What do you think?
Rate this book
The Chronos Protocol
In a city where memories can be rewritten, the only witness to murder is the detective who shouldn't remember.
Marla Espinoza was Nova Prosper's best cop. Until a burned man appeared on her computer screen, a man the department swears was never there.
Now, scorched bodies are randomly turning up across the city. Each crime scene triggers memories Marla never a sister erased from existence, children she saved from cartels that never touched this city, case files bearing her signature on investigations she doesn't remember. The victims form a pattern only she can see. Someone is sending her a message written in corpses.
When her own department turns against her, Marla goes rogue. But in Nova Prosper's surveillance blind spots, witnesses swear they've seen her at crime scenes before the bodies drop. The city's pristine façade is cracking, revealing a conspiracy that reaches from street level to the highest towers.
The murders aren't random. They're breadcrumbs.
And they're leading Marla to a truth about herself that someone spent years burying.
Some detectives solve cases. Others become them.
THE CHRONOS PROTOCOL is a mind-bending sci-fi noir where Philip K. Dick meets True Detective. Perfect for readers who loved Altered Carbon, Westworld, and Dark Matter, stories where memory is a weapon, reality is negotiable, and the biggest mystery is who you really are.
Discover what Marla forgot. Before it kills her.
This is book 2 in the series, but it can be read as a stand-alone novel.
Marla Espinoza was Nova Prosper's best cop. Until a burned man appeared on her computer screen, a man the department swears was never there.
Now, scorched bodies are randomly turning up across the city. Each crime scene triggers memories Marla never a sister erased from existence, children she saved from cartels that never touched this city, case files bearing her signature on investigations she doesn't remember. The victims form a pattern only she can see. Someone is sending her a message written in corpses.
When her own department turns against her, Marla goes rogue. But in Nova Prosper's surveillance blind spots, witnesses swear they've seen her at crime scenes before the bodies drop. The city's pristine façade is cracking, revealing a conspiracy that reaches from street level to the highest towers.
The murders aren't random. They're breadcrumbs.
And they're leading Marla to a truth about herself that someone spent years burying.
Some detectives solve cases. Others become them.
THE CHRONOS PROTOCOL is a mind-bending sci-fi noir where Philip K. Dick meets True Detective. Perfect for readers who loved Altered Carbon, Westworld, and Dark Matter, stories where memory is a weapon, reality is negotiable, and the biggest mystery is who you really are.
Discover what Marla forgot. Before it kills her.
This is book 2 in the series, but it can be read as a stand-alone novel.
- GenresMystery
251 pages, Kindle Edition
Published December 16, 2025
3 people are currently reading
5 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
November 1, 2025
This was an intense book but a really good one too! I started reading and could not stop until I finished it!
January 17, 2026
📚The Chronos Protocol
✍🏻Woodrow Bell
Blurb:
In a city where memories can be rewritten, the only witness to murder is the detective who shouldn't remember.
Marla Espinoza was Nova Prosper's best cop. Until a burned man appeared on her computer screen, a man the department swears was never there.
Now, scorched bodies are randomly turning up across the city. Each crime scene triggers memories Marla never a sister erased from existence, children she saved from cartels that never touched this city, case files bearing her signature on investigations she doesn't remember. The victims form a pattern only she can see. Someone is sending her a message written in corpses.
When her own department turns against her, Marla goes rogue. But in Nova Prosper's surveillance blind spots, witnesses swear they've seen her at crime scenes before the bodies drop. The city's pristine façade is cracking, revealing a conspiracy that reaches from street level to the highest towers.
The murders aren't random. They're breadcrumbs.
And they're leading Marla to a truth about herself that someone spent years burying.
Some detectives solve cases. Others become them.
THE CHRONOS PROTOCOL is a mind-bending sci-fi noir where Philip K. Dick meets True Detective. Perfect for readers who loved Altered Carbon, Westworld, and Dark Matter, stories where memory is a weapon, reality is negotiable, and the biggest mystery is who you really are.
