Maslakovic, Neve: Regarding Ducks and Universes

AmazonEncore, 344 pages
1st published: 2011

Thirty-five years after the universe replicated, there are tens of portals through which the residents of one world can cross over to visit the other. The universes were initially identical, but small changes across the decades have added up: a car accident here but not there, a missed bus here, a chance encounter there. One can see the allure of visiting a world in which, say, the Golden Gate Bridge was not destroyed in an earthquake or one's family wasn't killed in a car accident, as things fell out in your universe. There's also the attraction of seeing what the other universe's version of you is up to. In the world--worlds--imagined by author Neve Maslakovic, dropping in on one's "alter" unexpectedly is a no no--it's kind of like adopted kids tracking down their birth parents without permission--but that's Felix A's motive in making the crossing to Universe B. Specifically, as a would-be author of a cooking-related murder mystery, he wants to find out if the book he thinks he has in him has already been written by Felix B. While in Universe B, though, Felix A gets caught up in a fight between competing research teams that are both set on figuring out what caused the universe to bifurcate in the first place.

I very much like the idea of a pair of linked universes, with all the complications that could bring to the characters' lives. I can also see this turning into a series: Felix A as an amateur sleuth/mystery writer who occasionally recruits his alter and other buddies in Universe B for help. In fact, this strikes me as a very promising set-up for a series. But if this book leads to more, I'd want the plot of subsequent installments to be stronger. While I enjoyed Regarding Ducks and Universes because of the clever idea behind it, and I grew to like Felix A as a character, I never found myself caring about the plot or the secondary characters. And, actually, it's hard to imagine why the characters themselves cared about their quest to find the reason the universe divided: the answer just doesn't seem to matter very much even within the story. But beef up the plot and bring the secondary characters to life and a series could be great.

Comments

[Wella S. Añonuevo]

1.

That is so cute! I'm already imagining that Disney will produce a movie for this. I'll definitely buy a copy of this and probably feature a review of it in my blog. :)

[Tallulah Grace]

2.

This looks fascinating!

[Allen berry]

3.

Yeah great book....