The Fullness of Time

by Kate Wilhelm

Hiram Granville, a modern Leonardo, secured more than a thousand patents during his lifetime. His son John, an economics genius, never lost a cent in the stock market or any other financial deal. Now Cat, a documentarian, her researcher Mercy, and Cracker Jack, an electronics whiz, are preparing to do a documentary about the Granville clan. What they find as they research the family is madness, suicides, a seclusion that appears to be total, and a frightening glimpse about what it means to peer into the future.

Genres: Fiction, Audiobook, Science Fiction, Mystery, Time Travel, Fantasy, Mystery Thriller

77 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 3, 2012

About the author

Kate Wilhelm’s first short story, “The Pint-Sized Genie” was published in Fantastic Stories in 1956. Her first novel, MORE BITTER THAN DEATH, a mystery, was published in 1963. Over the span of her career, her writing has crossed over the genres of science fiction, speculative fiction, fantasy and magical realism, psychological suspense, mimetic, comic, and family sagas, a multimedia stage production, and radio plays. She returned to writing mysteries in 1990 with the acclaimed Charlie Meiklejohn and Constance Leidl Mysteries and the Barbara Holloway series of legal thrillers.

Wilhelm’s works have been adapted for television and movies in numerous countries; her novels and stories have been translated to more than a dozen languages. She has contributed to Quark, Orbit,  Magazine of Fantasy and ScienceFiction, Locus, Amazing Stories, Asimov’s Science Fiction, Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine,  Fantastic, Omni, Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine, Redbook, and Cosmopolitan.

Kate Wilhelm is the widow of acclaimed science fiction author and editor, Damon Knight (1922-2002), with whom she founded the Clarion Writers’ Workshop and the Milford Writers’ Conference, described in her 2005 non-fiction work, STORYTELLER. They lectured together at universities across three continents; Kate has continued to offer interviews, talks, and monthly workshops.

Kate Wilhelm has received two Hugo awards, three Nebulas, as well as Jupiter, Locus, Spotted Owl, Prix Apollo, Kristen Lohman awards, among others. She was inducted into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame in 2003. In 2009, Kate was the recipient of one of the first Solstice Awards presented by the Science Fiction Writers of America (SFWA) in recognition of her contributions to the field of science fiction. 

Kate’s highly popular Barbara Holloway mysteries, set in Eugene, Oregon, opened with Death Qualified in 1990. Mirror, Mirror, released in 2017, is the series’ 14th novel.

Reviews

[Margaret Hendrickson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mercy investigates the strange Granville family. What she learns makes her question the nature of time. The premiss is interesting, but underdeveloped. The whole book read like an outline. Action spilled forth without clear direction or impetus. The characters were nicely outlined, but lacked any flesh or cohesiveness. I hope someone actually writes this book someday, because I would read it.

[Jim · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting novella with time travel (of a sort) as the center piece. It was fairly short, well narrated/written, & interesting. There were only about a dozen characters, so we got to know most fairly well without getting boring. It's a bit of a thriller, too.

I don't think she explored the ramifications of the time travel nearly as well as she could have. We're shown it could be mind bending, but I didn't get sucked in the way I thought I should have. Of course, I'm comparing it to some of the masters like RAH's "By His Bootstraps", Bradbury's "Sound of Thunder, or What's Expected of Us by Ted Chiang*. She could have done a lot more with one character & really created something great.

So, I'll recommend it, but I'm a little disappointed.

*If you haven't read What's Expected of Us, it's very short & available free here:
https://www.nature.com/articles/436150a
I highly recommend it.

[Lata · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had been looking for something short to listen to while waiting for some holds to come through. The story was ok, though I found myself not really caring about most of the characters, and didn't feel like the resolution really worked; it felt too easy and unearned.

[Cherie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A strange little story about a family, whose members are able to access their future self and bring back information. Everyone seems to have a different time jump and duration and some of them are driven crazy through the process. Their time jumps appear as a form of narcolepsy. A documentary film maker and her crew are hired to do a documentary story about two of the main family members. What they find out and what happens is more than they thought they would ever be involved in.

I listened to the story narrated by Marguerite Gavin.