Discover what Marla forgot. Before it kills her.
This is book 2 in the series, but it can be read as a stand-alone novel.
My Thoughts:
The Chronos Protocol weaves together a noir, gritty police procedural with cyberpunk-style sci-fi in an engaging Mobius strip of a story. As Detective Marla seeks a serial killer playing with her mind, she deals with past trauma that slowly unfolds, involving her partner, family, and old cases. Marla follows clues in a way that, at first, makes it feel like a typical--albeit engaging--detective story, but as small wierdnesses crop up and things don't quite mesh with her senses, the mystery deepens in a really cool way, untill we are tumbling headfirst down the rabbit hole. Marla was an engaging MC and was extremely easy to root for. It's clear she is a talented Detective and excels at analysing the world around her as well as the virtual. We are learning about the world (and what is wrong with it) as she is.The ending is quite satisfying, nicely balancing conclusion with dangling threads that will surely tie into the book.
Thanks NetGalley, and Author Woodrow Miles Bell for the advanced copy of "The Chronos Protocol" I am leaving my voluntary review in appreciation.
#NetGalley
#WoodrowMilesBell
#TheChronosProtocol
⭐️⭐️⭐️
✍🏻Woodrow Bell
Blurb:
In a city where memories can be rewritten, the only witness to murder is the detective who shouldn't remember.
Marla Espinoza was Nova Prosper's best cop. Until a burned man appeared on her computer screen, a man the department swears was never there.
Now, scorched bodies are randomly turning up across the city. Each crime scene triggers memories Marla never a sister erased from existence, children she saved from cartels that never touched this city, case files bearing her signature on investigations she doesn't remember. The victims form a pattern only she can see. Someone is sending her a message written in corpses.
When her own department turns against her, Marla goes rogue. But in Nova Prosper's surveillance blind spots, witnesses swear they've seen her at crime scenes before the bodies drop. The city's pristine façade is cracking, revealing a conspiracy that reaches from street level to the highest towers.
The murders aren't random. They're breadcrumbs.
And they're leading Marla to a truth about herself that someone spent years burying.
Some detectives solve cases. Others become them.
THE CHRONOS PROTOCOL is a mind-bending sci-fi noir where Philip K. Dick meets True Detective. Perfect for readers who loved Altered Carbon, Westworld, and Dark Matter, stories where memory is a weapon, reality is negotiable, and the biggest mystery is who you really are.
Discover what Marla forgot. Before it kills her.
This is book 2 in the series, but it can be read as a stand-alone novel.
My Thoughts:
The Chronos Protocol weaves together a noir, gritty police procedural with cyberpunk-style sci-fi in an engaging Mobius strip of a story. As Detective Marla seeks a serial killer playing with her mind, she deals with past trauma that slowly unfolds, involving her partner, family, and old cases. Marla follows clues in a way that, at first, makes it feel like a typical--albeit engaging--detective story, but as small wierdnesses crop up and things don't quite mesh with her senses, the mystery deepens in a really cool way, untill we are tumbling headfirst down the rabbit hole. Marla was an engaging MC and was extremely easy to root for. It's clear she is a talented Detective and excels at analysing the world around her as well as the virtual. We are learning about the world (and what is wrong with it) as she is.The ending is quite satisfying, nicely balancing conclusion with dangling threads that will surely tie into the book.
Thanks NetGalley, and Author Woodrow Miles Bell for the advanced copy of "The Chronos Protocol" I am leaving my voluntary review in appreciation.
#NetGalley
#WoodrowMilesBell
#TheChronosProtocol
⭐️⭐️⭐️
December 26, 2025
The Chronos Protocol (The Fractured Reality Casefiles Book 2) tells readers about Detective Marla Espinoza, a character who is known from the first book, Worship the Image.
Marla is the best cop in Nova Prospero, driven and determined to protect the city. Then her boss insists she take a vacation. Naturally she finds a way around that because she's on the trail of a serial killer.
