rate Citizenship for the planet Aquaria, a human settled world sixty=two million light years from Earth. His wife worked there and had citizenship. A very restricted world, Trumaine was a "mere" policeman and offered nothing constructive to rate. The accidental death of their daughter, for which he blamed himself completely, had forced them apart. If he could ever get over the self-blame, she wanted him back.

So he went at it with a will.

At about the same time as the Jarvas had been murdered, a 350,000 ton ship, loaded with 4500 people and billions of dollars of terraforming equipment had disappeared enroute to its destination.

Were they connected?

A wonderfully fun SF novel with promises of more to come.

[Vickie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Credence Foundation

Credence Foundation is a story set in a futuristic world of space travel and “believers”. Detective Chris Trumaine is called in to solve the unexplainable murder of a renowned, award winning scientist, Aarmo Jarva and his wife. Jarva was instrumental in developing the science of the believers at the Credence Foundation. Basically, if you have enough who believe, it will become reality. Whether it is moving spaceships from planet to planet or an individual from one place to another, Credence was big business. And, if Trumaine can solve the case, he will be granted citizenship to Aquaria, a pristine planet where his wife now resides and works.

Trumaine enters the world of the believers and meets Benedict, who runs Credence. It is determined that the only way to find the killer is for Trumaine to enter the believers’ chamber and tap into the “feed”. Once Trumaine is in, things start to happen very quickly. His boss, Captain Firrell is instrumental in getting him what he needs and clearance to do so. Trumaine enlists the help of a believer, Faith, who plays a major role in helping Trumaine, until he thinks she is the one tainting the feed.

There is a lot that goes on in this book. There is a suicide, which is determined to be another murder. And just when you think you’ve got it figured out, there’s another twist. We learn of a terrible tragedy in Trumaine’s recent past that he and his wife are trying to cope with, and has driven them apart. I know that this book was originally written as a screenplay and, unfortunately it reads that way in a lot of places. The vivid, lengthy descriptions of Trumaine’s surroundings are great for setting up a scene in a movie, but it made the story hard to read at times. The story itself is a good one. I just wish that there had been more story and not as much descriptive dialogue. I did find myself wanting to know what happens next. All in all, a good first effort. And, the end surprised me, which doesn’t happen very often!

[Stephen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would like to thank the author, who provided a copy of this book for an impartial review.

Credence book 1: Foundation. Science Fiction, mystery, thriller, paranormal...so many ideas overlap that the story defies the usual classifications.

The story begins with an 'impossible' murder of a very influential scientist. the main character is the detective, Chris Trumaine, who is tasked with solving the crime. The clues send him to Credence, an organization that uses mass belief to make things happen, mostly interstellar travel. Lots of good action and great character development carries the story through to the end.

As I read this book, I saw glimpses of Philip Dick and Isaac Asimov in the blend of techno thriller and detective noir. Technological advances gave a 'foundation' to the story, but the story grew and lived through the characters. At other times, I was reminded of movies like Inception and Total Recall. Sometimes what is real and what is dreamed mesh and tangle, and that makes for some very interesting twists.

Early in the book, I started to worry. It looked like things were going to be too linear. I was thinking that it was too easy, not enough false leads, not enough suspects popping in and out of the picture. Boy, was I wrong! the twists hit at the mid-point, then get re-twisted and when you think things are getting untwisted, the plot leaps again! So many debut authors have trouble with complex issues, but Mr. Guarda handled it expertly.

Good job to Marco Guarda! I hope the screenplay of this novel gets optioned, I would love to watch it!

[Benjamin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the best books I've read in quite a while. Marco created the perfect blend on science fiction and detective novel. It never got boring, the plot was continually building and shifting. Each character was well crafted, allowing readers to better empathize with them. Although the novel is futuristic, Marco did not take it too far. None of the advances seem too far fetched. The concept of the Believers is a very original concept, I've not seen used by other authors. In the end, this read was a fulfilling journey. I was never sure where the story was headed, but I was always anxious to find out. This was my favorite science fiction book since Isaac Asimov's works. I look forward to reading future works by Marco Guarda. I would definitely recommend this book.

[SuperHeroQwimm · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved it. It was a great combination of science fiction and a murder mystery. I really liked the futuristic setting described, new interesting planets inhabited by people and an even crazier way to travel to them. The murderer of the story can read minds which made it all the more difficult to catch him.
The first chapter was very nicely done, I was instantly drawn in because the way he described the murder scene was so odd. This is nothing like Ive read before, quite enjoyable! I just hope there is a sequel because I would like to know more about this world the author has created.

[Ernie Sorenson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won Credence Foundation via the Goodreads Giveaways and all in all it was a great and interesting futuristic novel. I appreciated the level of detail and description Marco provided throughout the book, I find that something I always look for in a book. I especially enjoyed towards the end when....well...I don't want to ruin any of it. My only complaints would be the use of the word diaphanous more than twice and a few obvious proofreading errors. I would say great job Marco Guarda on producing a story that was easy to become part of.