[Trike · Rating 2 out of 5]

Back in the 1980s I read pretty much everything by Wilhelm I could get my hands on. Her SF and mysteries were staples. This one of the last stories she wrote, probably around age 82 or 83, and it’s far from her usual quality.

The “mental time travel” aspect feels sketchily developed, and I can’t help but wonder if it’s really a rumination on getting old, perhaps even about developing Alzheimer’s, particularly as the jaunts cause madness. It also feels like the world of 2012 she’s describing comes from research rather than firsthand experience. Considering her age at the time (which is how old my mom is right now), that’s perfectly understandable. Why would she book airline tickets online?

I kind of think she saw the 2004 movie The Butterfly Effect and based this story on that idea. (BTW, if you haven’t seen that film, watch the Directors Cut: it’s one of the best SF films of this century so far. The theatrical release is dumbed down to incoherence. Warning: it is NOT a feel-good flick.)

Still, it’s impressive she was thinking about such things. I know plenty of octogenarians who are completely checked out of current culture. My dad (86 next week) watches baseball and reruns of Bonanza. My father-in-law, who died just after his 83rd birthday, was completely baffled by the idea that computers stored information in clouds. Not “The Cloud” as we call it, but actual clouds. These men have far higher-than-average IQs, too. So she gets a bonus star for that, at least.

[Donna Craig · Rating 2 out of 5]

2nd reading. I didn’t even remember that I had already read it. Which leads me to the best adjective to describe this book: forgettable.

This story just didn’t do much for me. Sort of Interesting at times.

[Lyn · Rating 1 out of 5]

The only crazy person is the editor who greenlit this book.

I got the audiobook from my library to listen to on my drive to work, so I didn't even realize how short it was going to be. And good thing I didn't waste money on is because it is awful.

The author insisted on describing every single thing the characters ate and every pot of coffee they drank, until I was rolling my eyes. And yet the climax was described like a game of golf seen from 60,000 miles above.

She introduced so many characters such as (SPOILERS?) the boyfriend Warren, Shirley's brother and the two daughters who we never actually get to meet. We don't even find out what happens to them at the end!

And I don't understand why the condition drives the girls crazy. If you spend all your time in a hospital staring at the ceiling, then you aren't experiencing anything new. What does it matter if you are in your head 30 years in the future or today? You have the exact same experiences. Maybe the fact that they have to spend their lives in the hospital with no new sensations drives them crazy but if they cared enough, wouldn't they be able to tolerate a little of the "rerun" feeling?

Overall, weak plot, weak characters and an truly dull writing style. This is the first and last book I will read by Wilhem.

[John Ready Reader One · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wilhelm put together a nice novella with some interesting intrigue. As opposed to some other short stories this one was a good stand-alone piece. The premise of the story was very interesting to me. I don't want to give it away, but the unfolding of it to me was weird but it all played out well in the end.

[VJ · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was billed as a mystery. I would say it is more of a mild sci-fi thriller. It was kind of boring, which was okay because I used it to fall asleep three times.

The story idea was okay, but the execution was bland and quite frankly, uninteresting.

[Micaela · Rating 1 out of 5]

I can't finish this book because the reader's voice is SO annoying. I can't get past it. I want to, but I can't. Put this in the can't finish pile.

[Chloe · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fascinating and interesting science fiction premise let down by an ill-suited execution.

The story starts by a researcher being approached by her documentarian friend about her next film and this novella sticks to that conceit throughout - never showing too much interest in the impacts of time travel beyond its mental impacts and the cruelty of those who would seek to control it.

It's a very literary approach to a science fiction story and, as a sci-fi fan, while it was fascinating enough to finish in one sitting, it left me disappointed. I would have liked to have seen more of the Granvilles and perhaps even a bit of their side of the story. I think the format novelette/short novella worked against the story in this manner as well, as while the shortness benefited the set up of an investigative documentary, it does not lend itself well to deep dives into characters and their motivations.

Reading other reviews it turns out this author is an old school sci-fi author and an old-school author trying to do new school sci-fi would account for the stifled nature of this story - not just a literary author trying to do sci-fi - though my opinion it would've suited a slightly bigger word count still stands.

[elissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short, but fell apart at the end a little IMO.

[Richard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Audiobook. Great story with excellent narration by Marguerite Gavin.

[Collin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another aggressively okay book. A solid premise, a style well-suited to the story, and compelling character concepts marred by occasionally startling ableism and some baffling plot choices. I am glad that even the ableism of a decade ago feels so not-right now; I don't think Wilhelm had anything intentionally discriminatory in mind towards people with narcolepsy or paranoid schizophrenia, more that the media treatment of such disabilities was just treated differently as recently as 2012.

[Biana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not what I anticipated. I kept reading and wondering when the story was going to start. But it was right in the thick of things. Time travel? Prophecy? Visions? Does not matter. It wasn't the point of the story...which was a nice change.

[Steph · Rating 3 out of 5]

What a strange little novel!
The audiobook is narrated by Marguerite Gavin, who sounded somewhat like the actress Wendie Malick sometimes.....you know, the rude character from the tv show, Just Shoot Me? Yeah, it was odd, but not in a bad way.
While you can read a fuller synopsis in other reviews, I will say that the audiobook was quite short, and was easy to dip into at short intervals, here and there when one gets the time. Also, the novel had a wonderful premise, but didn't get as in depth with the subject matter as I would have liked. I am hoping that the author will consider continuing this novel as a series, possibly told from different viewpoints, all within the same genre and storyline. It would be VERY interesting to see/read more of this.
3.5 stars, and recommended.

[Chinyere Ezie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Novella-length, which meant the book’s big ideas felt a little underdeveloped. But ultimately the short following is just inexplicable choices of characters, including decisions or reactions that show a tremendous lack of empathy (or alternatively guilt) or make it an afterthought. While perfect protagonists are overrated, the lack of humanity in the choices made the character seem Unrealistic or inauthentically written.

Choices aside, the writing was accessible and some of the ideas poignant. So I welcome other titles by this author.

[Clare · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting concept, poor execution. The writing seems amateurish, which is strange given that Wilhelm is a veteran of the sci fi scene. I suspect this is not a work she spent much time on.

I do think it's worth drilling down on how exactly this story goes wrong, because its missteps could be instructive for other writers. Or at least, I'm taking them as instructive for me:

1. Overuse and misuse of specifics. Maybe this is just a pet peeve of mine, but if you're going to include detail in a story, that detail should serve a purpose, either by (1) imparting necessary information, or (2) improving the visceral feel of the story's world building. Here, Wilhelm packs the story with mundane minutiae, while skimping on anything remotely aesthetically pleasing.

"I called Cat on her cell phone." We don't need to specify "on her cell phone" unless it's to explain something else, like that you tried to call her landline first. It's just needless filler.

"I took out my iPad and began writing a report." You don't need to specify "iPad," or any specific device really. You can just say, "I began writing a report," or "I sat down to type my report," unless the fact that it's an iPad is somehow a weight-bearing detail. These examples sound minor, and they are, minor, taken in isolation, but when that kind of mundane specificity happens every other sentence, it's really annoying.

Not only does Wilhelm include too much useless specificity, but her use of specificity often serves as a stand-in for what could be an opportunity for more robust description. For example, "he drove up in an expensive black Buick." Ok, but what about, "The Buick he pulled out of the garage was a gorgeous machine, all buffed black curves and chrome detailing. He rolled down the window, and the warm smell of leather preceded his invitation to get in." Maybe it's just a preference -- and far be it from me to suggest that my version is anything near ideal -- but in most cases, I would prefer the author paint a picture than simply name the object. Likewise, "He requested we go to a drive-up hamburger joint. We went to a McDonald's... He had never been to a McDonald's." Here, you're just supposed to insert a picture of a McDonald's yourself, rather than have the author describe this house-bound man's first experience with the "real world." What about, "He wanted to go to a drive-up hamburger place. He'd explained how he had heard about them, but never seen one. 'Whatever you want,' I agreed, and sure enough, within a mile, the ubiquitous golden arches of a McDonald's appeared, rising out of a cluster of car wash and gas station signs like a lighted beacon on the horizon. I pulled in. He rolled down the windows, leaning out a little and breathing deeply the smell of fry oil and warm pavement. There was nothing notable about this McDonald's, just a squat building with painted brick and all the standard corporate branding. If anything, it was a little shabby, surrounded by parched ground cedars with scraggly thistles and chicory growing from cracks along the wall. In back, the garbage had been piled next to the dumpster, rather than in it, and I began to question his breathing so deeply as we pulled around to the menu." Etc. Just... don't give me lists of items. Give me something visceral to dig into.

