The Fold: A Novel

This is an incredible book! One of the best real-guys/real-girls do science and end up doing battle with the unexpected result.

I will read any book that Mr. Cline puts out that seems to Have the same link between real science and the unknown.

My opinion:
It was really hard to finish this one, as much as I like his EX books, this felt really bland, here is why:

- The main guy has a cliche cop show "superpower".
- The story structure is basically identical to "14"
- Great suspenseful 1st half that turns into a cheap action sci-fi for the 2nd part.

So the first part sets up a good hook with the investigation and the set up of the main mystery but ends up becoming interminable action scenes.

The thought process of the min character is portrayed in an interesting fashion. I regret that the story sort of falls off at the end into 'Zombie Apocalypse' with too many guns and not enough thought to the problem.

Peter Cline's novel "The Fold" is an interesting if somewhat predictable science fiction novel with some nice twists that H.P. Lovecraft would enjoy. The biggest weakness of the book is that most of its mystery would be readily apparent to any science fiction fan and the opening chapter was enough for me to figure out the mystery. That being said, the writing and characters were interesting and I enjoyed reading the story.

Mike is a genius, working as a high school English teacher, when he's recruited by his government friend to review a government project involving teleportation that has been encountering a number of difficulties affecting its funding. Mike's attempts to resolve a number of mysteries form the basis for most of the book, which has a few twists, although parts of the book are predictable. The ending seems like a pure attempt to create a series/sequel, and I would enjoy seeing more books in a series.

If you read a lot of science fiction or watch a lot of Star Trek, you'll probably figure things out fairly quickly but that will not detract from enjoying th story and characters. If you don't read a lot of science fiction but enjoy it from time to time, then this book will be very enjoyable. If you hate science fiction, you should avoid this book, because you won't like it. There is some violence and death in the book, as well as mild (implied) sex and flirting, so it may not be suitable for readers offended by that sort of thing.

Two thirds of a great novel, and one third utterly terrible. The story goes completely off the rails sometime during the second half, and it never recovers. Moving from a sci-fi themed mystery that's incredibly intriguing, to fairly dull action/horror-movie fare, was.. probably not the way to go. I read 14 as well, and I liked it well enough, but it had the same problem, so maybe it's just Clines' way? Point being, neither of those books are bad - they're both lots of fun, and really well put together. But the third acts of both are just such a break from what came before, it gets really hard to swallow. More so with The Fold, since that really changed gears (and genres) completely.

Not much SF in this science fiction. Some character development, a little bit of action towards the end, but pretty flat overall. Without giving any spoilers, the basic SF gimmick here has been used many times before in books and TV series. The main character's special talent isn't very plausible, and the ending is basically "lucky we survived that!"

This is my first read from Peter Clines. Great writer and a great story. I thought it got a little confusing at the end but it made more sense after I read his next book, "14". Overall, I loved it.

The idea of being able to travel vast distances in only a few steps is a compelling one, and it's hard not to imagine that there is at least some work being done trying to discover ways to make it happen. As such, that makes the premise of "The Fold" all that much more believable: that a team of scientists being funded by DARPA has invented a portal that bends space-time to bring 2 points closer together, allowing a person to simply step across and be any distance away in an instant. Of course, something seems not quite right about the goings-on at the lab, and Mike Erikson is recruited to head there and investigate things. I won't tell you what happens from there, and I think the less one knows about it going into the book the better. Let's just say that things don't work out quite the way they want them to, and this winds up being one of the scarier, more suspenseful books I've read in a while. If I hadn't had to work in the mornings, I would have probably stayed up all night reading this one, it's that compelling. Easily the most entertaining book I've read in 2015 so far.

Although it comes across as suitable for junior readers, it has an engaging protagonist. Those who have read "14" should have a good idea of where the plot is headed, so though Clines ratchets up the tension, that foreknowledge dampened an otherwise riveting read. Great pop culture references.

This is an excellent science fiction novel that deals with teleportation and more besides. The strong suit of this novel is its imaginative nature. The protagonist is unique, as is the author's vision of teleportation (no spoilers here). The theories were not as outlandish as they seem, and the author did a very good job of making most of this novel appear plausible; no easy task given the subject matter of this story.

In my opinion the end of this one goes a bit off the rails, but that is only a matter of opinion. This is an excellent, even mind-blowing story that will keep the pages turning right up to the end. Highly recommended. RJB.

Peter Clines spins some great worlds that are filled with some characters that you can't help but root for. It's almost a classic sci-fi opera in the good vs. evil department, but the ideas underlying the plot make it a fascinating read. He has excellent pacing which leaves room for character development. I couldn't help but notice after the fifth book of his that I read (note: endorsement) that he sounds like he's being specific when he describes characters, but he really is very clever with his written pointillism in what he lets you mentally write onto the characters he's fleshed out. I thoroughly enjoy reading his works. It's not War And Peace (what is?) but it's a riveting read that makes you want to find out what happens next right up until the end.

I loved this book. It was interesting from page 1 and kept my attention till the end. The story got a little... weird... in the last third, but overall, was still an enjoyable sci-fi story with relatable characters.

I thoroughly enjoyed this read! It has just enough plot twist to make it believable and the perfect mix of thriller and comedy. I love the main character's wit and charm. I recommend this book to fans of fantasy and mystery.

Started out as scifi with some basis in science, ended up as preposterous nonsense. Plot and characters predictable - older, shifty research lead, surly second scientist who comes around before its too late, hot female, a couple of disposables, super clever male lead that you just want to slap - oh, and Tramp the Dog and a cat. Read very much like the author thinks a movie deal might eventuate. Heaven forbid.

An engaging cast of characters and an interesting (tho not wholly original) premise sucked me through the first ~2/3rds of this briskly plotted 'side-quel' to Clines' 14 - then I realized it was heading through very familiar territory towards a disappointingly similar ending. A couple of characters from 14 actually show up in the anticlimax, way too late to help, and invite the survivors to join their task force. I think their mission is to provide jobs for characters made newly-unemployable by Peter Clines' psuedo-Lovecraftian plots.
If you find a secret government teleportation experiment more interesting than a mysterious apartment building, read this; otherwise, read 14. I cannot recommend that you read both.

Yes this was definitely a fun ride. Like a roller coaster taking you through a park. It slowly takes you up and around and then gradually speeds up until the point your finally whipping through twists and turns until the end. Just like 14 it takes some time to figure out what this is about and where it's going, but once started it flies on to the end.

And one thing about stories like these that start mysteriously and hook you in many of them leave you disappointed at the end. But Peter Clines usually wields through the tough parts to wrap up things at the end to leave you satisfied with the outcome with little or no disappointment.

Peter Clines has written another excellent novel, filled with believable characters and situations. The main premise is science fiction but what everyone does about it is believable, entertaining and enjoyable. The protagonist, 'Mike', is special in terms of his abilities but is very human in everything else and comes across as credible as a result.
Spoiler alert.
The Albuquerque Door is not a new idea in science fiction but the description of the 'science' is nicely faked and fun as a key part of why the things that are happening, happen. The reaction of the scientists as they uncover what is actually going on is reasonable, as is their disbelief and shock.
I do very much hope that Mr. Clines writes the third book that draws the threads of The Fold and 14 together.

Started off with an interesting premise about a transporter that allows you to enter a portal in one location and exit it in another elsewhere on the planet. The first twist that changed the understanding of the way the system worked was an eye opener that could have been the starting point for a thought provoking exploration of alternate dimensions or universes. Sadly, the author opted for a violent blood bath with ever increasing body counts. The book lost me just before the midway point. The tease hinting at a potential sequel will not get me to bite...

The protagonist with the eidetic memory, the best and only well developed character in the book, was sadly wasted in the second half.

I enjoyed this book. So many stories these days suffer from what I call the Alias/Lost Effect – A secret agency (that employs her father) kills a woman’s fiancé and she turns double agent after learning that she is not working for the good guys – no drama there - so add some Rambaldi devices. An airliner crashes on a desert isle and before the survivors can begin assuring food, water, and shelter – no drama there – start introducing dark conspiracies.

The plot twist, when it comes in The Fold, enriches the story and the cast of characters that Mike Erikson is investigating. I won’t say more because I’d hate to spoil the surprise.

I will agree with another reviewer that the book could be improved by going through it with a red pen and crossing out some of the repetition – I found one sentence that was flat out repeated on the same page. You would be well served if you can just read past these few imperfections – the story is both original and engaging.

Vern McGeorge
author of All Fall Down