The Gone World

Author: Tom Sweterlitsch
Genre: Science Fiction, Crime Fiction
400 pages
Publisher: G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 2018

Synopsis
Inception meets True Detective in this science fiction thriller of spellbinding tension and staggering scope that follows a special agent into a savage murder case with grave implications for the fate of mankind…

Shannon Moss is part of a clandestine division within the Naval Criminal Investigative Service. In western Pennsylvania, 1997, she is assigned to solve the murder of a Navy SEAL’s family–and to locate his vanished teenage daughter. Though she can’t share the information with conventional law enforcement, Moss discovers that the missing SEAL was an astronaut aboard the spaceship U.S.S. Libra—a ship assumed lost to the currents of Deep Time. Moss knows first-hand the mental trauma of time-travel and believes the SEAL’s experience with the future has triggered this violence.

Determined to find the missing girl and driven by a troubling connection from her own past, Moss travels ahead in time to explore possible versions of the future, seeking evidence to crack the present-day case. To her horror, the future reveals that it’s not only the fate of a family that hinges on her work, for what she witnesses rising over time’s horizon and hurtling toward the present is the Terminus: the terrifying and cataclysmic end of humanity itself.

Luminous and unsettling, The Gone World bristles with world-shattering ideas yet remains at its heart an intensely human story.

My review
The Gone World by Tom Sweterlitsch is a mesmerizing, addictive, extraordinary story that very successfully blends elements of science fiction, crime fiction, and apocalyptic genres. The storyline is intricate and so mind-bending that at times, it felt like a challenge to fully wrap my mind around it. The book left me with a mix of awe, dread, and a deep appreciation for Sweterlitsch’s skill in crafting such an immersive world. It’s definitely a novel I’ll revisit, as I’m certain I missed some of its complexities on the first read. Despite its density and wealth of intricate details, I never felt overwhelmed—the pacing is perfect, making it a true page-turner!

Shannon’s backstory—as a criminologist haunted by the unsolved murder of her best friend during their teenage years—might be typical for a crime novel but stands out as quite unique for the protagonist of a time travel story. The novel introduces a few intriguing concepts about the mechanics of time travel, such as the idea that traveling forward only leads to one of the infinite possible futures, and that other people and objects can accompany the traveler back in time. These elements are not only fascinating and original but also crucial to the unfolding of the story.

The Gone World is beautifully written with a somber, dark tone and the grittiness of a noir crime story. In this narrative, time travel is far from a pleasant experience—it demands sacrifice, as travelers continue to age while away. There’s also a constant risk of discovery, fostering a sense of distrust towards anyone encountered in a possible future. This creates a cast of characters who are often flawed, deeply sad, or completely broken, making the book more character-driven than a typical time travel story. The scenes involving the Terminus are both cinematic and disorienting, adding to the novel’s intensity. My only critique is that the book juggles so many elements that it could have been twice as long to more thoroughly develop its intriguing concepts.

The Gone World is a complex and original novel that will stay with me for a long time. The various timelines give the impression of multiple stories unfolding within the main narrative, but each distinct thread is skillfully woven together and resolved in a highly satisfying way by the end. While the book is dense and at times challenging to read, it delivers an exceptional story that took me on an unforgettable journey!

My recommendation: read it!