Thursday, August 18, 2011

Review - Schrödinger’s Cat



Chordelia, straddling two of the realities proposed in Everett’s Many Worlds Theory of Quantum Physics, has no idea how distorted the line is between choice and fate.

In one of her worlds, Chorie’s young daughter is dying—a drama that quickly contaminates her other, much rosier, reality. Before long, the emotional burden of dealing with two separate lives spawns heated legal battles, endangers her role as mother and wife, and causes people in both universes to judge her insane. As her lives begin to crumble, so does Chorie’s heart and mind.

When Dr. Penny, a man with disturbing, murky, hypnotic eyes offers to rid her of the life that’s causing so much pain, she must decide if she is willing to sacrifice the chance to be with her dying child for the chance to save her marriage and experience happiness.

She thinks she’s planned it well—she’s researched her choices, prepared herself for the consequences, put everything in place. She makes her decision. However....

Life, as it has the propensity to do, strikes back with the dark and unexpected.

Click here for an excerpt.

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My review:

This book was surprising on many levels. Its not clear from the summary what type of book you are starting. But what it ends up being is an extremely well written, easy to follow story that encompasses one group of people living in 2 different timelines and what minor differences can do to alter their entire life.

The book is heavily influenced by the theory of Schrödinger’s Cat. While at its base its not a terribly hard theory to understand. When you delve deeper it because much more complex. Eileen has taken this theory and incorporated it into a story with believable characters and situations. And produces a story that flows and is near impossible to put down.

Its hard to do a review and give details of the story as it would be too easy to give spoilers. But I do want to say that the ending was a surprising twist that really makes you question what reality is true and does what happen in the alternate realities affect what happens in the so called real one as well.

This is a fantastic example of the principle in quantum theory of superposition. Which is most cases can be pretty darn hard to wrap your mind around. But Eileen has taken this theory and incorporated it into a story that is not only well written and readable but also easy to understand.

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