BLOG TOUR: Murder in the Multiverse – R. E. McLean

DISCLAIMER – I was sent a free copy of this book in return of a fair and unbiased review

‘Being a recluse is a funny old thing. For some people it means refusing to use social media. For others it means hiding out in a cave at the bottom of some rich guys garden.’

The Multiverse Investigations Unit – fighting crime across the Multiverse
Alex Strand is finding her way as the newest and most ginger member of the University of Berkeley Physics Faculty. But when the murder of reclusive internet billionaire Claire Pope proves insoluble, she’s recruited to the top-secret Multiverse Investigations Unit. Hidden in the parking lot of San Francisco Police HQ, the unit investigates murders by sending officers to parallel universes in which the victim is still alive – for now. Alex needs to prove herself. With the help of the mysterious Sarita Jones, the bizarrely-bearded Sergeant Mike Long and Schrödinger the quantum cat, can she track down the murderer, prevent the same crime from happening in a parallel version of San Francisco, and get back before closing time?

What I thought

If you’ve read any of my other blog posts you’ll have noticed that I really enjoy crime stories with a twist and this is definitely that. Crime with physics and jumping universes! What could not be fun about that. And this book is so much fun. It’s utterly mental, there is a cat called Shrodinger that can’t decide if it’s dead or alive. It’s brilliant.

The main character, and our window into a super secret alternate universe police force is a Scottish woman – Alex – a PhD student studying quantum physics who is pulled in to be their science specialist. Something you definitely need when jumping across the multiverse to solve various crimes and to try and stop the same thing happening in the other world. I love how Alex talks about her studying and how it’s mostly just data input and not doing the ‘fun stuff’ in lab coats.

The alternate world is one where technology is everything. Most people spend their lives using virtual reality as a way of interacting, in fact because they are always plugged in there is an automatic defense system stopping anyone from walking into the sea. It’s really shows how much people aren’t aware of what’s happening around them and clearly people have been electrocuted many times before. It’s a subtle thing but tells you a lot about the world.

Alex is really interested in what happened to her family in the Other World and I can’t blame her. She keeps getting told off for it but I think it’s to be expected, if you could travel to an alternative world you would track the people you know and try to use their technology as much as possible.

Why I read it

I was offered a free copy for review but I was interested because of the idea of alternate worlds and murder

Final thought

Any book that has a cat that is sometimes dead, and is maybe dead in one world but alive in another will always hold my attention. The murder storyline is an interesting one and I didn’t see it coming. I’m looking forward to reading more in this series and using crime as an excuse to jump across the multiverse. And more Shrodinger, I love that cat.

Am I glad I read it? YAS
Did I enjoy it? It’s mental but utterly brilliany
Would I read again? Definitely, it wasn’t a long read
Would I recommend? Please go read this book, crime with a twist and alternate universes

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