A QUANTUM LOVE STORY

A woman’s business trip turns into a journey of scientific and self-discovery after she gets caught in a time loop.

Neuroscientist Mariana Pineda is ready to quit her job. Her heart hasn’t been in it ever since Shay Freeman, her best friend, went missing and probably died three months ago. But the offer of a last-minute business trip to the Hawke Accelerator, the place Shay has always wanted to work, is too good to pass up, and she decides she’ll quit when she gets back. While at Hawke, she runs into Carter Cho, a technician who seems to always be in the background of things. Then he asks if she remembers their last conversation—she doesn’t think she’s ever spoken to him before—and tells her they’re stuck in a time loop that’s going to be set off when the accelerator blows up in a few minutes. At the last moment, he pushes her in front of a green beam of energy, and she wakes up in her bed, four days earlier. Now aware that she’s caught in the time loop with Carter, she realizes the two of them must find a way to break the cycle before losing their minds. With a puzzle box of a plot, the novel has an interesting assortment of twists and turns, but that’s also one of its weaknesses, because it doesn’t seem to know what kind of story it wants to tell. The characters lack depth; only Mariana gets any shading beyond a surface level, mainly because the story is told from her point of view. Despite the title, the characters bond more over their plight than over any feelings.

A great mix of ideas that can’t ultimately coalesce into one story.