While this story didn't capture me as well as the first book of the series, it's still a good read. The concerning issues of artificial intelligence remain very present here. When computer technology is introduced to the brain, with the ability to interface with your thoughts, at what point do you know if something is real or computer generated?
I was reminded of Les Misérables in the beginning when the punishment definitely doesn't fit the crime. A critical shot at clauses in modern employment contracts, taking rights away from employees, is also taken in this story. A side lesson here would be to take great care in what you sign in any agreement.
In a few places there are sentences which don't seem to make sense or fit together. The covers of the two books are also exceptionally similar, which may impact marketing and make them more challenging to differentiate. I also spent a fair amount of time wondering why Marla was so important to run mind games on, rather than eliminate, which was somewhat distracting. Reading the story calls for critical analysis, so suspending disbelief wouldn't be effective.
This story is difficult to further comment upon without doing a spoiler. Note: The book ends on a cliffhanger, so it doesn't resolve the story in book one, but continues it.
I recommend The Chronos Protocol to sci-fi noir readers.
Marla is the best cop in Nova Prospero, driven and determined to protect the city. Then her boss insists she take a vacation. Naturally she finds a way around that because she's on the trail of a serial killer.
While this story didn't capture me as well as the first book of the series, it's still a good read. The concerning issues of artificial intelligence remain very present here. When computer technology is introduced to the brain, with the ability to interface with your thoughts, at what point do you know if something is real or computer generated?
I was reminded of Les Misérables in the beginning when the punishment definitely doesn't fit the crime. A critical shot at clauses in modern employment contracts, taking rights away from employees, is also taken in this story. A side lesson here would be to take great care in what you sign in any agreement.
In a few places there are sentences which don't seem to make sense or fit together. The covers of the two books are also exceptionally similar, which may impact marketing and make them more challenging to differentiate. I also spent a fair amount of time wondering why Marla was so important to run mind games on, rather than eliminate, which was somewhat distracting. Reading the story calls for critical analysis, so suspending disbelief wouldn't be effective.
This story is difficult to further comment upon without doing a spoiler. Note: The book ends on a cliffhanger, so it doesn't resolve the story in book one, but continues it.
I recommend The Chronos Protocol to sci-fi noir readers.
November 11, 2025
Disclosure time: I read this entire book, but initially I fully intended to DNF this book. I agreed to review an ARC of this book solely based on interesting premise before I had read book 1 of the series, and then I ended up strongly disliking book 1 (Worship the Image) for bad writing, awkward dialogue, and a plot that devolved from cool mystery to resistance fighting.
But turns out I liked this book much better! The prose is dramatically better. The dialogue is still awkward sometimes, but overall this felt like a much more polished novel that was enjoyable to read. Plus, I thought this story was a lot more interesting. This time the story maintained the central focus of a mystery centered around the use of technology in the noir-style cyberpunk world Bell has built. The plot twists that started about halfway in really blew my mind and kept me on the edge of my seat. Lots of "WTF just happened" moments.
The one thing I didn't like: it wasn't clear to me until about 70% of the way in when this book takes place relative to book 1. It turns out I'd had it all wrong the whole time, and that sort of changed how I was thinking about the events as I read this book. I'm not sure if that was intentionally left vague or if it was an oversight when writing the book blurb, but I feel like I would've appreciated knowing at the outset.
The blurb states that you can read this book as a standalone, but I strongly suggest reading Worship the Image first because I feel that a lot of critical world-building happens that is necessary for fully appreciating the events of this book.
Thank you to the author and NetGalley for the digital ARC.
But turns out I liked this book much better! The prose is dramatically better. The dialogue is still awkward sometimes, but overall this felt like a much more polished novel that was enjoyable to read. Plus, I thought this story was a lot more interesting. This time the story maintained the central focus of a mystery centered around the use of technology in the noir-style cyberpunk world Bell has built. The plot twists that started about halfway in really blew my mind and kept me on the edge of my seat. Lots of "WTF just happened" moments.
The one thing I didn't like: it wasn't clear to me until about 70% of the way in when this book takes place relative to book 1. It turns out I'd had it all wrong the whole time, and that sort of changed how I was thinking about the events as I read this book. I'm not sure if that was intentionally left vague or if it was an oversight when writing the book blurb, but I feel like I would've appreciated knowing at the outset.
The blurb states that you can read this book as a standalone, but I strongly suggest reading Worship the Image first because I feel that a lot of critical world-building happens that is necessary for fully appreciating the events of this book.
Thank you to the author and NetGalley for the digital ARC.
December 17, 2025
A futuristic police procedural. Information is transmitted through implants allowing instant access to reports, maps, case files and other useful data. The system is complex and closely monitored and is supposedly accurate 99.9% of the time. But, when Detective Marla Espinoza starts getting flashes of images that don't exist in the system, she starts to question everything and everyone around her.
The story had a really great premise. It was the second in a series but listed as being able to be read as a stand-alone book. However, it became clear fairly quickly that reading the first book would have added a lot to this one. There were references to things that had happened in the first book, and other things that would have made a lot more sense if I knew what happened prior to this part of the story.
That being said, the story itself was very good and I was drawn into it right away. I was really into it until about the last third. That's when things got really complex and I had I hard time following. There were moments when one chapter ended with one event in progress, then the next chapter would start with something completely different and very little explanation as to how that happened. I can't help but wonder if I needed to read the first book to understand. Good for a middle book in a series, but I wish I had read the first book beforehand.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
The story had a really great premise. It was the second in a series but listed as being able to be read as a stand-alone book. However, it became clear fairly quickly that reading the first book would have added a lot to this one. There were references to things that had happened in the first book, and other things that would have made a lot more sense if I knew what happened prior to this part of the story.
That being said, the story itself was very good and I was drawn into it right away. I was really into it until about the last third. That's when things got really complex and I had I hard time following. There were moments when one chapter ended with one event in progress, then the next chapter would start with something completely different and very little explanation as to how that happened. I can't help but wonder if I needed to read the first book to understand. Good for a middle book in a series, but I wish I had read the first book beforehand.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
December 25, 2025
The story gets straight to the point with a strong opening, introducing the characters while letting the plot kick off immediately. From the outset, it’s clear this is a future that carries a touch of dystopian misery.
The prose is clean and confident, with a steady emotional undercurrent. Dialogue is sharp and natural, and it feels loaded with history. Relationships come across as authentic, with tension conveyed through subtext rather than explanation.
The scenes build intrigue quickly, hinting at a larger story without leaning on heavy exposition. Vivid sensory details create a strong sense of place with minimal fuss.
The pacing is spot on. From the first chapter, the mystery keeps you reading. Who is the burned man? Chapters, and the scene changes within them, are on the shorter side, which keeps everything moving.
What begins as a simple investigation shifts into something darker, with hints of horror, before it all goes properly haywire and leaves you questioning reality.
Captivating, and well worth reading.
The prose is clean and confident, with a steady emotional undercurrent. Dialogue is sharp and natural, and it feels loaded with history. Relationships come across as authentic, with tension conveyed through subtext rather than explanation.
The scenes build intrigue quickly, hinting at a larger story without leaning on heavy exposition. Vivid sensory details create a strong sense of place with minimal fuss.
The pacing is spot on. From the first chapter, the mystery keeps you reading. Who is the burned man? Chapters, and the scene changes within them, are on the shorter side, which keeps everything moving.
What begins as a simple investigation shifts into something darker, with hints of horror, before it all goes properly haywire and leaves you questioning reality.
Captivating, and well worth reading.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 23, 2025
Thanks NetGalley for the ARC.
Wow, this was really good! A Cyberpunk future with mind control and corporate takeover of EVERYTHING that makes you human.
Marla was an engaging MC and was extremely easy to root for. It's clear she is a talented Detective and excels at analysing the world around her as well as the virtual. We are learning about the world (and what is wrong with it) as she is.
