Quantum Radio by A. G. Riddle
Summary: Tedious exposition. Not recommended.
2023.10.21 — I‘ve read more, but Riddle‘s given me no reason to believe it gets better. I find myself looking at a Stargate set, so I‘m leaving Quantum Radio unfinished and going back to the bookshelf.
Quantum Radio on the left, Stargate on the right.
2023.10.17 The slog continues. The name Tom comes up weirdly—we‘ve had an introduction to Ty‘s brother, but not my name when Riddle then drops the name in as if it‘s been associated with the brother before. Nora recalls her childhood friend Ty fondly, but doesn‘t seem to have met his twin, Tom. The government moves ahead based on Ty‘s instincts. A worldwide genome-sequencing effort is underway when RFLPs like those used in paternity tests, 23 and Me and Ancestry.com would work. The known sequence would point to a very specific population and could easily be narrowed to a family lineage.
Riddle uses the word “marine” about 50 times in reference to members of the U.S. Marine Corps. The capitalized form (“Marine”) is a title referring to a member of the U.S. Marine Corps, which applies here and is consistent with AP style. The lowercase form refers to a generic seaborne combatant or to ocean life in general. Riddle doesn’t use UK spellings, so the lack of appropriate capitalization is not a generic application of a UK style. When you want to send in the Marines, they’re not just any marines.
2023.10.12. Argh. I can‘t stand it anymore. I‘m closing this book. I‘m tired of slogging through the awkward sentences.
As a child, a fixed stare from his mother was enough to make him spill the beans like a burst piñata.
Riddle‘s using a a simile to enhance a metaphor. Yikes! Please don‘t put beans in my mental piñata.
2023.10.12 Ch 1-7. So far, Quantum Radio is an expository bore. I can’t imagine how this made a bestseller list. Maybe Ryka Aoki is a tough act to follow, but Riddle‘s writing reminds me of something from junior high creative writing class with red ink all over it.
Penny screamed out as Heinrich belted her with his free hand, propelling her off him.
Then one paragraph later:
Drawing his right arm across himself, Heinrich flung the backside of his forearm into Ty, propelling him off.
That‘s too many “propellings” for one book, much less one page. It’s also a lot of words to say “Heinrich pushed Ty away.” Was this book edited at all?
This is the paragraph in between the “propelling” quotes above. It reads like a passage mocking bad writing. Maybe I’m just unaware of how often people strike thin steaks on a hard counters:
Her cry was like a light switch turning on inside of Ty. He dove on the man, raised a fist, and buried it in Heinrich’s already-swelling face, the contact sending a sharp spike of pain through his hand and arm, the impact like striking a thin steak on a hard counter.