Extremity by NIcholas Binge

Book Review

Stephen Frame

Extremity clocks in at around 160 pages, so you could call it a novella, or you could call it a novel, or you could simply call it a fast and punchy read. Billed as a time-travelling, end of the world police procedural (and with a resume like that, how could you not want to dive right in?) it’s pedal to the metal from the get-go.

There are three main characters, and they’re all you need in a book about cops. Julia Torgrimsen is the grizzled veteran detective with a past, who sees the things that others don’t, John Grossman is the long-suffering chief inspector who tries to hold it all together and make sure things are done by the book at least some of the time, and Mark Cochrane is the rookie constable who mostly succeeds at getting in the way. The MacGuffin they’re handed is the discovery of two identical dead bodies, both murdered.

Each character shares the spotlight, with point of view switches happening in-chapter and in-scene. This is dealt with by having the characters names printed at the start of each of their point of view sections and by having the story told, at least initially, as if the characters are recounting it to a third party in the manner of a de-brief. It’s unusual, but works fine for the fast pace of the narrative. The characters themselves are fairly archetypal. There simply aren’t enough pages to flesh them out. But, given the genre conventions of the detective story, it’s okay. We’ve seen these kinds of people many times before in police dramas, and we’re comfortable with them.

What you might not be so comfortable with is the lurch into SF territory. And be warned, it is a lurch. The characters’ willingness to accept the time-travelling turn of events is where this particular runaway train almost comes off the rails, but if you can skirt by that, you’ll enjoy the rest of the ride. There are twists and turns on every page; there’s a sneering villain (of course) and the heroes have to risk plenty, including reputations, careers and police procedure to get the job done. It’s the intimacy of the writing that carries this one. You’re right there with the guys, tasting the lukewarm coffee and standing in the 3am cold, trying to figure out what is going on. Short enough to read in one sitting, this is a book worth picking up.