It starts slowly until about the 50% mark, where it speeds up and information is being thrown at us left and right. Did sometimes feel like I was being overloaded a little bit, and I did have to reread some parts a second time to fully grasp what was happening. Overall the pacing was good though.
That ending though. Genuinely very excited for the next book.
Wow, this was really good! A Cyberpunk future with mind control and corporate takeover of EVERYTHING that makes you human.
Marla was an engaging MC and was extremely easy to root for. It's clear she is a talented Detective and excels at analysing the world around her as well as the virtual. We are learning about the world (and what is wrong with it) as she is.
It starts slowly until about the 50% mark, where it speeds up and information is being thrown at us left and right. Did sometimes feel like I was being overloaded a little bit, and I did have to reread some parts a second time to fully grasp what was happening. Overall the pacing was good though.
That ending though. Genuinely very excited for the next book.
January 11, 2026
A charged blend of genres
The Chronos Protocol weaves together a noir, gritty police procedural with cyberpunk-style sci-fi in an engaging Mobius strip of a story. As Detective Marla Espinoza seeks a serial killer playing with her mind, she deals with past trauma that slowly unfolds, involving her partner, family, and old cases. Marla follows clues in a way that, at first, makes it feel like a typical--albeit engaging--detective story, but as small wierdnesses crop up and things don't quite mesh with her senses, the mystery deepens in a really cool way, untill we are tumbling headfirst down the rabbit hole.
The descriptions of memory are mind bending, the reality warped on the page through prose, creating parts that are mystifying but wonderfully so. I held on to the plot as Marla dragged me through the scenes, knocking me about with the wildness of her pursuit.
The ending is quite satisfying, nicely balancing conclusion with dangling threads that will surely tie into the book.
An entertaining, exciting read that delivers on all its promises.
The Chronos Protocol weaves together a noir, gritty police procedural with cyberpunk-style sci-fi in an engaging Mobius strip of a story. As Detective Marla Espinoza seeks a serial killer playing with her mind, she deals with past trauma that slowly unfolds, involving her partner, family, and old cases. Marla follows clues in a way that, at first, makes it feel like a typical--albeit engaging--detective story, but as small wierdnesses crop up and things don't quite mesh with her senses, the mystery deepens in a really cool way, untill we are tumbling headfirst down the rabbit hole.
The descriptions of memory are mind bending, the reality warped on the page through prose, creating parts that are mystifying but wonderfully so. I held on to the plot as Marla dragged me through the scenes, knocking me about with the wildness of her pursuit.
The ending is quite satisfying, nicely balancing conclusion with dangling threads that will surely tie into the book.
An entertaining, exciting read that delivers on all its promises.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Thanks NetGalley for the ARC.
I thought the premise of the story sounded really interesting so I picked this book up not realizing it was book 2. I finished this book in 1 day. Its fast paced. I was a bit confused at first as I thought there were errors in the story. as I kept reading and figured out what was going on along with the main character, I realized it was intentional and not errors. This was not my typical read but I enjoyed it although I had hoped for a happy ending and not somewhat of a cliffhanger.
I thought the premise of the story sounded really interesting so I picked this book up not realizing it was book 2. I finished this book in 1 day. Its fast paced. I was a bit confused at first as I thought there were errors in the story. as I kept reading and figured out what was going on along with the main character, I realized it was intentional and not errors. This was not my typical read but I enjoyed it although I had hoped for a happy ending and not somewhat of a cliffhanger.
January 12, 2026
Was a very easily attached book to jump right into a mean wow, certainly hard for me not to stop reading a mean how was a meant to put it down when it got to a good bit.
The book plot was amazing. Quite alot happened throughout a short book but wow was so intriguing to read, once you get into it.
The main character was certainly my favourite and some of the side characters as well, and some characters I couldn't get attached to or liked by either.
Thank you netgallery for letting me read this book.
The book plot was amazing. Quite alot happened throughout a short book but wow was so intriguing to read, once you get into it.
The main character was certainly my favourite and some of the side characters as well, and some characters I couldn't get attached to or liked by either.
Thank you netgallery for letting me read this book.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews