Most crimes are solved quickly, or not at all. It's 75 years in the future and things are still the same, as detective Gordon Kemp well knows. With his younger partner Danni, the two are assigned to the "morgue" cold case department at the London Police Department. When they're asked to drop everything else and investigate the mysterious murder of a public figure, they're both surprised and dismayed to find that it's an 80-year-old cold case. Not to worry, the ostensible culprit is known and she's been in cryosleep for that entire time on a spaceship that's just arrived at Mu Arae, an earth-like planet many light years away.

Secretly, however, the company that underwrote the mission has perfected wormhole technology and once the remote station is set up at Mu Arae, travel between there and Earth is instantaneous. All too soon, Kemp finds that he's been sent to the far distant planet to arrest the culprit. But there are shenanigans afoot and, on top of everything, it's possible that the new planet isn't uninhabited.

I quite enjoyed this fast-paced sci-fi thriller and grew to like the cast of characters, though perhaps the criminals are rather one-dimensional. Still, highly entertaining and recommended for fans of science fiction and noir murder mysteries.

I won’t post online because I didn’t care for it. I found the prose clunky early on and the dialogue bogged down. Sorry, just want for me and I didn’t get very far into it.

I must admit that it's the mystery with a futuristic setting that interests me. And I truly enjoyed this part of the book. I love the characters and even as the vision of this future is so heartbreaking yet I was drawn to it. The complexity and the show down at the end were very engaging.

On the other hand, I just couldn't engage with the other half of the novel. The one that was set in a foreign planet. I found myself a bit bored and characters did not call to me at all. Until, of course, one of the detectives turned up then it was all go go go.

Overall, <i>Wormhole</i> was an interesting premise, intriguing mystery, and a fantastic world building. I'd like to see more of these detectives.

<i>My thanks to Angry Robot for ecopy of book via NetGalley in exchange of my honest thoughts</i>

First, thanks to Netgalley for the e-ARC.

If this were a dessert, I'd describe it as a police procedural filling baked inside a wonderful hard SF crust, layered with deep, realistic characters that I found relatable and nuanced.

But it's a book, so that would sound weird.

You should read it!

This was a surprise for me…loved it. I love science fiction , but bonus was that it was a murder investigation of a cold case from 80 years previous. Suspended animation, travel to a new planet, encounters with aliens, and a great investigative team using very integrative technology. .a great story, great and satisfying conclusion, lots of suspense. A thoroughly great read.

5.5 / 10 ✪

https://arefugefromlife.wordpress.com/2023/01/03/wormhole-by-eric-brown-keith-brooke-review/

The world has changed. A combination of climate change, overpopulation, and resource shortage has led to mass migration of humanity and the need to explore outside the bounds of Earth’s gravity well. Thus an expedition has been launched to Mu Arae, an earth-like planet and trip of about 80 years. The crew are to be kept in suspended animation for the duration, and expected to investigate the planet before deploying a highly experimental contraption as a means of creating a stable wormhole back to Earth.

London, 2190

Gordon Kemp is a former homicide detective, stuck investigating cold-cases as his career winds down. Assigned to a high-profile case named top priority, he and his partner Danni Bellini are surprised to discover that the main suspect—long since departed on the Mu Arae expedition—is not as out of range as they once believed. In fact, with the wormhole expected to be opened within the week, the Kemp’s superiors have instructed him to be ready to depart and retrieve the suspect at first convenience.

The suspect: Rima Cagnac, wife of the illustrious Sebastien White—one of the richest and most influential people on Earth. Accused of killing her husband, she was somehow allowed to leave Earth on the expedition, having been cleared of suspicion. For roughly a century, at least.

While what Kemp and his partner uncover while investigating this case may well change the course of history, what Rima Cagnac discovers on the distant Mu Arae will well shape the future.

—

Let’s start with the investigation. A cold-case into one of the most prolific unsolved murders in history, dismissed due to lack of evidence, the main suspect allowed to walk (to another planet no less)—and pretty much assumed off-limits afterwards. But instead of focusing on solving (or framing up) the crime that they had eighty years to perfect, they decide to half-ass it on the spot a week before the wormhole is set to open. The conspiracy—because obviously the new evidence is bogus—is so thin that it can be picked apart by two down-on-their-luck detectives and their hacker friend in about a week.

Despite this, the story is actually not terrible. Engaging, interesting (if not deep), and at least somewhat mysterious and immersive. While I developed issues with the plot somewhere around the three-quarters mark—and while I was never absolutely in love with every aspect of the story—it wasn’t a hard book to get into. A decent plot; there were problems with it, but they could be overlooked (early on). The characters, at least those of Danni and Gordon and Rima, were interesting and relatable. But when we stray from the main cast… the depth peters out in a hurry.

Enter Edouard Bryce: key story element and unrepentant chauvinistic ass. Unveiled as Danni’s love interest halfway through the story, he doesn’t change to attract the independent, modern professional that she’s portrayed as. Instead, she changes to suit him. I know it’s very much possible and realistic, but it was still frustrating. He’s probably likable to <i>someone</i>, but that someone was never me.

Okay, now let’s address the twist. It’s… well, it’s too much.

The main issue with Wormhole is that it tries to do too much. A detective story quickly becomes a space exploration—a planet exploration event with potential first contact. With a wormhole added as an afterthought. With a conspiracy that draws secrets from the plot that <i>it</i> can’t even know. There’s just too much going on, too much continually competing to be the center of attention, especially as we approach the latter half of the novel.

TL;DR

Wormhole is a mystery, exploration, adventure, thriller, that tries to appeal to all genres equally yet ultimately manages to succeed in none of them. The reason? It continually tries to do too much. A mystery becomes a space exploration, which becomes a scientific wonder, which begets conspiracy, revolution, dystopia, thriller, aliens, romance, memoir, philosophy… yeah, you get the idea. It’s a bit like Great North Road—the Peter F. Hamilton novel, only crammed into about one-third of the space. Too much, too hectic, not well-enough thought out or built or explained. While there is a decent story within, it’s not going to appeal to everyone. Think about any one element for too long and everything breaks down. All in all, a disappointment for sure.

It's hard to review a book like this one, a mix of sci-fi and thriller as the relevant elements can be different.
That said I enjoyed it and liked how it worked creating an interesting world and a quite solid mystery.
I would be curious to read another sci-fi thriller by these authors.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine

This was a DNF at 50%. Though I was intrigued by the start of the story, as the plot progressed I was less and less invested in what was happening.
I failed to connect with any of the characters - the inept aging detective, the keen young one, or the controversial scientist waking up at the other end of the galaxy after a long sleep. I felt the whole setup of the wormhole was executed via a hand-wave, there was little detail or drama which made it pretty unbelievable. Yes, I know this is sci-fi set in the future, but wouldn't you expect more to go wrong when setting up such complicated technology? Honestly this should have been the focus of the plot, not the completely boring murder. The wormhole, the most interesting bit of the whole story and the actual title of the book, turned out to be just a plot device to facilitate easy travel between Earth and the new world so a police arrest could be made.
I got up to where the new colonists got kidnapped by the indigenous aliens before I realised I just didn't care what happened to them.

This book is a quant enchanting book about the universe, for anyone interested in reading about the universe, likes sci-fi-, adventure, mystery, and the galaxy this book is for them.

Wormhole is a unique mash up of police procedural and hard sci fi. Cold case detective Gordon Kemp is assigned to investigate an 80-year-old mystery that leads him through wormholes, far worlds, and scientific exploration to find out what happened. Though at times I felt some plot items could have been elaborated on a bit more, this was a fun and entertaining read. Really hoping this author duo writes more in the future! Thank you go NetGalley for a chance to read and review this book! #AngryRobot #Wormhole

Imagine the sacrifice required to sign up for a long-term mission into the depth of space. You are to be cryogenically frozen for 80 years and will awake to a new world. It could be that this is what you wanted all along. A chance at a new life free from the Old Earth, but they have only gone and brought wormhole technology along and not told anyone. Now Earth is only a shuttle flight away. So close to your old memories, experiences, crimes. Wormhole by Eric Brown and Keith Brooke is part new world exploration, part crime noir.

Detective Gordon Kemp has been sent to the cold case unit as punishment to end his once promising career. When he is asked to investigate an 80-year-old murder, there should be no chance of success, but one witness is still alive and has a new statement. There are holes in one of the prime suspects stories, but she is a scientist who left for space 80 years ago. Kemp has one last great case in him as the power that be reveal that the suspect may be accessible.

I have said it many times, but science fiction is so great as you can do so much with it. In the case of Wormhole, Brown and Brooke do more than one thing. It is a futuristic crime story, but also a first contact space exploration novel. The opening section follows Kemp and his partner as they investigate a crime on future Earth. Later, the book splits as we follow the suspect on her adventure on a new planet.

It starts off feeling a little odd to have two quite different concepts bouncing back and forth, but as the novel progresses, they are drawn together as Kemp is sent out to arrest the suspect. This is a fish out of water scenario as Kemp has no compulsion to go to space but is his discomfort intentional? This is more than just a murder 80 years ago, but a conspiracy that spans the decades and powerful people. The true enemy may be far bigger than Kemp can imagine.

There is a stonking crime story that runs through Wormhole keeping a rhythm, when Kemp is off world, his partner continues to investigate. It may feel quite different, but equally as good is the planet exploration elements of the story. Brown and Brooke get to flex two different writing muscles and they work equally as well. The book becomes something a little hard to pigeonhole, but that is a good thing.

The world building is excellent, not only in the new planet, but Old Earth too. The reader is not forced to read pages of exposition, but instead you learn about the geo-politics through the stories and characters. What seems like early colour becomes more important as the story progresses. I thoroughly enjoyed Wormhole as both future crime and science fiction. It has plenty of alien landscapes to sate lovers of other worlds, but also has a solid crime narrative that has all the twists you would want from the genre.

Wormhole is a police procedural set on a world far far away and also an almost ruined Earth. Cold case detectives on Earth must solve an eighty-year-old case that was recently revived after a spaceship thought lost arrives at a new planet. The spaceship sets up a quick path to Earth, which leads one detective to go to the new world to find a killer.

Wormhole has a forties noir feel. It is a very skilled mashup. However, it does favor plot over character development. In addition, the new planet and the technology necessary to get there was rather standard hard science fiction fare rather the original world-building I expected. Still, a pleasant day’s reading for mystery fans looking for an unusual setting. 3.5 stars rounded up to 4 stars!

Thanks to Angry Robot and NetGalley for a digital review copy of the book.

SF and the detective novel can mix brilliantly together, as in the Asimov Baley and Olivaw novels, when the detective story structure is used as an entry point for exploring new technologies and future societies. Wormhole, such a mashup, has a promising enough set up: weary detective Kemp is sent to a world light years away, now instantly connected to earth light years away via the titular wormhole. Eighty years ago the spaceship carrying the technology to make the wormhole left earth, and on board is someone now suspected of a murder from nearly a century before. There are some nice ideas that riff on the various ways that a ‘cold case’ could turn warm again, but what makes this novel no more than a diverting read is the derivative feel of the technology and the alien world. The exploration base, the trips into the alien ecosystem, the encounters with gentle and sentient aliens, all evoke more original and interesting takes on these tropes. The whodunnit aspect again revolves around some well-worn characters, from the evil head of security to the reclusive billionaire and even the country house.

A fair review given in return for an ARC.

A mix of sci-fi and legal thriller. This made for a fun combination, with main characters that were developed and relatable. I felt like some of the ancillary, but important, characters could have used some additional development.

The plot was intriguing, the idea of doing a "cold case" investigation where cryogenic stasis during travel to a distant star means the subject of the investigation is still alive 80 years after the event that triggered it. Add in new technology that means it's no longer an 80 year journey and things get very interesting.

I felt like the first 75-85% of the book did a great job of building the world, developing the characters, ratcheting the tension, and fleshing out the plot. Then the last portion of the book felt rushed to me. It was still enjoyable, but the ending didn't seem to get the same care as the earlier stages.

Overall, I enjoyed the read and would recommend to friends looking for something slightly different.

A 80 year old cold case,. Mu Arae, a new Earth type planet. Two detectives one on Earth snd one on MuArae and a case that spans the 80 years and the two planets. A mystery full of twists, turns. And tension. Hard to put down. Easy to follow as the two characters tell their stories while far apart.

"Wormhole" is an entertaining read that blends sci-fi and crime. The genres blend perfectly here and feed off each other very nicely. It's written well, but I found the characters to be a little bit cold. It's a great plot, which I thoroughly enjoyed, but I wish the book had been about 50 pages longer.

My thanks to the authors, publisher, and NetGalley. This review was written voluntarily and is entirely my own, unbiased, opinion.

I requested this one because it might be an upcoming title I would like to review on my Youtube Channel. However, after reading the first several chapters I have determined that this book does not suit my tastes. So I decided to DNF this one.

This book was an amazing mixture of sci-fi and mystery with a side of law and order. I am always impressed when 2 authors are able to make a story together but in this story they made it so smooth and you couldn't tell there were 2 voices. The character and world building are very well done and kept me from putting this book down. Thanks to the author, publisher and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an unbiased review. 5 out of 5 stars.

Nicely done. A hard scifi tale with a mystery. The author did a nice job of creating interesting characters and situations, along with fun tech. I stayed engaged and look forward to future work by the authors.

Thanks very much for the free ARC for review!!

Wormhole is a detective story set in the context of man’s first venture outside our solar system. It’s a clever pairing of the intrigue of a murder mystery with the fascination of exploring a distant planet.

In the year 2194, Detectives Gordon Kemp and Danni Bellini are trying to solve cold cases in London. When they’re given an 80-year-old case, they find that the chief suspect is still alive, having been aboard a spaceship headed to a planet 50 light years distant, with its passengers cryogenically suspended. It turns out that the spaceship arrived and secretly stowed on board was a “quantum matrix,” which allowed a wormhole to be established between the distant planet and earth, so Kemp can travel to the planet instantaneously to track down his suspect, the dead man’s wife, a doctor.

We are treated with an interesting description of the new planet and the discovery that it is inhabited by sentient creatures and has an atmosphere that is deadly to those exposed to it without a biohazard suit. But the real story involves Danni, still on Earth and working with a lawyer-friend of Kemp’s and Kemp piecing information together on the new planet, to find that the whole trip to the planet was part of a plot by the real killer of the man 80 years previously. The story bounces back and forth between Danni’s investigation on Earth, Kemp’s adventures on the new planet, and the doctor’s experiences with the aliens who live there. It’s an exciting mystery, and I won’t give away its solution or too much of the details. In will say that the combination of learning about the unusual nature of the new planet and its inhabitants while trying to solve the murder mystery makes for an exciting story. The characters are well developed and likable, the mystery is suitably hard to unravel, and all, and there’s just enough strangeness and scientific speculation to make it real science fiction.

Thank you to NetGalley for making this book freely available to me to review.