It was the last great science hero fight, but the energy blast ripped a hole in reality, and birthed the Empire State - a young, twisted parallel prohibition-era New York. When the rift starts to close, both worlds are threatened, and both must fight for the right to exist. File Under: Science Fiction [Pocket Universe | Heroes or Villains | Speak Easy | Loyalties Divided].
Empire State
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Adam Christopher's debut novel is a noir, Philip K Dick-ish science fiction superhero story, a novel of surreal resonances, things that are like other things, plot turns that hearken to other plot turns. It's often fascinating, as captivating as a kaleidoscope, just feel it in all its weird glory.: Cory Doctorow, author of Makers and Little Brother. - This is simply one of the greatest science fiction books I have ever read... So if you are looking for a super stylish, utterly engrossing, fast paced, smart and quirky read, I couldn't recommend this highly enough. 9/10" - Starburst Magazine - Adam Christopher maintains a punchy, bestseller prose style that keeps the action rocketing along, and protagonists that seem right both in their own setting, and appropriate to what we already recognise as super heroes. Empire State is an excellent, involving read, and it fully deserves to be the start of a new universe. Paul Cornell, Doctor Who scriptwriter, and author of Stormwatch and Demon Knights - A daring, dreamlike, almost hallucinatory thriller, one that plays with the conventions of pulp fiction and superheroes like a cat with a ball of yarn. Kurt Busiek, Eisner Award-winning writer of Astro City and Marvels - Stylish, sinister, and wickedly fun, Empire State is not your average sexy retro parallel universe superhero noir. - Lauren Beukes, Arthur C Clarke Award winning author of Zoo City - Destined to be a science fiction classic, Empire State is a breathtakingly original noir tale of intrigue, mystery, and quantum physics, deftly played out in storytelling so brilliant I'm finding it hard not to hate the author. - Diana Rowland, author of My Life as a White Trash Zombie - Fantastic stuff... The author is truly at the top of his game here. Goddamitt, I want more. - The Founding Fields
About the Author
Adam Christopher was born in Auckland, New Zealand, and grew up watching Pertwee-era Doctor Who and listening to The Beatles, which isn't a bad start for a child of the 80s. In 2006, Adam moved to the sunny North West of England, where he now lives in domestic bliss with his wife and cat in a house next to a canal, although he has yet to take up any fishing-related activities. Adam's short fiction has appeared in Pantechnicon, Hub, and Dark Fiction Magazine, and has been nominated for the British Science Fiction Association, British Fantasy Society, and Parsec awards. In 2010, as an editor, Adam won a Sir Julius Vogel award, New Zealand's highest science fiction honour. When not writing Adam can be found drinking tea and obsessing over DC Comics, Stephen King, and The Cure. He is also a strong advocate for social media, especially Twitter, which he spends far too much time on avoiding work.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
14 of 15 people found the following review helpful
By James Turner
Format:Paperback
The multiple worlds that Adam Christopher has created for this book are genuinely unique and interesting places in which all manner of exciting tales could be told, but unfortunately this book is not one of them.
Three quarters of the book are taken up with clumsy exposition about the setting - pages and pages of characters literally explaining to the central character how the multiple worlds work - and the remaining quarter is filled with confusing and nonsensical action. The central character is supposed to be a private detective who is the key to an inter-dimensional plot, but he never does any detective work, and just gets dragged dumbly along, never doing anything to advance a story that in truth could have carried on quite well with out him.
The conclusion is supposed to be an exciting series of crosses and double crosses, but none of the characters' behaviour makes any sense, the betrayals being present more because the author felt they were required of the genre rather than because they had anything to do with the motives on the characters. I kept expecting a clever twist at the end that would suddenly make the rest of the book make sense, but when in came to the final page I was just left disappointed.
Ultimately Empire State is an ambitious attempt to cross multiple genres, but sadly it fails to satisfy in any of them. Disappointing.
(Also - why is the main character so obsessed with his hat?)
Three quarters of the book are taken up with clumsy exposition about the setting - pages and pages of characters literally explaining to the central character how the multiple worlds work - and the remaining quarter is filled with confusing and nonsensical action. The central character is supposed to be a private detective who is the key to an inter-dimensional plot, but he never does any detective work, and just gets dragged dumbly along, never doing anything to advance a story that in truth could have carried on quite well with out him.
The conclusion is supposed to be an exciting series of crosses and double crosses, but none of the characters' behaviour makes any sense, the betrayals being present more because the author felt they were required of the genre rather than because they had anything to do with the motives on the characters. I kept expecting a clever twist at the end that would suddenly make the rest of the book make sense, but when in came to the final page I was just left disappointed.
Ultimately Empire State is an ambitious attempt to cross multiple genres, but sadly it fails to satisfy in any of them. Disappointing.