2. Nonsense characters. I don't know how to put this more delicately, but the characters are bad. The story is told from the perspective of a researcher who has no compunction about telling you what a good researcher she is. It's pretty arrogant, and definitely violates the "show, don't tell" dictate, particularly since her research technique seems to be nothing more than Google and Wikipedia. This character has teeth-gratingly bad banter with her friend, the award-winning documentarian. There's also a guy named "Cracker Jack," which is such a bad name for a character, I don't know how to begin. Then you have the villain, who is hilariously susceptible to incompetent gaslighting. Like, it's all just nonsense. These aren't real people behaving like real people would behave, and none of it is charming or relatable.

3. The main character gives a speech about a crackpot scientific theory. Look, if anyone can't throw stones here, it's me. (Ask me about my own crackpot theories about time sometime! Do it!) But this theory is simultaneously hand-wavy and easily disproven. It doesn't engage with actual science at any point in time, and actually misrepresents basic facts. Like, time is a "real thing" in and of itself in basic physics, not just due to our phenomenological experience of it, and you have to address the math of the situation head on rather than pretending it doesn't exist. There is a way to address it (again, ask me how!), Wilhelm just doesn't do it, instead having her character simply bulldoze her haters, which makes her look a bit silly. Also, the way this information is imparted (protagonist-delivered speech) is quite cringe. You have to be more subtle than that.

Overall, this story seems more like a rough sketch that could have used more fleshing out and several more (robust) rounds of editing. I don't blame Wilhelm. To me, it seems this story was just something to get out the door towards the end of her life, and it's not representative of her other works. And it is an interesting core concept. Still, it's not a story I enjoyed, and it's not something worth emulating.

[Judy · Rating 2 out of 5]

An interesting premise, but poor execution. I've enjoyed several of Wilhelm's books, but for some reason, she wasn't able to develop either the plot or characters. It is a short book, and I got the impression that it was hurriedly completed. I will continue reading her Barbara Holloway series, which is a good one.

[Jessalyn King · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a really interesting look at time travel, madness, and family ties. I really enjoyed listening to this.

[Gae Broadwater · Rating 2 out of 5]

After listening I felt like I had watched a Lifetime movie--Engaging enough to want to know what happened but nothing earth-shattering.

[A.M. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cat makes documentaries of whatever catches her interest, and right now she’s super interested in how the grandfather of the Granville clan seemed to be able to predict inventions and patent them (without research) while another family member predicts stock market changes years in advance and with zero losses.
It just doesn’t seem right.
So she gets her childhood friend Mercy to help her with the research, and hires Cracker Jack to hold a camera and do whatever electronic work they might need.
What they find is a long list of suicides at a very young age. It’s explained as narcolepsy but further investigations reveal a whole lot more.
They start by interviewing the divorced husband of the Granville daughter.
***
I rather liked this.
It’s an intriguing idea to think about genes and special gifts that might present. Very much like the Time Traveller’s Wife but instead of co-existing with their future self, they inhabit the body of the future self. This is what leads to madness.
But the ending certainly left a lot of the issues unresolved and veered kind of wildly away from the story to stitch up a ‘happy’ ending for Mercy.
3 stars

[Eric · Rating 2 out of 5]

Put this one solidly in the meh pile. Not much in the way of thematic or conceptual material, not much in the way of character and most of the plot happens off screen, which generally works better when an author invests in atmosphere.

Cat and Mercy could be an interesting pair, but they don't have enough time together for either friendly conflict or bonding. In fact they are both basically immediately subsumed by a man's goals and kept separate. Even the premise of time travel, or at least knowledge of the future, gets denied and shuffled to the side. Certainly the villainous plot is acceptably nefarious, but it doesn't really hit home and is incredibly easily foiled.

While some tropes get avoided here, or at least kept from becoming the cheap, shrill sources of obvious drama they often are, they aren't replaced with anything. We aren't treated to a genuine sketch of a friendship because Cat and Mercy avoid a weird love triangle for example, so I found myself pining for the gimmick because then at least something would be going on.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this. It dabbles in the mysteries of psychology and time traveling without becoming over bogged in mechanics. Our narrator isn't really the main character which lends itself to some objectivity which gives the story room to breathe. Wilhelm definitely has a penchant for stories about crazy, rich, powerful people run amok. But people can be crazy, powerful and rich in so many variations and varieties. It helped that it was short. The story never becomes too bogged down in itself. Though it does border on being a little too neat; it's a little fun seeing a crazy, power-hungry person being crushed under weight of her own hubris.

[Jovdb · Rating 2 out of 5]

A short, rather confusing story.

As far as I can make out, there is a family that has a history of making money from patents, the stock market, largely by being ahead of the trend.

Cat, Mercy, and their crew went out to do a documentary about this legendary family. Then life got complicated!

I’m not a big fan of sci-fi books but have read a couple just lately (blame it on Covid boredom) that have dealt with time travel, parallel universes. It is an intriguing topic. The question posed in the book “What’s to be gained?” is also answered, quite spectacularly: wealth and power. But, in the end, does it benefit humanity?

I don’t think this is the author’s greatest book.

[Megan E · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mercy, a background researcher for writers and documentaries, is helping her long time friend Cat with researching a mysteriously successful and reclusive family of inventors/patent holders. Cat is planning a documentary that reveals the source of the Gavin family’s genius coupled with madness.

But someone sinister is behind the family’s fortune and they don’t want anyone getting anywhere near the family secrets.

Mystery, suspense, alleged time travel, narcolepsy, mad scientists. This book crammed a bit too much into one story so nothing gets developed too well. The ending is abruptly wrapped up.

[Audrey | WellReadandUndead(ish) · Rating 2 out of 5]

The synopsis was interesting, the premise was promising, and the delivery was shaky. There was an even split of interesting and unnecessarily convoluted parts, creating a waxing and waning of interest in the story.

The pacing was off, as well—steady if slow at the beginning and too hurried at the end. It left the impression that the author wasn’t sure how to wrap up the story but wanted it done. The cast of characters was potentially too large for how short this book is. It created some confusion for me and greatly diminished how much time and care was devoted to each character.

All in all, it was a story that was fine for the moment, but ultimately disappointing and forgettable.

[Patricia · Rating 2 out of 5]

Kate Wilhelm’s *The Fullness of Time* is an intriguing concept that ultimately feels underdeveloped. The story presents an interesting premise, blending science fiction and mystery, but it lacks the depth and resolution needed to leave a lasting impact. While Wilhelm’s writing is engaging, the narrative feels incomplete, as if it ends before fully exploring its ideas or reaching a satisfying conclusion. The pacing builds toward something compelling, yet the payoff is underwhelming. Overall, it was an okay read, but it left me wanting more—both in terms of character development and plot resolution.

[Judi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hiram Granville, a modern Leonardo, secured more than a thousand patents during his lifetime, often just ahead of others who had already been working the same ideas. His son John, an economics genius, never lost a cent in the stock market—or any other financial deal—and was investigated for insider trading on more than one occasion. The family definitely has something going for them that others don't have, however, with all the benefits the family received there is an inordinate amount of suicides, depression and insanity in each generation.

[Garth Slater · Rating 2 out of 5]

An awesome premise for the ability to look in to the future, what happened to the plot? I mean, now that this story is nicely outlined, I’d really like to see some real thought out results. The author would begin building suspense and then poof, it was gone. Like the car ride for 1/3 of the Book. She didn’t know what to do with all that and just ended it. And the conclusion, really? A crazy mother attempted assassination with a needle? Um, what? It was like the author had roamed and rambled for the entire book and her editor demanded a finished novel and BAM’ the end. I was left empty.