Review of Worldlines

[Masese Catherine]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Worldlines" by Adam Guest.]

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5 out of 5 stars

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Reading Worldlines by Adam Guest messes with your head. It makes you look at small objects and wonder if they control your destiny. The story splits based on a cheap biro pen. In one timeline Gary drops it while crossing the road. He bends to pick it up and a lorry hits him. In the other timeline the pen stays put and he walks to school safely. Professor Buzzard analyzes this moment in the book. He calls the pen falling out incredibly unlucky. It acts as the specific catalyst for the divergence. It feels terrifying to think a piece of plastic decides between disability and a healthy life. It makes the universe seem chaotic rather than predetermined.

I think about Blue Line Gary often. He realizes his happy life with Michelle exists only because the pen stayed in his pocket. He has to live with the knowledge of Black Line Gary. The other version of him got crushed by the lorry and lives a life of bitterness. I suspect Blue Line Gary suffers from survivor guilt. His success relies on a tiny variable he failed to control.

The contrast between the two Garys stood out to me. One becomes a successful physics student with a beautiful girlfriend. The other ends up a lonely disabled man living with his best friend's parents. It creates a powerful exploration of how circumstance shapes character. I found myself empathizing with both the successful victim and the failed perpetrator.

I had one gripe though. I disliked the detail about the green bag for presents at the party. It felt like a contrived way to put a knife in Gary's hand near the cake. It seemed like forced set dressing to make the murder choreography work. It stood out as artificial in an otherwise organic story. Despite this small issue the book was perfectly well-edited. I noticed no obvious errors in the text. The story kept me hooked. I gave this book 5 out of 5 stars. It offers a fresh take on the multiverse theory without getting bogged down in jargon.

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Worldlines
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