(Also - why is the main character so obsessed with his hat?)
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
Oh, I wanted to enjoy this. It looked so much like something I would dig. Noir, Chandleresque detectives, golden age super heroics, alternate realities... I despaired when this turned into my slog of the year. The genres are mashed, but not in a smart or invigorating way. They're just mashed. Ground up. Paid lip service, before being poorly implemented in a cliche-ridden way that avoids the heart of each, so that everything becomes tokenistic. The plot makes little sense, even though key characters repeat important plot points numerous times within each chapter so you don't miss them, the alternate reality is boring beyond measure, and the characterisation is hollow. A disappointment.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
By Paul M Ford
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Let's get one thing straight, the whole idea about mixing up a Raymond Chandler/Film Noir-style detective story with Science Fiction and a helping of Super-heroics was a great one. No question. It's why I picked up the book in the first place. But sadly it doesn't work. Not because the basic premise is bad, far from it, it's a very good one. It's just badly written. It takes an eternity to get going, the Empire State is poorly described and the central character is unsympathetic. I'd hoped that 'Rad Bradley' was a tip of the hat to 'Slam Bradley', a detective created by Jerry Seigel and Joe Shuster, the men who gave us 'Superman'. When the owner of the illicit bar that Rad hangs out in is called Jerry, I waited on his partner Joe to turn up. Nope, the interview contained at the back of the book indicates that it was a typo owing more to Sci-Fi author Ray Bradbury. Shame. There are lots of unexplored avenues in this book. Why did the Skyguard and Science Pirate fall out originally? Why does the main villain character 'merge' when everyone else has separate and quite different versions on each side of the 'Fissure'? Why does Rad get caught up in it at all? The last is particularly problematic. We are endlessly told he's pivotal to the whole plot, but actually isn't. He's a passenger. He doesn't do anything of note. The author outlines in an afterword a 'Worldbuilder' project in which he invites, with some strict but understandable provisos, other writers to play in his world. My recommendation would be to go for it. It's an interesting world with a slew of different angles that could be taken. Sadly, none of them are on show here.
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3.3 out of 5 stars
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
2.0 out of 5 stars
Sadly, the whole idea just doesn't work
There are some nice ideas in this story, and some imagery that should, in theory, add up to an innovative addition to the more usual alternate history/sci-fi stuff. Read more
Published 11 days ago by Drew
5.0 out of 5 stars
It's difficult to believe a work as accomplished as this is the...
Imagine a version of the 1930s where pulp superheroes battle alongside hard boiled detectives; where the police patrol the city in airships, searching for prohibition-breaking gin... Read more
Published 1 month ago by David L. Brzeski
3.0 out of 5 stars
Good book but not what I expected
The setting felt realistic, even the bits set in another world. The tone worked well, there was a bleak, oppressive greyness that suited the events of the book. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Cathy Hill
5.0 out of 5 stars
Two New Yorks and a lot of fun
To be honest, I wasn't sure what to expect from this first novel by Adam Christopher - but it had come highly recommended by a number of my writer friends, so I figured it was... Read more
Published 10 months ago by Dean
3.0 out of 5 stars
bee3line
It was ok, although I'm increasingly put off this growing trend towards trying to make every SciFi story a 'steampunk pirates in the sky' story. Read more
Published 11 months ago by H. Collins
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Strong Sci Fi Debut
The Empire State is the other New York
It's a parallel-universe, Prohibition-era world of mooks and shamuses that is a twisted magic mirror to our own bustling Big... Read more
It's a parallel-universe, Prohibition-era world of mooks and shamuses that is a twisted magic mirror to our own bustling Big... Read more
Published 11 months ago by Pablo Cheesecake (The Eloquent Page)
3.0 out of 5 stars
Above Average
Not bad for a first "proper" released book.
Interesting location and premise, but the plot became a bit "clunky" and I would have preferred more science behind the cause... Read more
Interesting location and premise, but the plot became a bit "clunky" and I would have preferred more science behind the cause... Read more
Published 12 months ago by M. HENDERSON
5.0 out of 5 stars
Empire State
A fab debut novel. Echoes of Raymond Chandler/Dashiell Hammett. Set against a backdrop of 1920's prohibition Manhattan with some superheroes and alternative universes thrown in for... Read more
Published 13 months ago by R. Marshall
2.0 out of 5 stars
A pastiche too far?
If you've never read a steampunk novel, a graphic novel or seen the movie Dark City you may enjoy this book. Read more
Published 13 months ago by Itsallgeektome
3.0 out of 5 stars
Could do better
Few books I have picked up recently have come with so many pre-publication endorsements. If the author of My Life as a White Trash Zombie things that Empire State is a great book,... Read more
Published 14 months ago by John Fletcher
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