Spin, by Robert Charles Wilson. This book was a trip. I really enjoyed it. 3 teenagers, one October evening, sneak outside during a grown up party. And the stars and moon disappear. The Earth has been encased in a permeable membrane that slows time, so that for every minute, 3 years go by outside. This novel is broadly sweeping, discussing the technological, social, political, and religious fervor that grow up as millions of years go by.
The book is in two streams; the present day (the first page header is 4×109 A.D.) and the past (our current time). The same character is present in both times, and the stories slowly begin to inform each other and eventually merge together.
Craft. It is told from a first person perspective which really worked well. The characters were interesting and felt real. The arc of one of the three children is not at all what you would expect from the beginning of the story. And the novel ends with a beginning, but at the same time it doesn’t necessarily feel like the story must continue… it is a logical conclusion. There are two more books in the series and I will consider them, after I get through my huge pile of things to read from last weekend’s con. The next two books seem to go together and tell a single story, and I feel like I want to let this one rest in my head a little longer.