Book Review: Britina Bovet's From Another Side of Time
by Martin L. Cahn
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Eevery month, Demensions reviews a different new, or classic, science fiction or fantasy novel. Agree or disagree with our review? Post a note by joining Demensions' MSN Community. Read other book reviews in our Archives.
This is the one of three books I've been reviewing for Pelican Pond Publishing. As with last issue's review of Elfie Leddy's On Silver Wings, I have to preface the review by mentioning that Pelican Pond seems to have made themselves the publisher of "alternative reality" books -- books by authors who have fictionalized what they claim are true-life experiences of other worlds and realities.
While On Silver Wings is the better book, Britina Bovet's From Another Side of Time falls more into a good mix of straight science fiction and fantasy than making any fantastic claims about how humans are being reincarnated right and left or being repeatedly abducted by, albeit, friendly aliens. You'll see what I'm talking about if you also read this month's other Pelican Pond review Called by Lauren Zimmerman. Also, as Leddy did, Bovet introduces us to a strong female lead character; in this case, she seems a bit Xena-ish, but with good reason.
Bovet's book starts with the premise that Earth is dying. It is the far future and the Sun is swelling to biblical proportions and will soon tear the Earth apart. Earth has, even before the book begins, set up gateways to other, parallel worlds, as a means of allowing the most people to escape Earth's terrible fate. In a move reminiscent of Star Trek's Genesis Device criteria, Earth people are only supposed to move over to unpopulated worlds.
Unfortunately, Earth runs out of time and an already populated world is chosen: Enseha, where time flows quite a bit more slowly than on Earth and is filled with people living in a medieval style society. Humans have even, illegally, set up a new "world order," in the form of the Hierarchy, somewhat uniting the populated lands.
But not quite, and that's where our story begins. Enter Belinda Mac Enzie, the daughter of Lord Duncan Mac Enzie, whom he has raised as a warrior instead of princess (hence the Xena-like characterization). Lord Duncan's best friends are Lord Matthew O'Connor and Major Maegwin O'Hara. Duncan and Matthew (with prodding from O'Hara, Duncan's right-hand man) decide that Belinda should wed Matthew's son, Stuart. The marriage, and Duncan's previous training of Belinda as warrior, is necessary to cement the union of the two clans and -- as is learned much later -- prepare Enseha for Earth-people's arrival.
Parts of From Another Side of Time read like fantasy because, from many of the characters' point of view, the science that takes place -- dimensional gateways, medicine, and so forth -- appear magical. It's a neat twist that many good writers have used before. Science is magic to those who have never seen it work, or have no understanding of its workings. It also reads like fantasy because of the court intrigue present in several of the story's plot points: Matthew's claim to the throne is challenged by a cousin he defeated in combat years before. Belinda's tom-boyish ways make her the object of dirision and even fear. There's also a brewing scandal over Matthew's parentage.
On the same track, but from the sci-fi side, there are intrigues back on Earth and among the "healers" (doctors) that have been working to prepare Enseha for colonization.
One of the best characters is O'Hara. Without giving too much away, he is both scientist and warlord and is perhaps the linchpin with which the entire story moves forward.
My only two complaints about the book are its breezy delivery and the injection of yet another writing character in the story. While From Another Side of Time should be commended for being a quick read (a rarity these days), it suffers from that same brevity. Plot points appear to be skimmed, or even skipped over. I sometimes felt as though I had missed something, or that something should have been explained more fully. It just seemed like there should have been more meat to the tale. Belinda and Stuart's story felt epic in quality, but watered down for an audience tired of multi-volume series.
Finally, as Leddy did with the character of Josie in On Silver Wings, Bovet injects the character of Jamie, an Earth-based journalist who discovers the Enseha colonization, becomes a part of the action to some degree, and eagerly sets off to tell the tale. I won't give away the ending, but I felt Jamie was a throw-away character. While he was part of the action, he didn't really add anything to it. I got the feeling that he was created because Pelican Pond is trying to sell people on the "reality" of alternate realities. In other words, Jamie was Bovet's way of saying, "This is real," when it obviously isn't. Of course, I have no idea what Pelican's policies are, so I could be way off base.
