Official Review: Doyle's Law by Sam Roberts

Post by **kandscreeley** » 25 Jan 2019, 15:09

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Doyle's Law" by Sam Roberts.]

3 out of 4 stars

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Have you ever stopped to think about time travel? Can you go back and change the past? Or will everything only happen as it is supposed to happen because it has already happened? Also, have you ever noticed that in time travel, sometimes the effect comes before the cause?

O'Connor is a caretaker on a space station. He and his crew have the task of dismantling the station for salvage. The lone scientist left, Ryburn, thinks he is about to make a breakthrough with a new ore from Mercury, but the caretakers keep getting in his way. O'Connor thinks Ryburn is crazy, but things start happening that are beyond his (or anyone's) control. After a series of unfortunate events, the salvage timeline must be pushed up; however, are three lone caretakers and one disgraced scientist worth rescuing?

Doyle's Law by Sam Roberts is a science fiction novel with almost 500 pages. While there are plenty of scenarios that will make your head spin, there is no graphic content. Thus, I would say that the book would be appropriate for teenagers up to adults, as the science is not overly difficult either.

While focused on time travel, this book is a bit different from many other similar novels. I appreciated the beauty and simplicity in the author's view of what happens when we travel through time. I don't want to give too much away, but I will say that there weren't any paradoxes or parallel universes like you see happening in other science fiction. Honestly, it was a breath of fresh air.

There are only a few characters that make up the whole of this novel. For the most part, they are well-fleshed out. I did get a bit frustrated with O'Connor as it seems like it takes him longer than would be normal to catch on and to realize how unreasonable he's being. However, I think this just showed his character's flaws, making him a more realistic character. Ryburn is the typical brilliant scientist, but he has his own vice. I wish we had a bit more background on some of the secondary characters because they didn't seem quite as three-dimensional. Still, it didn't really take away from the nature of the story.

The plot is fast moving in some ways; it does push you forward to continue reading. However, the book really only focuses on about three days. In that way, it could be construed as somewhat repetitive. It just has that "special something" that keeps you coming back for more. You want to be able to piece the whole puzzle of what is happening together. That won't happen until the very last page of the book.

Sadly, I must mention that the novel was not professionally edited. "He" is used for "his" in several occasions, and the author doesn't like to use the possessive form of the characters' names (e.g. "Ryburn" instead of "Ryburn's"). There were also instances of missing punctuation, often in the form of periods, commas, or quotation marks after a character speaks. They were frequent enough for me to take notice (even if I was not counting for this review), but they still didn't hamper my enjoyment of the story.

I rate Doyle's Law 3 out of 4 stars. Due to the editing, I'm unable to give it a perfect score. I would recommend it for anyone that enjoys science fiction, more specifically time travel. However, if you enjoy the typical paradoxes and viewing multiple timelines and don't want to break out of that mold, you might not want to read this one.

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Moderator's Note: This book has been edited and professionally proofread since the review to fix the errors noted by the reviewer.
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Doyle's Law
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Cecilia_L · Post by **Cecilia_L** » 27 Jan 2019, 10:49

While focused on time travel, this book is a bit different from many other similar novels. I appreciated the beauty and simplicity in the author's view of what happens when we travel through time. I don't want to give too much away, but I will say that there weren't any paradoxes or parallel universes like you see happening in other science fiction. Honestly, it was a breath of fresh air.

Though sci-fi is not my preferred genre, your description here intrigues me. Thanks for the interesting review.

kdstrack · Post by **kdstrack** » 27 Jan 2019, 14:54

I do like stories about time travel. This sounds interesting as you didn't notice any paradoxes. It is also nice when there are a limited number of characters with adequate backstories. This book seems to have many positive qualities. Thanks for a great review.

Post by **kandscreeley** » 27 Jan 2019, 15:00

Cecilia_L wrote: ↑27 Jan 2019, 10:49
While focused on time travel, this book is a bit different from many other similar novels. I appreciated the beauty and simplicity in the author's view of what happens when we travel through time. I don't want to give too much away, but I will say that there weren't any paradoxes or parallel universes like you see happening in other science fiction. Honestly, it was a breath of fresh air.
Though sci-fi is not my preferred genre, your description here intrigues me. Thanks for the interesting review.

It was difficult to describe this book without giving away all the details. It definitely wasn't your typical time travel novel though. Thanks.

Post by **kandscreeley** » 27 Jan 2019, 15:01

kdstrack wrote: ↑27 Jan 2019, 14:54 I do like stories about time travel. This sounds interesting as you didn't notice any paradoxes. It is also nice when there are a limited number of characters with adequate backstories. This book seems to have many positive qualities. Thanks for a great review.

It was interesting. I would recommend it for a different take on time travel. Thanks.

Jessacardinal · Post by **Jessacardinal** » 27 Jan 2019, 22:17

I am astonished this 500-page book only spans three whole days. I am intrigued by the fast-paced plot considering the length covered.

nonamer_miss · Post by **nonamer_miss** » 28 Jan 2019, 08:28

but I will say that there weren't any paradoxes or parallel universes like you see happening in other science fiction. Honestly, it was a breath of fresh air. I'm intrigued on how the author pulls off this time travel fiction with simplicity. This seems exciting!

Post by **kandscreeley** » 28 Jan 2019, 08:32

Jessacardinal wrote: ↑27 Jan 2019, 22:17 I am astonished this 500-page book only spans three whole days. I am intrigued by the fast-paced plot considering the length covered.

Yes, but there's a catch. You'll have to read to find out what it is.

Thanks for commenting.

Post by **kandscreeley** » 28 Jan 2019, 08:33

nonamer_miss wrote: ↑28 Jan 2019, 08:28 but I will say that there weren't any paradoxes or parallel universes like you see happening in other science fiction. Honestly, it was a breath of fresh air. I'm intrigued on how the author pulls off this time travel fiction with simplicity. This seems exciting!

It was a completely different take on time travel. The name of the book is the law that they use for time travel. To find out what exactly it is, you'll have to read the book. I don't want to give anything away. Thanks.

gen_g · Post by **gen_g** » 29 Jan 2019, 00:10

I do enjoy time travel stories from time to time, and this seems to be a decent one! It's a pity about the errors though. I'm also glad that this piece is a somewhat unique take that doesn't include paradoxes and the like; I'm definitely intrigued. Thanks for the review!

Post by **Alice Heritage** » 29 Jan 2019, 07:00

O is taking a roll in the snow at O YULED IT

_ _ _

Post by **kandscreeley** » 29 Jan 2019, 08:34

gen_g wrote: ↑29 Jan 2019, 00:10 I do enjoy time travel stories from time to time, and this seems to be a decent one! It's a pity about the errors though. I'm also glad that this piece is a somewhat unique take that doesn't include paradoxes and the like; I'm definitely intrigued. Thanks for the review!

It was definitely an interesting way to view time travel. It's so simple that I'm surprised I haven't seen more of it in science fiction books or movies. Thanks for commenting!

Post by **Alice Heritage** » 29 Jan 2019, 13:07

ButterscotchCherrie wrote: ↑29 Jan 2019, 07:00 O is taking a roll in the snow at O YULED IT

Sorry, that was meant to be in the "What word am I thinking of?" thread. I am clearly trying to multitask too much.

I meant to say, I'm intrigued by this idea of time travel without paradoxes etc. Sounds as if the writer came up with something novel!

Post by **kandscreeley** » 29 Jan 2019, 13:32

ButterscotchCherrie wrote: ↑29 Jan 2019, 13:07
ButterscotchCherrie wrote: ↑29 Jan 2019, 07:00 O is taking a roll in the snow at O YULED IT
Sorry, that was meant to be in the "What word am I thinking of?" thread. I am clearly trying to multitask too much.

I meant to say, I'm intrigued by this idea of time travel without paradoxes etc. Sounds as if the writer came up with something novel!

I didn't answer because I had no idea what you were talking about.

I thought it must have been the wrong thread. As for this book, it was so simple that it's absurd that it hasn't been done more. I've seen a lot about time travel, though, and I haven't really seen this before. Thanks.

inaramid · Post by **inaramid** » 01 Feb 2019, 20:08

"Have you ever stopped to think about time travel?" -- YES!

I love time travel stories, and yes, I'm very much used to the "parallel universes" and "alternate timelines" take on things. Seeing another approach on the matter might be interesting, but the editing errors you mentioned would definitely be annoying for me. Thanks for the review!