[Katreena · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this book free from Goodreads Firstread.

I have to say, what a fantastic take on a sci-fi. The ending was a bit..unnerving, but the story was really creative!

[Kathy Cunningham · Rating 4 out of 5]

More than anything else, Marco Guarda’s THE CREDENCE FOUNDATION is a love story. Sure, it’s science fiction – there’s space travel, other planets, and a fascinating new technology that will surely intrigue sci-fi fans. But the heart of the story is protagonist Christian Trumaine’s desperate need to reconnect with his estranged wife, Starshanna, who is living apart from him on a planet in another galaxy. The plot of the novel revolves around a mysterious murder that took place inside a sealed and secure underground residence. Detective Trumaine’s investigation leads to a company called The Credence Foundation, which has harnessed the power of the human brain to greatly enhance space travel. Gradually it becomes clear that this new neurological technology is behind the murder of the scientist, as well as the disappearance of a massive cargo shuttle. On that level, this is a detective story. But ultimately it’s Trumaine and Shanna’s story that holds CREDENCE FOUNDATION together. I found it charming, identifiable, and true.

The neurological technology in the novel is based on a theory that a collective of shared “beliefs” can affect the physical universe. In the novel, a group of five hundred “Believers” working for the Credence Foundation are kept in a trance state, their minds directed by a computer program. In this way, they are able to actually move an entire space ship light years away from earth in seconds – if all five hundred “believe” that the ship has moved, it will move. Guardo suggests that this is indeed possible, and that it has something to do with the thalamus gland in the human brain – the science isn’t much more developed than that, but it’s an interesting theory. The work of the “Believers” is reminiscent of the film “The Matrix,” where unconscious humans create a detailed virtual reality world. But in CREDENCE FOUNDATION, the created reality becomes real. And it’s just the beginning of what such focused “believing” can accomplish.

This isn’t a perfect novel. The beginning is excruciatingly slow and plodding, with way too many over-blown descriptions and clunky similes. But hang in there, because once the story actually begins, it’s both engaging and fast-paced. There are more than a few typographical and grammatical errors, some of which are annoying (there are far too many fragmented sentences, missing words, and word substitutions, for example). Additionally, there are some odd anachronisms that make it difficult to get a feel for what this future is really like – on the one hand, it is suggested that the story is taking place at least a hundred years or more in the future, but at the same time there are still milkmen delivering door to door, Trumaine remembers the sound of an old-fashioned manual typewriter, and computer key cards are still in use. It’s all a little weird.

Overall, I enjoyed CREDENCE FOUNDATION. The murder investigation is satisfyingly resolved, and I was very connected to Trumaine’s relationship with Shanna and their daughter (their pet dolphin is cool, too!). Guarda says this began as a screenplay, and parts of it (especially in the beginning) do read more like a film treatment than a novel. I do think it would make a good movie.

[Please note: I was given a copy of this novel for review. The opinions expressed here are my own.]

[Ebony · Rating 3 out of 5]

First, big thanks to Marco Guarda for issuing me a free copy of his book!! That truly means a lot to me.

Review: I believe this is Marco's first novel and as such it was ok. It was a bit predictable in some areas (mostly due to the lack of protagonists). There are a few sections that encouraged me to skip ahead. Those areas took too long to describe a scene or area using details that were not pertinent nor beneficial to the storyline. However, many descriptions were foreshadowing of other parts of the novel. I must say, that I mostly read for fun, not for analyzing so I don't often pay attention to foreshadowing.

The many characters could have been built out just a bit more so that the reader could feel invested in them. I did feel attached to the main character regarding his major loss but not really to any other character in the book. And there were a few who one really could have felt attached to.

Overall, it was an ok read. I don't feel the need to scour the web for book two (if one were to come available at this time). I would probably choose to read future books by this author however. One would think that the first book would be the most difficult to write so future books should be great! Yes, I would recommend it for reading as the topic is quite interesting.

[Brandon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would like to thank the author for providing me a copy through the good reads contests. I certainly wasn't sure what to expect when I won this book but it really was quite the entertaining read. It was a murder mystery/sci-fi that really has a little bit of everything and plenty of plot twists to keep you interested along the way. The author really has a way with words that makes you feel like you can see things for yourself and most of the characters have a solid back story that really helps to make you understand them. I very much enjoyed reading "Foundation".

[Jay · Rating 3 out of 5]

If I could have, I would have much prefered to have given this book three-and-a-half stars. I was highly intrigued by the idea behind this novel and was not at all disappointed in that regard. My only problems were with a few scenes that seemed slightly rushed and a few scenes which I felt weren't really necessary. Overall, though, I really liked this novel and was truly surprised by a few of the twists that it presented, even though I saw some of them coming.

I received this book through Goodreads First Reads.