Again, I won't reveal the book's denouement, but I felt a little cheated. Otherwise, however, it was a good, quick read and an original one at that.
While On Silver Wings is the better book, Britina Bovet's From Another Side of Time falls more into a good mix of straight science fiction and fantasy than making any fantastic claims about how humans are being reincarnated right and left or being repeatedly abducted by, albeit, friendly aliens. You'll see what I'm talking about if you also read this month's other Pelican Pond review Called by Lauren Zimmerman. Also, as Leddy did, Bovet introduces us to a strong female lead character; in this case, she seems a bit Xena-ish, but with good reason.
Bovet's book starts with the premise that Earth is dying. It is the far future and the Sun is swelling to biblical proportions and will soon tear the Earth apart. Earth has, even before the book begins, set up gateways to other, parallel worlds, as a means of allowing the most people to escape Earth's terrible fate. In a move reminiscent of Star Trek's Genesis Device criteria, Earth people are only supposed to move over to unpopulated worlds.
Unfortunately, Earth runs out of time and an already populated world is chosen: Enseha, where time flows quite a bit more slowly than on Earth and is filled with people living in a medieval style society. Humans have even, illegally, set up a new "world order," in the form of the Hierarchy, somewhat uniting the populated lands.
But not quite, and that's where our story begins. Enter Belinda Mac Enzie, the daughter of Lord Duncan Mac Enzie, whom he has raised as a warrior instead of princess (hence the Xena-like characterization). Lord Duncan's best friends are Lord Matthew O'Connor and Major Maegwin O'Hara. Duncan and Matthew (with prodding from O'Hara, Duncan's right-hand man) decide that Belinda should wed Matthew's son, Stuart. The marriage, and Duncan's previous training of Belinda as warrior, is necessary to cement the union of the two clans and -- as is learned much later -- prepare Enseha for Earth-people's arrival.
Parts of From Another Side of Time read like fantasy because, from many of the characters' point of view, the science that takes place -- dimensional gateways, medicine, and so forth -- appear magical. It's a neat twist that many good writers have used before. Science is magic to those who have never seen it work, or have no understanding of its workings. It also reads like fantasy because of the court intrigue present in several of the story's plot points: Matthew's claim to the throne is challenged by a cousin he defeated in combat years before. Belinda's tom-boyish ways make her the object of dirision and even fear. There's also a brewing scandal over Matthew's parentage.
On the same track, but from the sci-fi side, there are intrigues back on Earth and among the "healers" (doctors) that have been working to prepare Enseha for colonization.
One of the best characters is O'Hara. Without giving too much away, he is both scientist and warlord and is perhaps the linchpin with which the entire story moves forward.
My only two complaints about the book are its breezy delivery and the injection of yet another writing character in the story. While From Another Side of Time should be commended for being a quick read (a rarity these days), it suffers from that same brevity. Plot points appear to be skimmed, or even skipped over. I sometimes felt as though I had missed something, or that something should have been explained more fully. It just seemed like there should have been more meat to the tale. Belinda and Stuart's story felt epic in quality, but watered down for an audience tired of multi-volume series.
Finally, as Leddy did with the character of Josie in On Silver Wings, Bovet injects the character of Jamie, an Earth-based journalist who discovers the Enseha colonization, becomes a part of the action to some degree, and eagerly sets off to tell the tale. I won't give away the ending, but I felt Jamie was a throw-away character. While he was part of the action, he didn't really add anything to it. I got the feeling that he was created because Pelican Pond is trying to sell people on the "reality" of alternate realities. In other words, Jamie was Bovet's way of saying, "This is real," when it obviously isn't. Of course, I have no idea what Pelican's policies are, so I could be way off base.
Again, I won't reveal the book's denouement, but I felt a little cheated. Otherwise, however, it was a good, quick read and an original one at that.
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