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Quantum Deadline
Infinite worlds. One Reporter. Zero time.
When his newsroom intern jumps off the Golden Gate Bridge, 40-something reporter Daedalus Howell's reputation also takes a dive. Five years later, he’s still trying to clear his conscience and his byline when Jude, a lost 11-year-old would-be thief, seeks his help to get home. Ever on the prowl for a career-redeeming story, Howell is game but there’s a catch – the kid claims to be from a parallel universe.
The reporter soon learns that anything is possible on the strange streets of Lumaville, a sleepy Northern California college town in the grips of a startup boom. As hard-drinking Howell grumbles about the waning relevance of his profession and generation, he uncovers a maze of dark truths that connect the boy, his brilliant ex-flame and a ruthless tech mogul. When Jude disappears, Howell’s assignment is clear – save the boy, write the story of a lifetime, and make his deadline without getting killed.
A rousing kickoff to the Lumaville Labyrinth series, Quantum Deadline is an entertaining, tell-your-friends tale of suspense and self-satire as the tantalizing prospect of redemption hangs in the balance.
"Quantum Deadline is very topical, very now, very local and very funny. Put all those elements together and you have a timely work of fiction that speaks to us here and now, to our concerns with time and space and technology and love and the future.” – Jonah Raskin, American Scream
"Daedalus Howell's novel Quantum Deadline: The Lumaville Labyrinth is hard to categorize. Let's call it a noirish, sci-fi-lite detective story with a heap of self-parody that's by turns poignant, witty and comic... With humor and verve, the novel takes up some of the experiences and struggles within Howell's personal and professional life. He says he likes to explore 'the liminal space between truth and fact' as it relates to himself." -- Stett Holbrook, North Bay Bohemian
When his newsroom intern jumps off the Golden Gate Bridge, 40-something reporter Daedalus Howell's reputation also takes a dive. Five years later, he’s still trying to clear his conscience and his byline when Jude, a lost 11-year-old would-be thief, seeks his help to get home. Ever on the prowl for a career-redeeming story, Howell is game but there’s a catch – the kid claims to be from a parallel universe.
The reporter soon learns that anything is possible on the strange streets of Lumaville, a sleepy Northern California college town in the grips of a startup boom. As hard-drinking Howell grumbles about the waning relevance of his profession and generation, he uncovers a maze of dark truths that connect the boy, his brilliant ex-flame and a ruthless tech mogul. When Jude disappears, Howell’s assignment is clear – save the boy, write the story of a lifetime, and make his deadline without getting killed.
A rousing kickoff to the Lumaville Labyrinth series, Quantum Deadline is an entertaining, tell-your-friends tale of suspense and self-satire as the tantalizing prospect of redemption hangs in the balance.
"Quantum Deadline is very topical, very now, very local and very funny. Put all those elements together and you have a timely work of fiction that speaks to us here and now, to our concerns with time and space and technology and love and the future.” – Jonah Raskin, American Scream
"Daedalus Howell's novel Quantum Deadline: The Lumaville Labyrinth is hard to categorize. Let's call it a noirish, sci-fi-lite detective story with a heap of self-parody that's by turns poignant, witty and comic... With humor and verve, the novel takes up some of the experiences and struggles within Howell's personal and professional life. He says he likes to explore 'the liminal space between truth and fact' as it relates to himself." -- Stett Holbrook, North Bay Bohemian
250 pages, Paperback
First published July 19, 2015
8 people want to read
About the author
Daedalus Howell
5 books7 followersDaedalus Howell is the editor of the Pacific Sun and North Bay Bohemian newspapers. He is the writer-director of the feature film Pill Head and the author, most recently, of Quantum Deadline. His mordant wit and penchant for plot twists will next reveal themselves in a new crime (fiction) series.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
January 23, 2017
Interesting plot, good character development, believable science, needs some more depth with most of it. Ending chapters seem rushed and too many coincidences to be really believable. Not enough background on most secondary characters.
Would like to give 3 1/2 stars for the above, but moved up to 4 stars for inventiveness and uncommon storyline. Overall I enjoyed it and look forward to reading the next book in the series.
Would like to give 3 1/2 stars for the above, but moved up to 4 stars for inventiveness and uncommon storyline. Overall I enjoyed it and look forward to reading the next book in the series.
January 12, 2016
Noir, yes, and a bit beyond this old lady, even though she knows what an "Easter Egg" is and she's had her own "parallel universe" experience — which is what kept me reading, plus remembering the guy who was ...sorta (I'll keep his secret)..."Kit Fergus". Three stars only because I didn't believe his own parallel experience.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews