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The Nick of Time #1
The Nick of Time
Time been there, done that … or at least Frank Mihalik has. On February 17, 1996, Frank discovers the secret to time-travel, or at least he thought he had. He must embark on a voyage through time and space in order to set things right. He must survive parallel universes in which--Oh my!--Shirley Temple plays the awesome role of Dorothy in "The Wizard of Oz"! Only his love, Cheryl, can save him, but he is almost tricked by a parallel-dimension Cheryl and potentially wrecks his love life. How will Frank survive this wild jerk through these dark counter-universes? And will our universe ever be the same?
244 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1985
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
September 25, 2020
The Nick of Time and it's sequel The Bird of Time are slapstick novels in which Effinger tried to throw in every trope and gimmick and consequence that were known in the science fiction stories of the field from the original Wells through Gerrold's The Man Who Folded Himself. We see competitive bureaus in conflict, tourism and research, and potential paradox upon paradox, all mixed in a zany and humorous manner. Some of the obscure pop-culture references don't work too well because you have to look them up in order to get the context, and when he tries to get serious and philosophical the contrast is too jarring, but after all is said and done they're fun diversions. Effinger was always both clever and witty, and these are both slickly written stories.
June 18, 2019
This book has not aged well, but the biggest problem with it is that none of the characters are compelling.
The book is all about multiverses and odd time loops, paradoxes, and the like. Toward the end, Effinger throws out some scientific-looking diagrams and mathematic equations. By that point, I had so lost interest that I didn’t explore them in any detail.
To add to the above, I found the continual references to 1930’s pop culture to be extremely annoying. I recall that this was a big thing in the 1980’s to some degree (e.g., Farmer’s Riverboat series), but in 2019, it’s just annoying.
The book is all about multiverses and odd time loops, paradoxes, and the like. Toward the end, Effinger throws out some scientific-looking diagrams and mathematic equations. By that point, I had so lost interest that I didn’t explore them in any detail.
To add to the above, I found the continual references to 1930’s pop culture to be extremely annoying. I recall that this was a big thing in the 1980’s to some degree (e.g., Farmer’s Riverboat series), but in 2019, it’s just annoying.
August 26, 2023
George Alec Effinger doesn't always stick the landing (and sometimes the plot is all over the place), but this is still a wildly inventive and vastly entertaining novel about time travel, temporal paradoxes, and parallel universes. Writing in 1985, he makes some extremely bold swings about what 1996 will look like as his hero Frank Mihalik gets stuck in a time loop during the 1939 New York World's Fair, living the same day over and over again. This sets off a series of misadventures with parallel universes steeped in humor reminiscent of Robert Sheckley (in one universe, cherries are extinct because people cared more about sustainable housing than trees). There's one hilarious alternative version of THE WIZARD OF OZ with Shirley Temple starring and Dorothy dying in the end that I will not spoil. And while the story doesn't quite congeal, Effinger deserves huge points for being a nutball. There's even a note to the reader late in the book, grilling the readers and asking if they have been paying attention. You couldn't imagine a book that is sometimes incredibly insane being published by a big house today!
February 20, 2022
This is the worst novel I’ve read in years. Really quite bad. Uninteresting characters, complicated, hard-to-follow plot line, desperate attempts at wit and humor that fall flatter than the thinnest ice sheet — upon which the author skated around, pirouetting like a fool.
Only the opening sequence, set in 1939 New York, at the World’s Fair, is compelling. Indeed, parts of it — or the whole of it, I’m not going to check — were featured in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction back in the 1980s. I loved it. I kept the title of this novel in my head for more than 30 years. And what a disappointment. An utter failure.
Towards the end of the book the author introduces his best literary creation, the nuhp — an alien race — but to no good effect. Read the story “The Aliens Who Knew, I Mean, Everything,” which featured the nuhp invasion of Earth to grand comic effect. Now that was hilarious.
The author is justly renowned for his dark, cyberpunk Audran Chronicles books, titled from Bob Dylan lines. But this book is terrible.
Only the opening sequence, set in 1939 New York, at the World’s Fair, is compelling. Indeed, parts of it — or the whole of it, I’m not going to check — were featured in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction back in the 1980s. I loved it. I kept the title of this novel in my head for more than 30 years. And what a disappointment. An utter failure.
Towards the end of the book the author introduces his best literary creation, the nuhp — an alien race — but to no good effect. Read the story “The Aliens Who Knew, I Mean, Everything,” which featured the nuhp invasion of Earth to grand comic effect. Now that was hilarious.
The author is justly renowned for his dark, cyberpunk Audran Chronicles books, titled from Bob Dylan lines. But this book is terrible.
January 6, 2008
recommended to me due to my love of time loops. enh.
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August 11, 2011Great short story at the start of the book, but the rest of the book was not so hot. In fact very dull.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews