Flux will definitely be a book that stays with me for some time. I’ve always been a fan of Robinson’s work – but I couldn’t put this one down. It had me from the very first flux and held on tight until the final sentence.
Flux tells a story of people “lost in time” as Robinson writes in his synopsis. They are fluxing back in time and not only do they need to figure out how to get back home but they need to figure out when they are and what caused this.
I realize now in my trying to write more about this book that I really can’t without spoiling it. It has a lot of things that happen. There are the obvious callbacks to movies like Back to the Future but there were other pop-culture references to things like The Land of the Lost among others. Robinson is able to put these in without them feeling forced.
The last third or so of this book absolutely flew by. I ended up staying up to finish it because I knew I only had a couple of hours left. I’m glad I did but I ended up sitting there shocked for a few minutes as well. The near ending (maybe with 20 minutes or so left) had me actually reacting out loud (there’s another reference I refuse to spoil that made me actually laugh out loud and say “wow”).
This was a book that was made even better by Jeffrey Kafer’s narration. He always adds something to all the stories he reads, but with Flux it was almost another level. It was just that good.
Flux is a book about (unexpected) time travel, but it’s also a book about so much more. It’s definitely a book about love, loss, and family. Robinson is able to pull emotion out of me numerous times throughout and I love him for it. There were times that I felt as hopeless as the characters in the book.
Also, the monsters and creatures that Robinson dreams up (along with plucks from history)… just perfection. A great addition to a time travel story is creatures. There is one particular one that had me Googling this morning to know if there was more mention of them.
Overall, a great story that is brought to life on audio. Flux is a book I won’t soon forget. I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.